Australian High Commission in Rarotonga
Kia Orana and welcome to the official website of the Australian High Commission in Rarotonga, the Cook Islands.
Australia has had diplomatic relations with Cook Islands since 1994, but our shared heritage is much older. Australians and Cook Islanders served side by side in both World Wars and in the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands. We have deep ties founded in shared membership of international organisations, a large diaspora in Australia (more than 27,500 Cook Islanders call Australia home) and a shared belief in democracy and the rule of law.
As Australian High Commissioner, I look forward to working with the Government and people of the Cook Islands to continue to build the strong relationship between our two countries.
I invite you to access the resources and information contained on this website and on the Australian High Commission’s Facebook page and to contact the Australian High Commission to further your engagement with Australia.
Kia manuia,
HE Phoebe Smith
Australian High Commissioner to Cook Islands
Australia's cooperation with the Cook Islands
The Cook Islands is a key partner for Australia in the region. Our ministers regularly consult each other on issues of shared interest, and our senior officials meet annually to identify new ways to cooperate on shared challenges.
Australia supports a strong and unified Pacific family and the important role of Pacific-led regional organisations, particularly the Pacific Islands Forum. Australia is supporting Cook Islands’ term as Chair of the Pacific Islands Forum, including providing financial support for Cook Islands to host the Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in November 2023.
On security, Australia helps the Cook Islands to secure its huge maritime territory through the provision of a Patrol Boat and associated support. We cooperate in the Forum Fisheries Association where Australia provides aerial surveillance, and we offer sustained assistance to the Cook Islands Police Service in the form of equipment and training.
On the economy, we are working together towards closer economic integration as signatories to the PACER Plus treaty. At the Cook Islands' request, Australia has funded an embedded advisor in the Seabed Minerals Authority to help build its capacity to regulate the nascent seabed minerals industry and ensure Cook Islanders benefit from a safe and well-regulated approach to its mineral wealth. During the early days of the COVID economic crisis, the Cook Islands asked if an Australian economist from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade could work with the Ministry of Finance to help inform the Cook Islands Emergency Response Plan. That support has led to valuable insights in both directions as we have worked our way through this difficult period for the regional economy.
The Cook Islands has graduated from Official Development Assistance (ODA – aid) eligibility, but Australia has provided an AUD 8 million package of funding over the period 2020-2024 which funds diverse programs, including work towards eradicating dengue fever in Rarotonga, planning for the rejuvenation of the wharf on Penrhyn Island and advancing marine research in the famous Aitutaki lagoon.
On a smaller scale, the Australian High Commission runs a Community Grants Program which funds community groups undertaking grassroots projects. The Creative Centre in Rarotonga (which offers services for Rarotongans with disability), a Manihiki Climate resilience project and a fitness and health centre in Mitiaro are among the recent recipients of these grants.
Travel advice
Need information on visiting Rarotonga? Read the following:
- Travel advice from the Australian Government
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In a crisis, Smartraveller will activate a crisis page on its website. It will make it easier for you or someone you know to contact the Australian Government if you need help. It will supplement the consular emergency hotline.
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If you need immediate assistance outside normal business hours, you can call the Consular Emergency Centre on +61 2 6261 3305 from overseas or 1300 555 135 from within Australia.
Passports
Applying for a passport?
Has your passport been lost or stolen in Cook Islands?
- Report the loss or theft online
- Call the Australian Passport Information Service on 131 232 from within Australia.
- Seek more information on the Australian Passports Office website.
- In an emergency the Australian High Commission in Rarotonga may be able to assist in providing a Provisional Travel Document.
Applying for a passport?
- The Australian High Commission in Rarotonga facilitates passport services with our Australian High Commission in Wellington. You will be required to post or courier the documents to the Australian High Commission, Wellington. Information on the passport services via Wellington is available on their website or the Australian Passports Office website. In an emergency, the Australian High Commission in Rarotonga may be able to assist in providing a Provisional Travel Document.
- Customers who have been issued with a 10-year Australian passport since 2006 or who are applying for a child passport will be able to upload their application via the Australian Passport Office website. To use this temporary digital upload function, you must:
- be located in Cook Islands and able to collect from the Australian High Commission in Rarotonga
- have held a 10-year Australian Passport since 2006; or
- be lodging an application for a child
If you do not meet the above criteria, this option is not available to you, and you must lodge your Australian passport application via our Australian High Commission in Wellington as outlined above.
- For general information on applying for a passport or renewing your current or expired passport, visit www.passports.gov.au.
Notarial Services
The Australian High Commission in Rarotonga does not provide notarial services.
Australian Passport Offices in Sydney or Melbourne can legalise (Apostille/Authenticate) some Australian documents and can issue Certificates of No Impediment to Marriage (CNI). Information on how to request these services via mail can be found in the ‘Documents in Australia’ section on the Smartraveller website.
