My passport has expired, and I already knew last summer, when I checked the prices, that there was absolutely no chance I would be getting a new one.
Renewing a Finnish passport from Spain now costs 235 euros if you go through the Finnish consulate.
Two hundred and thirty-five euros.
In 2019, the passport cost 140 euros. That was already expensive, but it was still within the realm of reason. The current price, however, is simply outrageous. There is no rational explanation for why a passport should cost this much.
At that point, a person naturally starts asking questions. Like what exactly is this passport made of? Is there silver in it? Gold leaf? Some kind of compressed Nordic virtue? Because otherwise, I do not understand.
So I decided to get an ID card instead. A sensible compromise as it's only 60€. I had been to the consulate before, so I expected the process to be short, clear, and familiar.
It was none of those things.
Somehow, the entire system has moved backwards.
First, you have to pay for the ID card in advance via bank transfer. A bank transfer. In Spain. In what is essentially the year 2026. Nobody uses bank transfers for everyday payments anymore. You either have automatic payments set up, or you send money instantly using a phone number and the money just disappears from your account in seconds.
But no. I found myself genuinely having to navigate a bank transfer, like it was 2009.
And of course, that is not enough.
After making the bank transfer, you are required to print the proof of payment. Print it. On paper. So the process now includes navigating a modern banking app, generating a document, and physically printing it to prove that the money has already left your account.
This is where the logic truly collapses.
I am already booking the appointment by email. There is an active email conversation. And yet, despite all of this, I cannot simply attach the payment confirmation as PDF to that same email thread.
If the process begins digitally, there is no logical reason for it to demand a physical paper.
Luckily, I already own a printer at home. Because if I did not, I would now be wandering around trying to locate one in the wild, like some kind of administrative scavenger hunter, desperately converting a digital transaction into a piece of paper.
This is performance art at it's finest.
Then comes the next downgrade. Previously, the consulate took the passport or ID photos on site with digital camera setup.
Not anymore.
Now I need to get separate passport photos from a specific photo shop they recommend in Málaga. Which, being Spain, means this cannot be done on the same day as the appointment as something might go wrong. So one task becomes two days by default.
And then, finally, the ultimate irritation.
Previously, mailing the document to your home was 7€, only pick up option was from Madrid Consulate.
Now, if you want the ID card mailed to your home, you pay an extra 20 euros. If you pick it up from the Málaga consulate yourself, it is free.
The document has to travel to Spain anyway. That journey is already covered. It crosses borders, and arrives at the consulate without costing me anything extra. But if that same document continues its journey ten more kilometers to my home address, suddenly a 20 euro fee appears.
Taken together, this means I will be making three separate trips to Málaga just to obtain an ID card. One trip to get the passport photos. One trip for the appointment itself. And one final trip to pick up the card, as I am not paying 20€ for an envelope.
Three trips. For a process that used to require one.
So yes, I am annoyed.
I used to be an executive assistant, and part of my job was making sure that systems worked smoothly, logically, and with as little friction as possible. You notice inefficiencies quickly when it has literally been your responsibility to remove them.
And this system does the opposite. It adds steps, adds costs, and adds irritation where none are needed.
It scratches my brain, and not in a good way.