Passport application backlog of 410,000 due to coronavirus delays - MSE News

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There is currently a backlog of 410,000 UK passport applications due to coronavirus-related delays, according to new Government figures...

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'Passport application backlog of 410,000 due to coronavirus delays'

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dianamaryberry

We were due to go to France this coming weekend. My husband applied for a new passport on 21st February. Apart from an acknowledgement, we’ve heard nothing. 5 months! Fortunately we decided to go in October instead.
Any helpful ideas please?

Caitykinss

Have you tried contacting them? 

I applied at the beginning of April (when there was still a tiny glimmer of hope for my June holiday) and had mine through in less than two weeks. I expected it to take ages, so was pleasantly surprised. 

It seems odd that mine would be processed before one sent in February. I’d recommend braving the phone lines.

pandora205

Anyone know if the Post Office is still doing Digital Check and Send renewals?  My son's passport is out and we are due to go overseas at the end of November.  He didn't want to renew it during lockdown as his hair was rather long but doesn't have that excuse now.  

smudge56

pandora205 said:

Anyone know if the Post Office is still doing Digital Check and Send renewals?  My son's passport is out and we are due to go overseas at the end of November.  He didn't want to renew it during lockdown as his hair was rather long but doesn't have that excuse now.  

Why don’t you save yourself £15 and do it yourself. They only type I. What you would. All that’s required is name and address of your son and parents details.  Either get a photo taken at a booth and enter the digital code or take a photo at home against a PLAIN light coloured background in good lighting.  Put the passport in a string envelope like a Jiffy Envelope and write the PEX number you are given on the front of it. Send I to the office you are assigned.

Sharon87

I recently received my passport from the passport office, it took me around 4-5 weeks to get it. This was a standard renewal.

That February one sounds like there's been some issues! I would contact the passport office as they may need more info, a new photo and you've not seen or received a request from them. 

Westin

My son’s adult renewal came back this week. Only took 8 days.

I also wonder if some of the reported extreme delay ones are when investigating is required after incomplete forms or errors made by the applicants.

Wazzock78

We've just sent (yesterday) an online application for a renewal for our eldest and her old passport landed in Glasgow (notified by RMG) today, although we're still receiving notifications from the Passport office that they have not received it, but i presume they just havent uploaded it yet. We have to pay the final, non refundable £1k for our (Portuguese) hotel tomorrow and fly on the 8th of Aug - going a bit mental trying to decide what's the best decision here. Any suggestions?

[Deleted User]

I have an Irish passport due to being born there and applied online last Sunday, received this morning. 

The Irish Passport Service in Dublin has only reopened recently after being closed for 3 months, there are allegedly only 5000 applications that have backlogged during that period, although the UK have a much higher amount of citizens than Ireland does and as members of the European Union Irish Citizens will not be subject to the "6-month rule" in regards to passport validity when travelling to the Schengen area as British Nationals will be post-transition, so that is obviously another huge contributing factor in the UK passport offices present backlog situation. 

The irish passport renewal process is also alot better than the UK's, when applying for a renewal online they dont require you to send in the old passport and can be renewed upto 12 months before expiry, whereas the UK still have an extremely silly requirement that the applicant must send the old british passport to them for the sides to be cut of, when its pointless as the old passport will be cancelled off on the system anyway, which no doubt in itself contributes to delay of the application process.

[Deleted User]

Westin said:

My son’s adult renewal came back this week. Only took 8 days.

I also wonder if some of the reported extreme delay ones are when investigating is required after incomplete forms or errors made by the applicants.

There are 2 processing systems used for UK passports applications.

Straightforward adult online renewals are usually processed via the automated system, where all the applicant details are the same and the photo checking system can link the photograph provided via the holder's previous passport photograph on the passport database through biometric algorithms, by the sounds of things this is the system your son's applications was processed through.

Renewals where the holder's details are different than in their previous passport e.g. maiden to married and did not replace their passport or the online photo checker is unable to verify the photo provided meets the standards, will be filtered out for manual processing hence the reason for the delays. This is not always the fault of the applicant through a mistake or error they themselves have made though, the photo checker is known to be very sensitive and on a majority of occasions, the uploaded photo, in fact, is acceptable.

Online child renewals and applications for lost, stolen or damaged passports will always be filtered for manual processing, for obvious reasons. 

Ganga

Wazzock78 said:

We've just sent (yesterday) an online application for a renewal for our eldest and her old passport landed in Glasgow (notified by RMG) today, although we're still receiving notifications from the Passport office that they have not received it, but i presume they just havent uploaded it yet. We have to pay the final, non refundable £1k for our (Portuguese) hotel tomorrow and fly on the 8th of Aug - going a bit mental trying to decide what's the best decision here. Any suggestions?

Yes leave her at home and enjoy your holiday ! only kidding ,you still have about two weeks to get her passport back so should be ok.