The Five Nations Passport Group is an international forum between the
passport
A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that contains a person's identity. A person with a passport can travel to and from foreign countries more easily and access consular assistance. A passport certifies the personal ...
-issuing authorities of
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
, the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...
to share best practices in the issuance, development, and management of passports. The annual Five Nations Passport Conference is a largely informal in-person meeting between officials of the participating agencies, with some additional invited guests such as the Irish
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) is the department of the Australian federal government responsible for foreign policy and relations, international aid (using the branding Australian Aid), consular services and trade and ...
in 2011. It has taken place since at least as far back as 2004.
The member states' issuing authorities are comparable to each other: their passport issuance systems are mostly centralised and their service channels are similar to each other.
None of the Five Nation countries have a compulsory identity management system, which means that citizens' personal information is not available in a central citizenship database or registry.
Participating issuing authorities
The agencies that participate in the Five Nations Passport Group for each state is their relevant passport-issuing authority.
*:
Australian Passport Office Australian Passport Office is an independent operating agency of the Government of Australia with bureaucratic oversight provided through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) portfolio. It issues Australian passports to Australian citi ...
*:
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC; french: Immigration, Réfugiés et Citoyenneté Canada)Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program since 2015; the legal title is Departm ...
*:
Department of Internal Affairs
The Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), or in te reo Māori, is the public service department of New Zealand charged with issuing passports; administering applications for citizenship and lottery grants; enforcing censorship and gambling la ...
*:
His Majesty's Passport Office
*:
Department of State
The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other na ...
Passport specifications
Unlike EU passports,
which follow a common format, Five Nations passports develop through the sharing of best practices and information relating to the development of passports. However, all Five Nations passports are
biometric
Biometrics are body measurements and calculations related to human characteristics. Biometric authentication (or realistic authentication) is used in computer science as a form of identification and access control. It is also used to identify in ...
and
machine-readable, and
B7 sized (
ISO/IEC 7810 ID-3, 88 mm × 125 mm).
Generally, Five Nations passport holders have access to each other's
automated border control systems. Currently, all Five Nations passport holders have access to Australia and New Zealand's
SmartGate system and the UK's
ePassport gates. Similarly, British passport holders have access to the US's
Global Entry
Global Entry is a program of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection service that allows pre-approved, low-risk travelers to receive expedited clearance upon arrival into the United States through automatic kiosks at select airports and via the S ...
programme, while Canadians have access to the
NEXUS
NEXUS is a joint Canada Border Services Agency and U.S. Customs and Border Protection-operated Trusted Traveler and expedited border control program designed for pre-approved, low-risk travelers. Members of the program can avoid waits at border ...
programme. Australia is also planning to participate in Global Entry.
Passport circulation
The number of Five Nations passports in circulation is:
See also
*
Anglosphere
The Anglosphere is a group of English-speaking nations that share historical and cultural ties with England, and which today maintain close political, diplomatic and military co-operation. While the nations included in different sources vary, t ...
*
Border Five
Border Five (Border 5; B5) is an informal forum on customs and border management policy issues with participation from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. The participating authorities are:
* Department of H ...
*
CANZUK
CANZUK is a proposed alliance comprising Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom as part of an international organisation or confederation similar in scope to the former European Economic Community. This includes increased trade, ...
*
Five Country Conference Migration 5 (M5, formerly the Five Country Conference on migration) is a conference of the immigration authorities of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America. The five countries work together to "enhance ...
*
Five Eyes
The Five Eyes (FVEY) is an intelligence alliance comprising Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. These countries are parties to the multilateral UKUSA Agreement, a treaty for joint cooperation in sig ...
*
Australian passport
Australian passports are travel documents issued to Australian citizens under the ''Australian Passports Act 2005'' by the Australian Passport Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), both in Australia and overseas, which ...
*
British passport
A British passport is a travel document issued by the United Kingdom or other British dependencies and territories to individuals holding any form of British nationality. It grants the bearer international passage in accordance with visa requ ...
*
Canadian passport
A Canadian passport (french: passeport canadien) is the passport issued to citizens of Canada. It enables the bearer to enter or re-enter Canada freely; travel to and from other countries in accordance with visa requirements; facilitates the ...
*
New Zealand passport
New Zealand passports (Māori: ''Uruwhenua Aotearoa'') are issued to New Zealand citizens for the purpose of international travel by the Department of Internal Affairs. New Zealand has a passport possession rate of around 70% of the population ...
*
United States passport
**
United States Passport Card
The United States passport card is an optional national identity card and a travel document issued by the U.S. federal government in the size of a credit card. Like a U.S. passport book, the passport card is only issued to U.S. nationals ex ...
Notes
References
{{Passports
Anglosphere
Passports