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New Zealand - The Good, The Bad and The Ugly.


Wayne Potgieter

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How's this for the good, chaps. On our way to Brisbane for a couple of weeks (Ross W, will look ya up). Discovered my older boy's passport expired in August...24 hours before the flight takes off. Phoned AirNZ first, chicky there said it is possible to get a passport in time and made a note on our check in, phoned Dept of Internal Affairs next and told them of the situation, filed an online application for a passport, collected the passport at midday, ten hours later, on time and good to go.

Absolutely incredible - and all the civil servants bent over backwards with polite assistance and prompt help. Truly spectacular. Don't think you'd get that kind of help in many places around the world; the cost was an extra hundred bucks over the normal passport fee...

I got my Italian passport from the Johannesburg Italian Consulate in 2 hours..................

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I got my Italian passport from the Johannesburg Italian Consulate in 2 hours..................

 

They're actually doing themselves a disservice by showing us just how efficient and quick the process COULD be!

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I got my Italian passport from the Johannesburg Italian Consulate in 2 hours..................

SA office in Houghton or NZ office?

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I was told this week by the RSA consulate in Wellington that I need to allow twelve months to renew my passport.

 

And I have to fly to Wellington to do so.

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I was told this week by the RSA consulate in Wellington that I need to allow twelve months to renew my passport.

 

And I have to fly to Wellington to do so.

 

Yup, it's crazy! Exactly why a friend of mine just bit the bullet and flew back to SA to do it.

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Yup, it's crazy! Exactly why a friend of mine just bit the bullet and flew back to SA to do it.

Yea, I'll be doing that a while before applying for Australian citizenship. Still three years off but plans have been made.

Make a three week holiday and apply for passport in the first week, once received, update Australian DHA with new passport number and then fly back at the end of the third week. Then I don't have to worry about the RSA passport for another ten years.

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Why do you guys keep your SA passport valid? I let mine lapse years and years ago without a second thought and haven't ever needed it.

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Yea, I'll be doing that a while before applying for Australian citizenship. Still three years off but plans have been made.

Make a three week holiday and apply for passport in the first week, once received, update Australian DHA with new passport number and then fly back at the end of the third week. Then I don't have to worry about the RSA passport for another ten years.

 

Pretty much what he did, haha!

 

Why do you guys keep your SA passport valid? I let mine lapse years and years ago without a second thought and haven't ever needed it.

 

It's us poor folk who have not yet obtained citizenship on Aus/NZ

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Why do you guys keep your SA passport valid? I let mine lapse years and years ago without a second thought and haven't ever needed it.

The only reason I'm planning on keeping it valid is ease of travel back to see parents and sister (family). Once time runs its course and hopefully my sister moves across to Aus, I don't see a purpose for it.

 

I'm not familiar with the legal side of being a RSA citizen, not having a vaild RSA passport but looking at entering RSA on an Aus/Nz/... passport. My guess is that as a citizen, you'd need to enter the country on the linked passport.

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The only reason I'm planning on keeping it valid is ease of travel back to see parents and sister (family). Once time runs its course and hopefully my sister moves across to Aus, I don't see a purpose for it.

 

I'm not familiar with the legal side of being a RSA citizen, not having a vaild RSA passport but looking at entering RSA on an Aus/Nz/... passport. My guess is that as a citizen, you'd need to enter the country on the linked passport.

 

I've never had a problem going back on my Aussie passport (or my British passport before that). It's just as easy, no visa required.

 

 

 

It's us poor folk who have not yet obtained citizenship on Aus/NZ

 

Ah of course...

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My guess is that as a citizen, you'd need to enter the country on the linked passport.

 

Correct.  I tried flying from the UK to SA on my British passport alone, and wasn't allowed to fly.  Had to get my SA passport before being allowed to travel.  That was a fun day...

 

However, on a different occasion I flew into SA with an expired RSA passport (without knowing) and was allowed  to enter on my British passport, but told that I had to renew my passport while I was down.  So slightly contradictory...

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The BAD (for me) my boet (Dan) having emigrated to NZ quite a while now, miss our rides together [emoji853]ce32defd65c2ee975d4c2fdbc9adb4d4.jpg

 

Where in NZ is he?

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