10 weeks wait time exceeded. What next?

@Karrie a few people on this forum have queued at the passport office. I would do this in your position. Really hope you get it 👍

Hi, can I join the party?

My ex wife submitted my daughter’s renewal (child passport) on 11/05/2022, with flights booked at that time to fly on 30/07/2022.

Not sure if the 10 week minimum was in place at that time, but if it was it was cutting it close. She’s tried to get it escalated, because she’s flying home to Czech and her mum is quite ill, was in hospital in April this year.

This is the application history from the passport website:
Documents received 3:42pm on 17 May 2022
Application received 12:46pm on 11 May 2022
Identity details received 12:45pm on 11 May 2022
Email sent to person confirming your identity 11:58am on 11 May 2022
Ask someone to confirm your identity 11:54am on 11 May 2022
Application submitted 11:54am on 11 May 2022

She’s got a doctor’s letter from Czech advising her to get the grandchild there, paid for it to be translated, sent all that off, spoken almost daily to the 1st line call people, who just seem to pass messages on.
Had one call back from the escalation team to say they’ll call within 48 hours, but then never do and she’s on the edge of a nervous breakdown.

I’m due to fly to Rhodes with my daughter on 16/08/2022, now starting to worry my only holiday of the year is going to be cancelled.

If anyone can advise of what more we can do, I’ll take the time off to trek to Liverpool or Newport if I have to.

Thanks,

Aidan

Hi all.
Lost my passport back in April, cancelled it and applied online on 27th April for a replacement. Last communication was to say checking details on 29th April. Since then I have phoned,e-mailed,wrote letters to various HMPOs,got my MP involved and contacted Home Office Minister all to no avail. After nearly 13 weeks waiting and due to travel in 2 weeks I tried to expedite but all I got back was automated response. Finally last night I e-mailed upgrade team at Durham, once again automated response but I received a phone call this morning to say they were processing my application and another e-mail 3 hours later to say it had been printed and was awaiting dispatch. I will still hold my breath until I have my passport in my hands because of all the lies I have been told for the last 3 months but I am really hopeful that the end of the tunnel is near.

Hey hope everyone is well. I applied for my kids first passport of the 29/6/22. I rang up and spoke to one of the colleagues they told me that the passports will be getting processed at Durham to send the relevant documents (birth certificates) to Durham which I did, later on i received a text and email saying to send the docs to glasgow but by then it was to late as that morning I posted it to Durham so this caused me to panic abit as I thought it would cause a delay in my application. So every day god knows how many times a day I kept ringing to make them aware of what happened. I also sent a covering letter the next day to Durham of what happened. Anyways 2 and a half weeks have gone by I contact my MP and tell her the situation she said she would contact the passport office, on Tuesday o got a call from the passport office- she said that we got a call from your MP I regards to the docs going to the wrong office, she said she will be contacting Durham to locate the docs. After an hour I got a email and txt to say that we’ve received your documents. So that was that. Yday I got a call to say the same thing we heard the docs have gone to wrong office but they can’t actually locate them we’re they are, few hours later they manage to find it. I got a call this morning saying passports are being printed got an email and txt to say it’s been approved and being printed. Will be dispatched soon. Best thing to do is ring them everyday and contact the MP even tho I was only 3 weeks in I didn’t wanna wait to put myself in thr position of waiting 6-10 weeks!

Fantastic Aidan! And what a relief! But 24 hours before travel is far too tight.

I’ve just come off my daily phone call. Today’s magic advice is to re-send your emails with “2nd request” in the subject line. Apparently that’ll do the trick.

So lovely when you’re taken for a fool.

Update. Passport arrived today via TNT.Yippee! I really believe that e-mailing the upgrade team at Durham finally got the ball rolling. 13 weeks stuck on someones desk,countless phone calls,e-mails,letters and contact with MPs, then after e-mailing the upgrade team I had my passport approved, printed and delivered in 2 days…. Unbelievable!
I really hope that everyone on here manages to get their passport in time for their holidays.

So after getting some good tips and both reassurance and a little panic at times from here, thought I’d share my case – standard adult renewal:

Application submitted 1st May 2022.
Old passport recieved 16th May. (In Belfast)
Initially application being processed 18th May, however this later rolled back to the recieved stage.

Had a holiday booked for 5th August since May 2021.

After reading here and other sites, at 10 weeks from application submitted, tried my luck with an email to expeditedservice@hmpo.gov.uk – got an automated response straight back, but nothing more.

10 weeks exactly from old 16th May, rang 03002220000 and option 8 then 3. Was answered very quickly and advised to email expedited and include travel confirmation. Didn’t say I’d previously done this, but email sent again. Told someone would be in contact within 48hrs of sending email. Asked what if no one contacts me – told to ring back and request and upgrade.

Nothing recieved, so on 48hrs rang back and explained situation and was requesting an upgrade. Was forwarded to two further call handlers, one of which was after a 45min wait on hold. They said they’d put notes on my application and told me to email escalatedservice@hmpo.gov.uk with my name and reference in the subject and travel confirmation attached. Again said someone would contact me within 48hrs. Didn’t ask what if this time – plan was to ring again on 48hrs and probably go to local passport office 48hrs before travel anyway.

Recieved the same automated reply as before so didn’t hold out much hope. Was feeling even less confident as 48hrs approached, only to get a call from the Belfast office within minutes of that deadline! Said they had just approved my application and were sending it for printing in Glasgow so that it could be posted with next day by 1p.m. delivery! Told me to ignore the updates I’d get saying I’d recieved my new passport within 2 weeks.

Minutes later got text from tracking to confirm the approval and about an hour later another to confirm the printing.

Not counting any chickens, was beginning to lose hope again by almost mid-day today as I’d not recieved any postal tracking information, when right on cue as I was about to ring back, the passport was posted through my letter box!

The whole saga has added so much more unnecessary stress – the thought of losing £5k on a holiday that’s been rebooked twice since early 2020 was really getting to me – particulary with the stories of many others getting theirs back in days or a couple of weeks!

Good luck to those of you still in the system – you have my greatest sympathy and I hope you all have good news soon!