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German passport and ID card fees: what each costs, and the 2026 rise

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1. Version 1Current10 October 2026, 03:55 UTC · created

   Record created.

   • Timeline added: The standard passport fee for applicants aged 24 or over rose from 60 Euro to 70 Euro on 1 January 2024, under a federal regulation published on 31 October 2023.
   • Timeline added: A federal regulation published on 6 February 2026 raised the ID card fee from 37 Euro to 46 Euro, and from 22.80 Euro to 27.60 Euro for younger applicants. The government says the new fee applies from 7 February 2026.
   • Timeline added: In July 2026 the federal government told the Bundesrat it plans to adjust the passport fee as well, mainly to cover the Bundesdruckerei's August 2025 rise in production prices. No new passport fee had been published when this record was checked.
   • Confirmed: Applicants under 24 pay 37.50 Euro for the same passport.
   • Confirmed: A passport with 48 pages costs 22 Euro on top of the age-based fee.
   • Confirmed: The express service adds 32 Euro to the passport fee, whichever passport is ordered.
   • Confirmed: A provisional passport (vorläufiger Reisepass) costs 26 Euro.
   • Confirmed: Changing a passport costs 6 Euro, having it delivered costs 15 Euro, and a photo taken by the passport office adds 6 Euro.
   • Confirmed: Some passport fees double: the provisional passport and changes when done outside office hours at the applicant's request, and the standard passport, provisional passport and changes when the applicant asks an office that is not responsible for them.
   • Confirmed: At a German embassy or consulate, the standard passport fee rises by 36 Euro, the provisional passport fee by 49 Euro and the fee for changes by 20 Euro.
   • Confirmed: No fee is charged for an official passport, for a passport issued or changed on the authority's own initiative, or for correcting the place of residence.
   • Confirmed: A German ID card (Personalausweis) costs 46 Euro, or 27.60 Euro for applicants under 24 when they apply. A provisional or replacement ID card costs 10 Euro.
   • Confirmed: The same regulation raised the extra charge for an ID card applied for at an embassy or consulate from 41 Euro to 43 Euro.
   • Confirmed: ID card fees rise by 13 Euro outside office hours or at an office that is not responsible, including for a provisional or replacement ID card. The standard ID card fee also rises by 30 Euro when someone living abroad applies at such an office in Germany, by 15 Euro for delivery and by 6 Euro for a photo taken by the office.
   • Confirmed: Under the wording set by the February 2026 regulation, which replaced the earlier hardship paragraph, the ID card fee can be reduced or waived for people in need; receiving basic income support (SGB II or SGB XII) does not on its own count as need.
   • Confirmed: The federal government says the 46 Euro fee is made up of 29.61 Euro paid to the Bundesdruckerei (17.42 Euro production, 7.46 Euro infrastructure and 4.73 Euro VAT) and 16.39 Euro of administrative cost per application.
   • Confirmed: The standard passport fee for applicants aged 24 or over rose from 60 Euro to 70 Euro on 1 January 2024, under a federal regulation published on 31 October 2023.
   • Confirmed: The same regulation moved the passport fee rule to section 27 of the Passport Regulation and rewrote its embassy surcharge paragraph; its listed changes to the fee table did not include the 70 Euro or 37.50 Euro amounts.
   • Confirmed: The Bundesrat had asked the government to review the ID card and photo fees, include the passport fee in the review, and raise fees quickly because of the Bundesdruckerei's price rises.
   • Confirmed: A German passport is valid for ten years, or six years if the holder is under 24 when it is issued. A provisional passport is valid for at most one year, and a passport's validity cannot be extended.
   • Confirmed: An ID card is valid for ten years, or six years for people under 24. A provisional ID card is valid for at most three months and a replacement ID card for at most three years; validity cannot be extended.
   • Confirmed: Apply at the passport or ID card office where your main home is registered. Abroad, apply at the German embassy or consulate for the place where you usually live. Another office must take your application if you give an important reason, but it may issue the document only with the responsible office's authorisation.
   • Confirmed: You must apply yourself, normally in person; you cannot send someone with a power of attorney, except in narrow cases. You must prove your identity and that you are German. The photo is taken electronically, either by a service provider who sends it securely to the office or by the office itself if it has the equipment. Both documents need your fingerprints, but none are taken from children under six. If you cannot go in person, you can only get a provisional passport.
   • Source added: § 27 PassV - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: Verordnung zur Entlastung der Bundespolizei und der Verwaltung im Bereich des Pass- und Ausweiswesens (BGBl. 2026 I Nr. 31) (Bundesgesetzblatt (Federal Law Gazette))
   • Source added: § 1 PAuswGebV - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: Stellungnahme der Bundesregierung zur Entschließung des Bundesrates, zu Drucksache 628/25 (Beschluss), 3. Juli 2026 (Deutscher Bundestag)
   • Source added: Verordnung zur Änderung der Personalausweisverordnung, der Passverordnung, der Aufenthaltsverordnung sowie weiterer Vorschriften (BGBl. 2023 I Nr. 290) (Bundesgesetzblatt (Federal Law Gazette))
   • Source added: § 5 PassG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: § 6 PAuswG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: Wissenschaftliche Dienste des Bundestages: Ausweispflicht und Ausweisgebühren in ausgewählten Staaten (WD 3 - 3000 - 085/25) (Deutscher Bundestag)
   • Source added: § 19 PassG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: § 8 PAuswG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: § 6 PassG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: § 5 PAuswG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: § 9 PAuswG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))
   • Source added: § 4 PassG - Einzelnorm (Gesetze im Internet (Federal Ministry of Justice))