Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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157. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the target time for issuing passports across all services; the actual time for issuing passports across services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24344/18]

Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The turnaround timeframe for a passport application will depend, in the first instance, on the channel through which the application was submitted. The Passport Service provides a range of channels to Irish citizens wishing to apply for a passport. These include a postal application system, online passport application service, in person counter application facilities in Dublin and Cork and the network of Irish Missions worldwide. The table below shows target and actual turnaround times for all of the Passport Services application channel.

Turnaround targets are determined on the basis of available resources and projected demand. Turnaround times are among a number of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) by which the Passport Service measures its success in delivering a modern and responsive public service.

Measures taken by the Passport Service to minimise the impact of peak time application volumes on turnaround times for all categories of applications include the recruitment of additional staff and the use of targeted overtime for all Passport Offices.

The Passport Service received sanction this year for 220 Temporary Clerical Officers (TCOs) for appointment to the Passport Offices in Dublin and Cork. All TCOs in this intake have been fully trained and placed since March. These TCOs are working together with permanent staff to process passport applications and to deal with the high number of enquiries being made through the Passport Service’s various customer service channels.