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@Jezzreal thank you so much for posting such useful information. I too have not booked due to the advice, but need to book and go in the school hols. Was told today that I can’t do anything until 10 weeks after docs received and then only if travel booked. Out of interest when did you contact the emails you have provided ? Was it week 10 or before?
Delighted that you have your passport!Hi peeps. In preparation for my inevitable request to be expidited 2 weeks prior to travel which will be 26th july, what evidence do they require? Is a screenshot of flight booking sufficient? Or do they need accommodation proof also? If not screen shot, how do they require the evidence?
Many thanks.
Hi @Deanc,
I applied for my passport on 19/5 and was going thru the same exact situation as yours. I must have called over 30 times over the past few weeks, and based on my experience nothing is done through them because when I finally thought that they noted down my travel date, the advisor from yesterday’s call said it’s not showing on my application even though many before him have claimed to have noted it down.
I think the only thing that helped my case was sending emails to all the upgrade teams (someone posted the emails before on here), and in the subject line, write Urgent, in breach of SLA, your child’s full name and ref no., over 10 weeks processing time and travel date. Don’t forget to attach the tickets as evidence. In my case, the upgrade teams couldn’t help with my application as it’s a first time adult passport but the one in Belfast advised that they will contact the expedited services team as it’s been over 10 weeks and that they will treat it as a priority. They sent me this email yesterday and lo and behold my application got approved today.
Just keep emailing the expedited and upgrade teams every 2 days with the same subject line. I believe they will approve it nearer to your travel date, as today marks 6 days before mine. Your other option is to wait 48 hours before your flight and go to your nearest passport office. I also emailed my MP who contacted them and sent complaints to all emails I could find. I personally think the subject line is very important as it’s the first thing they see while going thru so many emails.
Sorry for the long post but hope this helps. Good luck.
Hi @Grumpy,
I actually booked the cheapest ticket I could find, just a one way 22 pound ticket to use as proof. If it’s a renewal and been over 6 weeks since they received your documents, you are entitled for an upgrade I believe, which might come at a cost but I’m not sure. So if you’re open to it, just buy a really cheap ticket to fly out within the next week or so and email them again, hopefully it’ll will do something as they are prioritising applications based on travel date.
Good luck.
“I actually booked the cheapest ticket I could find, just a one way 22 pound ticket to use as proof. If it’s a renewal and been over 6 weeks since they received your documents, you are entitled for an upgrade I believe, which might come at a cost but I’m not sure. So if you’re open to it, just buy a really cheap ticket to fly out within the next week or so and email them again, hopefully it’ll will do something as they are prioritising applications based on travel date.”
From what I read the passport office have become cute to this you will be required to provide more evidence of travel if the flight/travel has been booked after the the submission date. Also one could be denying someone who has been waiting longer as actully is in need of travel.
Has everyone who’s has managed to get a reply from the expedited/escalated team, with flights booked managed to get their passports, I’ve read on here that there working on passports who have travel booked around 3/4 days, just wondered if everyone actually managed to get their passports even if it is the day before travel x
@Foster Twelvetrees
I understand where you’re coming from, but just to clarify, I had been waiting for over 11 weeks from when docs were received and over 13 weeks from submission date which was the 19th of April. I had to do this as a last resort, because no amount of calls, emails, MP involvement or complaints were enough if I didn’t have travel plans. It is so frustrating to see others who have applied after me who got theirs within 3 weeks to a month, while I did everything by the book but to no avail. And I do actually have travel plans but I was not willing to risk 800 pounds to book tickets when I wasn’t sure when I would receive my passport.
Again, I would only recommend this as a last resort (which paid off thankfully) because I don’t accept that in a first world country like this, one should wait almost 3 months to get a passport. And it’s not really just about travel, it’s an important form of identification which if you don’t have can stop you from doing simple things suchs as opening a bank account, getting a new job, etc.
Had there been enough contact and communication from the office, I wouldn’t have needed to do that. But after lots of miscommunication, and lack of communication even, I just wanted to help out whoever is going through what I did.
@Anon,
Did you see the news? Folk were turned away from the Durham office today who had tipped up with cheap throw away flight tickets. You were more than likley dealt with because you had passed the 10 week threshold.
Submitted application early may and waited for 11 weeks before finally calling the advice line (pressing 8 then 3). Because I had waited over 10 weeks they said I may be able to get a free expedite and told me to wait for a call back. Got a call back later that day who told me to email the expedited service and also put through to someone else to check that my lost/stolen passport cancellation reference had been linked to my new application. That took a while. Regarding the email, I have seen a couple floating around the forum and I don’t know if emailing them outright works. From what I understood is that they need to put in a request for you first for the email to be taken up and you had two days to email because the request was terminated. I emailed the same evening and the next day my application was approved and printed. I dont know why all the renewals for lost passports are sitting round together on someone’s desk but if you have been waiting over 10 weeks, being patient and polite but firm and giving them all the info you can (even if they didn’t ask for it) seemed to help, e.g. you making sure the lost/stolen passport cancellation reference has been added to your application.
The day after, it was scheduled to be delivered but I was already at work so I immediately rescheduled it for the following day. Its just arrived and I’m so glad I can finally move on.Hi @rabia1992,
@Hotcocoa123 thanks for your posting your experience as I’ve been reading lots on here to find similar situation to my own as I reported my lost passport on 18th May and never got a lost reference number (checked emails as well as junk/spam folder). I applied for new passport on 19th May and it’s been stuck on identity details received ever since. I rang to enquire about my lost passport number and linking to my new application and was told if it was done online and it wouldn’t need it! The advice varies depending on who you speak to to! I’m on 9 wks and holding no hope that it’ll be looked at in the final week of the 10th. Did you get your MP involved as I don’t think it’ll be progressed until I reach 10 wks next week. Reading your experience has given me some hope!
Small update. They rang! Need my daughter’s birth certificate. No idea why but I sent it straight away. Why they couldn’t have asked for that 8 weeks ago I don’t know, but I am keeping everything crossed that it will be processed quickly now and we can book a holiday! I’ll keep everyone here posted. I have rung, emailed and contacted my MP so I do think persistence is the key here.
In my experience the only thing that truly works is having a flight booked and turning up to your local passport office 48hrs before the flight.
My daughter’s application has now exceeded the 10 weeks wait time. I have emailed Durham Emergency cases with all the evidence (letter from GP, fly tickets) on 18th July and have not heard anything from them.
So I continued chasing and was asked to email my evidence to Escalated services (done on 21st July) – also been ignored so far.
Is there anything else I can do to be able to get my daughters passport in time? We are flying to visit family on 30th July.
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