The new face of the British passport

Formalities 03/03/2011

The new 10 year passport will be issued from October, with pages of the passport containing well-known UK scenes, including the White Cliffs of Dover, the Gower Peninsula, Ben Nevis and the Giant's Causeway.

The use of these images, recreated through special printing techniques, is just one of a number of enhanced security features contained in the passport, which will give UK citizens added protection from identity theft and fraud and ensure speedier travel across borders.

New security measures include:

- moving the chip which stores the holder's details to the inside of the passport cover where it will no longer be visible. This gives additional physical protection as well as making it much harder to replace the chip without damage to the passport cover being spotted

- a secondary image of the holder printed onto the observations page

- new designs now stretching across two pages

- a new transparent covering which includes several holograms to protect the holder's personal details.

The new passport will replace the current UK ePassport, which was upgraded in 2006 with the addition of an electronic chip to hold the owner's details, and to comply with the US Visa Waiver Programme.

The personal details page of the passport will be moved to the second page in the passport booklet, in common with other passports in Europe and around the world, to help speed up travellers' passage through border controls.

An adult passport costs £77.50 for standard service and £112.50 for the one week Fast Track service. A child passport costs £49 for standard service and £96.50 for the one-week Fast Track service.

For all passport enquiries, see the Home Office Identity and Passport service website.

The editorial team