Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 April 2019
51. Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the reason it takes applicants more than ten working days to receive their passports through the passport express service in view of the fact that the Passport Office has taken on more staff to deal with the backlog. [15733/19]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the Passport Express Service provides an option for citizens to submit their passport application through the network of more than one thousand post offices across the State. The advertised turnaround time on our website and in all communications with the public for renewal applications made through the Passport Express channel is 15 working days and 20 working days for first time applicants. The Passport Service is currently meeting and in many cases exceeding this target. There is no backlog in the Passport Express system.
A range of measures have been undertaken to ensure that we are in this position despite the unprecedented volume of passport applications received so far this year. These include the recruitment of temporary and permanent staff as well as a number of technological and customer service initiatives. The management of the overall demand for passports is continuously under review to ensure that adequate resources are in place to meet the demand. The Online Passport Renewal service, which was introduced in March 2017 for adults and November 2018 for children, means this cohort of Irish citizens can now renew their passports anywhere in the world, 24 hours per day, 7 days a week. The service brings significant benefits with faster turnaround times of 10 working days (excluding postage), with over 50% of applications processed in less than 10 working days. In addition, the cost of renewing a passport online is significantly cheaper than alternative methods, with fees for all online applications reduced by €5 across all applications types.
