Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 15 January 2019
165. Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade his plans for opening a passport office in the north west of the country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1521/19]
View answerThe Passport Service offers a range of convenient channels for submission of passport applications by Irish citizens, at home and abroad. Advice and guidance on these channels and other useful information on passports is available on the Department’s website at www.dfa.ie/passport.
The award-winning Online Passport Renewal Service was launched in March 2017 and offers the convenience of an online application system 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for Irish citizens anywhere in the world, without the need for application forms, printed photos or witnesses.
The Online Passport Renewal Service has recently expanded to include the online renewal of children’s passports, to introduce a passport card for children and to expand the cohort of adults eligible to renew online. The service brings significant benefits for citizens with faster turnaround times of 10 working days for all online applications, excluding postage. In addition, the cost of renewing a passport online is significantly cheaper than alternative methods, with fees for all online applications being reduced by €5 across all application types. The expanded service is now available to all adults and children who wish to renew their passport.
Those who cannot, or do not wish to, apply online have the option of applying through their local post office with more than 1000 post offices across the State offering this service. The Northern Ireland Passport Express service offers an equivalent service to those living in Northern Ireland from more than 70 of its post offices.
Bearing in mind the availability of both the online and postal application channels, very few citizens living in the island of Ireland are required to travel a significant distance in order to apply for their passport. In the relatively small number of cases where citizens need to travel very urgently and do not have a valid passport, the Passport Offices in Dublin and Cork offer an appointment service.
Therefore taking into account all these circumstances, I am satisfied that the range of options available meets the current needs of passport applicants without the establishment of a further passport office.
