IT WILL soon be possible for Australians to renew their passport online, with the government finalising moves to digitalise statutory declarations and deeds in all states.
As a result, passport renewals and electoral roll registration will be streamlined across the country, removing the need for Australians to go into the Post Office get their paperwork signed by Justices of the Peace.
Instead, all they will need to do is download and register for the Australian Tax Office’s MyGovID app, through which they can confirm their identity using official documents like passports, Medicare cards and driver’s licences.
Aussies will also be able to use digital e-signatures to countersign electronic documents, once the new system is up and running within a year’s time.
As well as making the system faster and more efficient, the new digital statutory declarations and deeds system is also expected to save around $400 million a year, along with up to nine million hours spent printing, filling out, signing and physically witnessing documents.
