This Order revokes and replaces the Consular Fees Order 2008.

The Order sets out fees to be charged for consular services.

The Order, in Part I of Schedule I, increases fees for legalisation services by 2.75%, with the exception of the fee for the standard legalisation service in cases where the request for the service is made outside the United Kingdom, but requires processing in whole or in part in the United Kingdom. The fee for this service is now £37.

The Order introduces in Part III of Schedule I a new fee for an Emergency Travel Document. The Emergency Travel Document is being introduced during the year 2009/10 to replace the Emergency Passport and the Temporary Passport.

The Order, in Part III Schedule I, also increases fees for administration of passport applications made outside the United Kingdom by 4.25%.

The Order introduces in Part V Schedule I a new fee of £11 for provision of a passport stamp setting out the format of an Arabic transcript of the passport’s details page. This stamp is part of the current entry requirements for Libya.

Fees for receiving applications for entry clearance to Commonwealth countries, British overseas territories and Crown Dependencies continue to be charged in this Order under the Consular Fees Act 1980. Previously entry clearance for visitors to the Crown Dependencies could be obtained only for periods up to 6 months from the date of issue. Applications may now be made for entry clearance to the Crown Dependencies for periods of up to 10 years from the date of issue, and this Order introduces in Part V Schedule I new fees to reflect these longer periods of entry clearance.

The Order, in Part VIII Schedule I, increases the fee for administering an oath of British Citizenship by 60%, so as to be consistent with the fee charged by UKBA.

The Order replaces in Part XII Schedule I a previous flat rate fee for currency transfer with a new sliding scale of fees, varying according to the value of the currency transfer.

The Order provides in Part XIV Schedule I that, where a payment is made by credit card to Her Majesty’s Government and no fees under this Order are otherwise payable, the costs to Her Majesty’s Government of receiving that payment by credit card will be recovered from the person making the payment.

The Order makes no increase to the fees for administration of passport applications made in the United Kingdom.

The Order increases all other consular fees by 6%.

Where increases to fees have been calculated on the basis of a percentage, the new fee has been rounded to the nearest pound.

A full regulatory impact assessment of the effect that this instrument will have on the costs of business and the voluntary sector is available from the Consular Directorate, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Old Admiralty Building, London, SW1A 2PA and is annexed to the Explanatory Memorandum which is available alongside this instrument on the OPSI website.