ZIMBABWEANS will pay US$90 less for a passport after ministers ordered a dramatic cut in fees.
The move is aimed at curbing the widespread use of cheaper emergency documents which are being rejected by neighbouring countries, mainly South Africa which hosts more Zimbabweans than any other country.
The cabinet ordered government printers, Fidelity, to drop production prices – meaning the price reduction will not affect the budget of the Registrar General’s Office.
Announcing the move on Wednesday, Home Affairs Ministers Kembo Mohadi and Theresa Makone said a passport was a luxury at US$140 – with most government workers paid slightly more than that on average.
Mohadi said the new passport fees were decided following “an extensive debate” in Cabinet.
“We anticipate queues to increase following this price reduction as people rush to get passports but you will need to bear with us,” Minister Makone said.
Meanwhile, ministers are said to be looking at internalising the printing of passports inside the Registrar General’s Office to cut costs further.