Colm Brophy (Dublin South West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for the opportunity to address the essential work of the passport service, which has continued to deliver throughout the global pandemic.

At level 5, employers are asked to only undertake essential tasks to help stop the spread of Covid-19 in our community. I am satisfied that the passport service is continuing to provide an essential service while respecting the level 5 restrictions announced on 23 December. The passport service provides a same-day service for citizens who need to travel for urgent medical treatment abroad and for citizens who require lifesaving treatment. Travel in these circumstances is unforeseen and the passport service has gone above and beyond to assist families in very stressful and emotive situations.

Our travel emergency team continues to assess every request from citizens under these criteria. I ask that citizens bear in mind that the same-day service is only for those in the most urgent and unanticipated cases, typically when an applicant is in hospital and requires medical transfer. The passport service also offers an urgent service on a weekly basis for those who need to travel overseas for less urgent but essential medical treatment. Adult renewals are processed when a citizen needs to travel for work, study or other essential reasons. We also offer assistance when a passport is needed urgently as proof of identity, for example, to meet a legal obligation. All of these service are provided through the online channel and applicants are requested to provide documentation to support their application and validate their essential need for a passport. These documents will be verified before a passport is issued. Applicants should, in the first instance, contact the passport service through the web chat facility.

Citizens who live overseas are assisted through our network of Irish embassies and consulates. We continue to process renewals and first-time applications where a citizen is only entitled to Irish citizenship and when they are legally required to hold a passport for residency purposes. The applications that have been paused are adult renewals that are not required for essential purposes, applications which are complex or require supporting documentation, such as child renewals where the consent of all guardians must be obtained and verified, and first-time applications. When there is an essential reason to travel each case will be considered.

The processing of all online applications will resume at level 4. I will outline how the passport service will resume operations. Significant work has been done in recent years through the passport reform programme to deliver a more efficient and effective service. The passport service online application channel, which was introduced in 2017, has been key to the delivery of services during this time and will be key to their resumption. It allows adults renewing their passports to apply from the safety of their home. It allows us to keep applicants informed as to when operations are paused and again when service resumes. My staff have examined the current application patterns and the forecasted number of applications estimated to be received up to May 2021 and they are confident that any backlog will be cleared in approximately six to eight weeks.

The first applications to be approved will be the online applications for adult renewals, then child renewals and then first-time applications. Every effort will be made to return to reliable turnaround times as quickly as possible. I assure the Senator of our continued attention regarding this issue in the months ahead. I reassure everyone that every effort is made to facilitate anyone who requires a passport in an emergency situation or for essential services or travel. There is a commitment in place to do that.