Written answers
Thursday, 18 April 2019
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Passport Applications Data
Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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57. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the target time and actual turnaround time for receipt of passports across all passport services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18374/19]
Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The following table summarises the turnaround times for the Passport Service’s main application channels. Turnaround times for individual Missions outside Ireland and the UK are omitted as these will vary for each individual Mission and are dependent on local postal services.
| Type of Passport application | Target turnaround time | Average turnaround time |
|---|---|---|
| Online Passport Renewal Service | 10 working days | 10 working days |
| An Post Passport Express renewal application | 15 working days | 15 working days |
| An Post Passport Express first time application & application to replace lost/stolen/damaged passport | 20 working days | 17 working days |
| Northern Ireland Passport Express renewal applications | 15 working days | 14 working days |
| Northern Ireland Passport Express first time application & application to replace lost/stolen/damaged passport | 25 working days | 29 working days |
| London Passport Office renewal application | 20 working days | 21 working days |
| London Passport Office first time application & application to replace lost/stolen/damaged passport | 30 working days | 59 working days |
Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
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58. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of persons who for the first time applied for an Irish passport from Great Britain and Northern Ireland in each of the years 2014 to 2018, inclusive, and to date in 2019; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [18375/19]
Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael)
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The number of first-time passport applications received from applicants who were resident in Northern Ireland and Great Britain at the time of application during the period 2014 to 2019 is detailed in the table below:
| Year | First-time applications from applicants resident in Northern Ireland | First-time applications from applicants resident in Great Britain |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 18,370 | 5,676 |
| 2015 | 20,676 | 6,011 |
| 2016 | 30,760 | 18,263 |
| 2017 | 41,909 | 31,682 |
| 2018 | 42,547 | 39,287 |
| 2019* | 29,805 | 19,899 |
In recent years, there has been a significant rise in passport applications from Irish citizens resident in Northern Ireland and Great Britain. In 2018, there was a 2% increase in first-time passport applications from Irish citizens resident in Northern Ireland when compared to 2017 application figures. There was a 24% increase in first-time passport applications from Irish citizens resident in Great Britain for the same time period.
This rise is part of a broader increase in demand for Irish passports which is due to a variety of factors including an increase in the number of Irish citizens travelling abroad and a growing population in Ireland. The UK's Referendum on EU membership in June 2016 has also had an effect on demand for passports from Irish citizens resident in Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
The Passport Service monitors the overall volume of applications on an ongoing basis to ensure that resources are available to meet demand. Furthermore, the Passport Service has commissioned research to try to better understand the potential demand for passports from citizens resident in Great Britain who have not yet applied for an Irish passport.
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