Blog

Type of Application:
First UK Adult Passport

Submission Date:
2022-02-04

Date Received:
2022-03-31

Overall Experience:
2 Star – Stressful

Comments:
Lack of customer service…….re call backs and giving correct Information.

Type of Application:
First UK Adult Passport

Submission Date:
2022-01-20

Date Received:
2022-04-21

Overall Experience:
1 Star – Very Stressful

Comments:
Told me they had all documentation then told me they didn’t then told me not to worry they have everything then threatened to cancel without a refund because i hadn’t given the documentation then said they have it all not to worry i know there is a long wait time but they are just messing me around at this point. On one week i was on the phone for over 7 hours its a joke. Still waiting for response (almost been 13 weeks just for them to find the documentation they had since January) still don’t know what stage its up to no information given staff all seem incompetent or not trained be glad once i receive it and don’t have to deal with them for 10 years.

Type of Application:
First UK Adult Passport

Submission Date:
2022-03-11

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
4 Star – Easy

Comments:
It does take time, they are extremely busy so make sure you do it way in advance!

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-02-16

Date Received:
2022-04-12

Overall Experience:
1 Star – Very Stressful

Comments:
The delays are appalling but worse still is the lack of any accurate info. When I phoned the operative couldn’t even tell me that I wouldn’t get my passport so at least some choices can be made.

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-02

Date Received:
2022-03-31

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Did start to worry a bit when I read to allow up to 10 weeks so was pleasantly surprised when I got it back with 4 weeks.

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-25

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
4 Star – Easy

Comments:
25 days from submitting application to receiving passport. Longest (and most stressful part) was waiting for documents to be confirmed as received! Causes panic unnecessarily thinking docs have got lost!

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-04-02

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Update process on the gov website is a bit slow from receiving and signing for old passport to updating as received.

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-29

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
4 Star – Easy

Comments:
Pleasantly surprised by the speed at which my online Adult Renewal progressed. Only lose 1 star because (as is well documented on this site ) the delay in updating the tracker for the “documents received” despite KNOWING (because you sent your old passport back with tracked mail) that it arrived.
I would definitely not to panic for 2 weeks once you’ve sent your passport back… but once you get the magic message that “documents received” things move quite quickly. The 2 weeks is the delay between a post-room receiving the old passport and it being scanned into “the system”.
The other tip I would recommend is to pay for a professional picture at your local photo shop who do passport photos. It cost me £12 and took 10 mins to get photo done and the online code (plus a hard copy of the photo). They told me they have never had anyone’s photo rejected and yet you see loads of delays on this site where people have to get new photos done.
Other tip I learnt from this site is to wait 24 hours after “passport printed” and check the TNT website using your PEX code as the application reference.

My timeline:
Tue 29/03/22 14:36 Application submitted (Tracker)
Tue 29/03/22 14:36 Application received (Tracker)
Wed 30/03/22 08.15 Passport signed for via RoyalMail at Corby PO
Wed 06/04/22 14:49 Documents Received (Tracker)
Fri 08/04/22 01:00 Application approved (Tracker)
Thu 14/04/22 03:17 Passport Printed (Tracker)
Tue 19/04/22 11:04 Passport Delivered (TNT)

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-12

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
3 Star – Average

Comments:
Renewal with change of name.
Biggest delay was waiting for documents to be acknowledged – sent recorded delivery 19/03, signed for 22/03 but not updated until 04/04.
Received 19/04
Passport printed 4:57am on 13 April 2022
Application approved 12:11pm on 7 April 2022
Documents received 4:13pm on 4 April 2022
Application received 2:46pm on 12 March 2022
Application submitted 2:45pm on 12 March 2022

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-24

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
3 Star – Average

Comments:
The process was very straight forward although there was a 2 week wait before the passport office confirmed they had received my documents. This seems pretty standard from looking at this website though!
Approved 7th April
Printed 12th April
Received 19th April

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-04-01

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Super easy! Just over two weeks and I took a few days to send my old passport (not signed for or tracked). I think I got lucky.

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-20

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
New passport received via TNT on 19 April 2022
Passport printed 3:17pm on 13 April 2022
Application approved 8:36pm on 7 April 2022
Documents received 4:38pm on 28 March 2022
Application received 3:32pm on 20 March 2022
Application submitted 3:32pm on 20 March 2022

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-26

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Application submitted and received 26 3 2022
Documents posted 28 3 2022 (signed for)
Documents signed for 29 3 2022
Documents marked as received by HMPO 5 4 2022
Application approved and sent for printing 6 4 2022
Passport printed 12 4 2022
Passport appeared on TNT website 14 4 2022 saying due to be received 19 4 2022
Delivery confirmed on TNT website to be delivered between 8 am and 8 pm on 19 4 2022
Passport delivered 12.59 on 19 4 2022 with the delivery man taking a photo of the door. He just posted it through the letterbox – didn’t ring the doorbell – I was in the room next to the front door and saw him walk down the drive and post it.

