Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 December 2020
305. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the up-to-date position with regard to passport applications; if the passport office is open and accepting applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41421/20]
Amharc ar fhreagra306. Deputy Mattie McGrath asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs when the online passports processing service will be operational again given the backlog of applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41466/20]
Amharc ar fhreagra308. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the reason for the delay at present in posting passports that were applied for online from the time they are printed; the action he plans taking to ensure online passports are posted the same day or the day after they are printed; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41888/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 305, 306 and 308 together.
In line with the Government's Plan for Living with COVID-19 and the move to Level 3, the Passport Service began a phased return to full operations on 1 December.
The Passport Service had paused processing of routine passport and Foreign Birth applications when Ireland entered Level 5 of the National Framework for Living with COVID-19 on 21 October. The Passport Service was considered to be a non-essential service and some personnel were redeployed into other, essential public service roles, such as COVID-19 contact tracing for the HSE and working with the Department of Social Protection to facilitate the processing of COVID-related benefits.
The resumption of routine passport applications on 1 December is being done on a phased basis with priority given to the online application stream, given the efficiencies that are in-built into the system for both the applicant and the Passport Service. The processing of an online application is four times as fast as a paper application. In addition, the use of Passport Online can facilitate social distancing, given that a renewal application for an adult does not require the signature of a witness.
It is important to acknowledge that the online service is extremely easy to use. It has won awards for its user-friendly process, including a NALA award for the use of plain English. It is recognised that some applicants may not be familiar with using a computer. However, in such cases, a friend or relative with basic computer skills can help them to apply – the process only takes ten minutes to complete.
The online service is extremely popular with applicants and has, in fact, become the most popular way to make a passport application.
Passport Online can be accessed by first time applicants, both children and adults, in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Great Britain and Europe. All Irish citizens, including children, can use the online system to renew their passports from anywhere in the world.
The Passport Service maintained an emergency service during the six week period from 21 October to 1 December. The emergency service was available for those who were required to travel urgently due to the death or serious illness of a family member or because the applicant required emergency medical treatment. The Passport Service was also able to provide assistance to those who required passports for urgent reasons such as taking up employment abroad. This emergency service was facilitated via the online system.
While staff were on site in the Passport Service during Level 5, carrying out the essential work of processing emergency and urgent passport applications, they took the opportunity to produce an additional 9,000 passports, in the majority of cases for renewal applications. This was done for operational reasons, to ensure that that the complex printing equipment involved in passport production remained in full working order. Following the resumption of operations on 1 December, the Passport Service is working to dispatch printed passports and to process further applications.
The Passport Service has a great deal of experience in dealing with peaks in demand, and we believe that we are well-placed to ensure that those applications submitted online will be processed within usual turnaround times within approximately four weeks.
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, by phone or webchat, to make the Passport Service aware of their situation.
