PASSPORT CHAOS, delays of up to three months for renewals

Anyone planning a trip abroad should double-check their passports now, as strikes are set to cause chaos for holidaymakers this year.

Holidaymakers have been advised to allow extra time to get their passports renewed after around 1,800 staff members walked out in Passport office strikes in early April, writes The Sun, Friday, April 28.

With school holidays due to start in around 12 weeks’ time, travellers are being told to allow 10 weeks, rather than the usual waiting time of five weeks, and in some cases three months.

Abi Tierney, Director General of HM Passport Office advised, ‘Now that international travel has resumed, we know people will be looking at going away on holiday and yet many people are leaving applying for a passport too late.

‘The summer holidays are fast approaching so if you need a new passport, we urge you to apply now.’

One distressed mother explained how she faced the prospect of cancelling her £2,400 holiday as she had to wait over 12 weeks for passports for her two children.

Commenting on Passportwaitingtime.co.uk she said, ‘Applied for my two children’s renewal 17 Jan and currently still in the processing stage.

‘I have phoned on a weekly basis for the last month as we have a holiday booked for 19 April. I made four applications in Jan and have received two out of four of them.’

Another Tweeted, ‘I have allowed 10 weeks and my daughter’s passport still has not come back! We fly in a week.’

Adding to the backlog caused by strike action is the increase in applications. Following the Covid-19 pandemic, many people have only now decided to resume foreign travel.

According to statistics the Passport Office have reported that they processed more than one million applications in the month of March alone, a record high.