Questions on renewal of a british passport

trinidadone

hello all,

I just paid £72 online to renew my passport, but have some questions:

1) Do i really have to return my old passport, can i not just keep it?

2) if i do return my old passport, can the agency use my picture in my old passport, or do i still have to send new pictures?

3) anyone know what the average time is in receiving a new passport back in the post?

balletshoes

trinidadone wrote: »

hello all,

I just paid £72 online to renew my passport, but have some questions:

1) Do i really have to return my old passport, can i not just keep it?

you do have to return it, but when your renewal is processed, you get your old one back through the post, as well as your new one under separate cover.

2) if i do return my old passport, can the agency use my picture in my old passport, or do i still have to send new pictures?

you have to send in new pictures on a renewal.

3) anyone know what the average time is in receiving a new passport back in the post?

no, don't know at the moment, but i think the passport office's own timescale is around 3 weeks at peak time.

Laurensalive

Yes you have to return your old passport. You must send the passport agency a new photo that has been taken within the past month. It the passport agency thinks the photo is not recent they will only request another one. They did this with myself. Even though it was a new photo. I had to get another photo taken and this time kept I the date on the photo. The photos booths do give a date of when the photo was taken. I left this part on the second time. No arguments as to when it was taken.

pogofish

trinidadone wrote: »

1) Do i really have to return my old passport, can i not just keep it?

2) if i do return my old passport, can the agency use my picture in my old passport, or do i still have to send new pictures?

3) anyone know what the average time is in receiving a new passport back in the post?

1 - it needs canceled. You get it back.

2 - Image requirements are explained in the application guidance. If the old passport has expired or is near expiry, it hardly fits them

3 - Depends on the time of year and the office you sent it to. Just now its liable to be longer rather than shorter.

SevenOfNine

My old man sent a new photo, only it wasn't 'new', it was off the same strip as 10 years earlier! (Plonker). Of course it was obvious it was identical to the one in the expiring passport & it was rejected.

Doh!! :huh:

bigadaj

SevenOfNine wrote: »

My old man sent a new photo, only it wasn't 'new', it was off the same strip as 10 years earlier! (Plonker). Of course it was obvious it was identical to the one in the expiring passport & it was rejected.

Doh!! :huh:

Though using a ten year old photo is theoretically moneysaving, in principle if not in practice in this case!

AlexMac

If you have already renewed online, and they didn't ask for a new passport photo, that means they'll just re-use the one they have on electronic file; as they say, you only need a photo " if you can’t be recognised from the photo in your existing passport"

They can also use your online photo whenyou apply for a driving licence. This can backfire; my 18 year old grand-daughter cliked 'use passport photo', but when her DL turned up, she remembred that her passprt photo was (in her words) of a 'fat 12 year old in an Alice band!' Not happy!

She was so embarassed usingthis for ID that she pretended to lose it and lashed out the cash for a new one - with a new more flattering pic!

sheramber

You can pay online and complete the form but then you have to print off the form and send it to the passport office with your old passport and two photographs.

SW17

AlexMac wrote: »

If you have already renewed online, and they didn't ask for a new passport photo, that means they'll just re-use the one they have on electronic file; as they say, you only need a photo " if you can’t be recognised from the photo in your existing passport"

This is not correct. When you renew a passport you have to provide 2 recent photographs. If you read the table of supporting documents on page 12 of the below guide, you will see that every passport application needs 2 recent photos.

https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/309596/Guidance_notes_4_14.pdf

The point about being recognisable from the photo in your existing passport relates only to whether or not you need to get your application and photos countersigned. If your recent photos sent with the application and the one in your expiring passport cannot be recognised as the same person, you need to get your application and one photo countersigned.

MFWunsure

My son renewed his in May and we used the old fashioned way ie form from PO and sent in his old passport with a cheque, no check and send. It was back within 10 days.
My daughter renewed hers last month and we did this online and then sent the photos in and her old passport. It was back within 15 days but we did get text updates which was re-assuring.
You always get your expired passport back returned as previously stated under separate cover.
If you do not send in your current passport I believe that you would have to say you did not have it to send and it would be treated as lost and then you have to get pictures counter-signed. If I am wrong on this point please don't shoot me.

SW17

MFWunsure wrote: »

If you do not send in your current passport I believe that you would have to say you did not have it to send and it would be treated as lost and then you have to get pictures counter-signed. If I am wrong on this point please don't shoot me.

More or less correct. If you don't send in any uncancelled passports with your application, they are treated as lost/stolen and the application becomes a replacement rather than a renewal. In that event you need the application/photo countersigned, and you also have to complete for LS01 to report your passport as lost/stolen.

If you have your existing passport, there is nothing much to gain from not sending it in, as your application becomes more complex and all you gain is avoiding having the corner cut off the old one.