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Passport Applications Administration

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 16 April 2019

Tuesday, 16 April 2019

Ceisteanna (74)

Martin Heydon

Ceist:

74. Deputy Martin Heydon asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the improvements ongoing within the passport office to improve the processing times and communication methods for those seeking passports; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17587/19]

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Freagraí scríofa

The Passport Service issued over 860,000 passports in 2018, which was the highest number ever issued in a single year. This represented an increase of more than 10% on the previous year. We expect the number of passport applications to continue to increase throughout 2019.

The Passport Service is currently in its peak season for passport demand with the vast majority of applications being received between February and August each year. At present, renewal applications received through the Online Passport Renewal Service are being processed within the target turnaround time of 10 working days plus postage time. The current processing times for postal applications submitted through Passport Express depend on the category of application. Renewal applications are currently being processed within the target turnaround time of 15 working days plus postage time. First-time applications and applications from citizens who are applying to replace a lost, stolen or damaged passport are being processed in 17 working days plus postage time, 3 days ahead of the target turnaround time of 20 working days. In the last 2 months, the Passport Service's dedicated Customer Service Hub has dealt with almost 6,500 enquiries each week through its phone and web-chat channels.

A number of measures have been taken by the Passport Service to manage the increase in demand and to ensure that they are meeting and exceeding turnaround times. Measures taken include the recruitment of additional staff, the continuous implementation of technological and service improvements and the re-organisation of production processes and administrative arrangements.

At the end of 2018, the Passport Service employed 363.2 Full Time Equivalent staff. This is an increase of over 40 staff since the same point in 2017. Already this year, over 60 additional Full Time Equivalent staff have taken up roles in the Passport Service. Targeted overtime has been sanctioned for both permanent and temporary staff when required. The Passport Service has received approval to recruit over 230 Temporary Clerical Officers (TCOs) in 2019 to assist in processing passport applications and to deal with the queries from the general public. A dedicated Customer Service Hub has been established to deal with queries from the public and additional staff have been allocated. By the end of this month the number of officers answering Customer Service queries will have trebled since 2016.

The Passport Reform Programme continues to deliver major upgrades to the Passport Service technology platforms and business processes as well as significant customer service improvements. The award winning Online Passport Renewal Service has been the most significant project launched under the Programme to date. The second phase of the Online Passport Renewal Service was rolled out in November 2018. The online facility now allows for the renewal of children's passports and has expanded the cohort of adults eligible to renew online. The online service brings significant benefits to citizens with faster turnaround times and greater customer satisfaction. The online service has been instrumental in the management of overall passport operations and in allowing the passport service to allocate staff resources more efficiently to cope with unprecedented demand.

The Passport Service is satisfied that the combination of service improvements, upgrades to the technology platforms and increased staff allocations will be sufficient to meet anticipated demand during this year’s peak season.

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