I have been reading the comments on the blogs on this website. When applying for a passport it quite clearly says DO NOT BOOK A HOLIDAY UNTIL YOU HAVE RECEIVED YOUR PASSPORT. It also says allow 10 weeks for the passport to be processed and sent out (although I accept that it is taking a shorter time than 10 weeks). I appreciate that sometimes people need to go abroad at the last moment or because of some emergency or need their passports for other reasons eg ID. I am appalled at the number of people who think missing a holiday is an emergency! Why did they book a holiday before they had their passport in their hands? And then they have the cheek to say the people at HMPO were rude to them when they rang!!!! I’m not surprised they were rude. If these people didn’t keep ringing for non emergencies, the people with real emergencies wouldn’t have to wait three hours to get through!

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-29

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Quicker than expected! Did not pay any extra cheapest price from gov site. Photos were taken by a company and not by a PhotoBooth.

Type of Application:
Adult Passport Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-02-24

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
3 Star – Average

Comments:
Overall a bit of a nailbiting experience despite not flying for another 2 weeks. Glad that I applied well in advance. First photo rejected due to not being recent enough.

Passport printed: 1:01pm on 13 April 2022
Application approved: 6:53pm on 7 April 2022
New photo received: 2:52pm on 7 April 2022
Photo rejected: 2:05pm on 7 April 2022
Application being processed; 10:55am on 2 March 2022
Identity details received: 8:35pm on 27 February 2022
Email sent to person confirming your identity: 8:45pm on 24 February 2022
Ask someone to confirm your identity: 8:35pm on 24 February 2022
Application submitted: 8:35pm on 24 February 2022

Type of Application:
First Child Passport

Submission Date:
2022-03-13

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
4 Star – Easy

Comments:
It took 2 weeks for them to acknowledge receipt of my daughters birth certificate, even though it arrived the day after application.

Type of Application:
First Child Passport

Submission Date:
2022-03-11

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
3 Star – Average

Comments:
Incredibly stressful – especially as the help line would often cut you off due to ‘high call volumes’. However, when able to speak to an operator, they were incredibly reassuring and helpful. The online updates were both a help and hindrance, especially when stating documents hadn’t arrived even though they’d been received through tracking 2 weeks previous. I’d never book a holiday without all passports in hand again!
Time line:
Passport delivered 8.30am on 19th April 2022
Passport printed 4:01am on 14 April 2022
Application approved 8:23am on 8 April 2022
Documents received 8:46am on 29 March 2022
Application received 2:06pm on 12 March 2022
Identity details received 2:05pm on 12 March 2022
Email sent to person confirming your identity 2:51pm on 11 March 2022
Ask someone to confirm your identity 2:47pm on 11 March 2022
Application submitted 2:47pm on 11 March 2022

Type of Application:
Child Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-02-12

Date Received:
2022-04-14

Overall Experience:
1 Star – Very Stressful

Comments:
Applied 12 Feb 22
Documents recieved 25th Feb
Being processed 09th March
Then never heard another thing so I made several phone calls as at that time passports were taking between 22 and 30 days.. This was at the Southampton office but then the complaints team told me it was at the Durham office but still heard nothing till I managed to get the proper email address and lady from Durham phoned me up,asked some questions as I told her we had a holiday booked a few days later.That same day the tracking changed to approved on 07th April,then on the 12th April it was printed and on 13th April got a message from TNT saying they had the passport.The same day I got a message saying that there had been an attempt to deliver it.Had to contact TNT to re arrange delivery for the next day.They phoned me this time to say they were outside the house with it.
Have no idea what would have happened if I hadn’t phoned all them times to chase it up.Some advisors were much more helpful than others.
Needless to say we lost the money for the 6 flights .
There has to be a better system than this.I wouldnt renew a passport on line ever again,it was far too stressful.

Type of Application:
Child Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-22

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Applied online, posted old passport off the day after, signed for.

Type of Application:
Child Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-30

Date Received:
2022-04-06

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Online process very easy.

Type of Application:
Child Renewal

Submission Date:
2022-03-28

Date Received:
2022-04-19

Overall Experience:
5 Star – Very Easy

Comments:
Total Calendar Days from Application Submission to TNT delivered = 22 days
This was a standard Childs Renewal (his 3rd). He had one at 6 Months, a renewal age 5 and this one age 10.
No details have changed from his original first passport (inc. our address)
I went to Max Spielmann for his renewal photo to avoid delays (you receive a code to show it is accepted)
I posted his Old Passport straight away to BOOTLE on a 1st Class Recorded delivery.
Both my Husband and I have Passports in date, as well as our other sons.
Throughout the whole process I have received a SMS and email from HMRC to confirm each stage.
I received a SMS on the morning of delivery from TNT and the driver called me that morning when he was struggling to find my address.
I can not fault the service – even though I was stressing due to us flying on 16th May.
I will however always give at least 6 Months prior to renewals from now on, or do the Fast Track Premium service (just for my own peace of mind)