Everyone in the UK will need to have a passport to travel abroad. You can apply for a British passport if you’re a British citizen, a British overseas territories citizen, a British overseas citizen, a British subject, a British national (overseas), or a British protected person, according to Government guidance.
HM Passport Office is responsible for issuing the documents, with the average wait currently three weeks or less. If you need to renew your existing passport, or apply for a new one, fees will usually apply.
Currently a standard adult passport, so for those aged 16 and over, costs £88.50 when applying online, or £100 when applying using the paper form. Frequent travellers may wish to get a 54-page passport, rather than the standard 34, and these cost £100.50 online, or £112 when using the form.
A standard passport for a child is £57.50 or £69, while a frequent traveller child’s passport costs £69.50 or £81 when applying online or via the paper form, respectively. And if you were born on or before a certain date, you can get a passport for free.
In order to get a new British passport or renew your old one for free, you must have been born either on or before September 2, 1929. You can also use the Post Office Check and Send service for free and get free secure delivery.
However, government advice explains that you must pay a fee if you need to get a passport urgently or if you want a frequent traveller passport.