The Lebanese passport, one of the most expensive in the world to renew abroad. (Credit: Mohammad Yassine)
The Lebanese passport, irregardless of its notable weakness, has become one of the most expensive to renew. Renewing a Lebanese passport abroad now costs a small fortune, amid the economic crisis that has gripped Lebanon since 2019.
Passport renewal costs 600 dollars in the United States for a ten-year passport, 528 euros in France, 720 Canadian dollars in Canada, 429 pounds sterling in Great Britain, 2210 dirhams in the United Arab Emirates, and 818 Australian dollars in Australia. These fees in foreign currencies, are posted on the Lebanese embassies abroad, and are the equivalent of $540 to $600.
The Lebanese passport is ranked 99th out of 108 on the 2023 Henley Passport Index. It allows its holders visa-free access to only 41 countries. By comparison, Japan tops the ranking, with a passport granting visa free access to 193 countries, and requiring a visa for only 34 countries.
Two months before a promising tourist summer season, with many Lebanese expats expected to visit the country, this passport issue is of concern. Lebanese expats who do not hold another nationality have two options: renew their passport abroad and pay exorbitant fees (which will cost even more if they opt for the extra express fee to speed up the process), or get it renewed in Lebanon where it is faster and much less expensive, particularly since the price is indexed to the parallel market rate, which is currently trading at around LL94,500 to the dollar.
According to the rates posted on the General Security’s website, a normal passport in Lebanon, known as a second class passport, costs LL12 million, or $127 at the current rate. A first-class passport, with the only difference of having a special number, costs LL22 million or $233.
The accelerated procedure costs an additional LL 2,800,000, or about $30.
Some comparisons
For comparison, these are the passport fees (valid ten years),in some of the countries that host significant Lebanese expat communities.
A French passport in France costs 86 euros; the rate rises to 96 euros if issued abroad. In the United States, the American passport costs $130 and varies between $110 and $145 abroad, depending on whether it is a first application or not. A Canadian passport, issued locally, costs 160 Canadian dollars, compared to 260 Canadian dollars when issued in a US. consulate. Renewing or replacing a British passport costs £82.5 online, with an additional £10 when applied by paper form.
Why is it so expensive?
But why is the passport fee so high for Lebanese abroad? Considering that a large number of expats includes a significant portion of students who are also affected by the collapse of the Lebanese lira, it doesn't seem fair.n condition of anonymity, a diplomatic source told L’Orient-Le Jour that in September 2021, the authorities raised the rates for chancery fees and consular services following the collapse of the national currency. “It had been 20 years since the services of travel documents and document certifications in particular had not been changed. They were raised by a joint decision by caretaker Foreign Ministers Abdallah Bou Habib and caretaker Finance Minister Youssef Khalil, as part of a readjustment with the rates of foreign chanceries and to secure revenues for the state.”
To determine the cost of a 10 year passport issued abroad, “the Lebanese authorities took as a starting point the basic rate of $60 dollars or its equivalent in the country’s currency,” said the diplomatic source.
Given that the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) requires machine-readable passports, the Lebanese General Security can no longer issue handwritten travel documents.
“All passports are now biometric. There should not even be any more so-called electronic passports,” the diplomatic source said.
Difficulties linked to the crisis
However, the switch to biometric passports is being held back by two factors. First, the economic crisis has led to a serious shortage in biometric passports and created a waiting list of several months. Second,the lack of equipment in Lebanese embassies abroad, which prevents them from taking the fingerprints of first-time applicants for biometric passports, said the same source.
In other words, Lebanese consulates can only renew the biometric passports of people who already have them, since they don’t need to give their fingerprints. Until further notice, “only the General security in Lebanon can issue a first [initial] travel document.”
“Faced with this reality, and in order to allow Lebanese abroad to obtain a passport even if they cannot return to Lebanon, the General Security has recycled its old stock of so-called electronic passports,” said the diplomatic source. This is the reason why chancelleries continue to renew passports for one year or issue new ones for five years.
What do the chancelleries do with this money?
It is these consular revenues — passport fees and certifications in particular — that have fed the continued function of the Lebanese diplomatic network abroad, since the crisis began. “Water and electricity bills, rent, insurance, gas, staff salaries, everything is ensured thanks to these revenues, since the central bank stopped the transfer of money to the Lebanese embassies and consulates abroad, about a year and eight months ago. Only the salaries of diplomats are still transferred by the Banque du Liban,” said the source.
At the same time, and as part of the austerity policy, the Lebanese diplomatic representations abroad “have reduced their expenses by more than $20 million during this period. These reductions involve the [reduction of] staff, by30 to 50 percent, and rents in particular.”
This article was originally published in French in L'Orient-Le Jour. Translation by Joelle El Khoury.