Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 5 May 2021
340. Deputy Peter Burke asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if consideration has been given to extending passports which have been issued during level 5 restrictions when international travel has not been permitted particularly for children’s passports which have a shorter expiry date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [22716/21]
View answerDiscussions regarding travel documents have taken place at a European level, after which the European Commission decided not to recommend a coordinated extension of the validity of Member States' travel documents. Accordingly, there are no plans at present for the validity of passports to be extended beyond their expiry date.
The Passport Service is well advanced in its preparations for scaling up to more normal operational levels, while complying with the phased easing of restrictions set out in “COVID-19 Resilience and Recovery 2021 – The Plan Ahead”.
In the event that any applicant has urgent or emergency reasons for requiring a passport, they should contact the Passport Service’s Customer Service Hub using the WebChat function on our website to make the Passport Service aware of their situation.
