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Passport fees reviewed upwards

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration has reviewed upwards passport fees and fees for other services offered by the passports offices.

With immediate effect, ordinary passports, previously GH₵50, now cost GH₵100 for 32 pages, while a 48-page passport is no longer GH₵100 but GH₵150.

Expedited 32-page passport has been increased from GH₵100 to GH₵150, whereas the 48-page is now GH₵200.

A statement issued by the ministry last Friday said, the review of fees had been approved by Parliament under the Fees and Charges (Miscellaneous Provisions) Instrument 2019.

On the new charges for services, it said attestation of legal documents, which used to be GH₵25, now cost GH₵37.50, with travel certificate then GH₵25, is now GH₵37.50.

 “The ministry counts on the usual cooperation of the public,” it said.

Although the statement did not assign reasons for the review, it would be recalled that the Ghanaian Times published the ministry’s intent to review the fees nine months ago.

At a press conference in Accra, Ms Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, the sector minister said, recent changes introduced in passports acquisition involved “enormous financial outlays” for which reason the government could no longer continue to “heavily” subsidise cost of passports production.

Some of the changes that has warranted the impending hike included; extension of  passport application centres  to all the regional capitals, retooling passport office, extension of passports validity and introduction of  premium services.

She said the government was not seeking to make profit from the intended hikes, but to ensure Ghanaians paid the realistic prices, adding that judging from the cost of blank passport booklet and their personalisation for applicants together with the cost of other consumables, the current price was the lowest in the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) region.

BY TIMES REPORTER

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