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Juba: Al-Naeim Mubarak Kuol
The Transitional National Legislative Council decides to increase passport fees
National Interior Minister Angelina Teny stated that the proposed increase was initially set at 20%, to make the cost $120, but the council decided on a 50% increase, setting the price at $150 during the deliberation of the 2024/2025 general budget.
The Specialized Committee on Finance and Economic Planning raised the fee for a regular adult passport by 50%, from $100 to $150, while the regular passport for minors would cost $100.
The committee also approved increasing the fee for business passports to $300 and the fee for special, diplomatic, and official passports to $250. Identity cards and national certificates would each cost $5.
Meanwhile, individuals seeking to obtain South Sudanese nationality through naturalization by marriage will pay $400, naturalization by residency certificate will cost $1,000, and naturalization for foreigners will be $1,500.
Angelina mentioned that her ministry initially recommended a 20% increase, but this recommendation was not considered, saying, “These prices are not set by the Ministry of Interior; they are actually determined through the non-oil revenue agencies and in consultation with them.”
She added, “In fact, we were proposing perhaps to raise the price of the passport not by 50% to become $150, but by 20% to make it $120. However, of course, it is not up to us, we are just a collecting agency.”
Nyayang Johnson, a member of parliament from the SPLM Party List, requested that the council reconsider the decision to increase civil registration and passport fees.
Ms. Johnson called for a reduction in costs, emphasizing that such high fees for essential documentation would be unaffordable for many South Sudanese citizens
