Traveling to Australia with an expired Australian passport

What documents do Australian citizens need to return to Australia?

If you are an Australian citizen, you:

do not need a visa to enter Australia
must have a valid Australian passport or other acceptable travel document
will need a completed and signed Incoming Passenger Card.

If you are an Australian citizen and you hold dual or multiple nationalities, you should use your Australian passport to enter or leave Australia, even if you use a foreign passport when you are outside Australia. The only exception is if you have been issued with an Australian Declaratory Visa.

It would be best to contact the Australian consulate to get your passport renewed, or to obtain a travel document if you need to travel more quickly than they can process the renewal. This is backed up by Timatic, the database used by airlines for immigration information, which says:

• Dual nationals of Australia must enter and depart using their Australian passport.

While some countries will allow you to travel home on an expired passport, Australia is not one of them:

• Passports and other documents accepted for entry must be valid on arrival.