Written answers
Tuesday, 21 October 2025
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Passport Services
Ryan O'Meara (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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193. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the average processing time for passport applications whereby reckonable residency must be established; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57066/25]
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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All passport applications are subject to the provisions of the Passports Act 2008 ("the 2008 Act"), as amended. The 2008 Act provides, among other things, that a person must be an Irish citizen before a passport can be issued to that person.
Entitlement to Irish citizenship is determined by the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956 ("the 1956 Act"), as amended, under which Irish citizenship may be obtained by birth, by descent, or by naturalisation. The 1956 Act is under the remit of the Department of Justice, Home Affairs, and Migration.
When processing a first time application, the Passport Service must validate the identity of the applicant and confirm their entitlement to Irish citizenship.
The vast majority of applications are processed within the advertised turnaround times. Turnaround time applies to fully complete and correct applications, and begins from the date that supporting documents are received by the Passport Service, not the date the online application is made. Applications that are incorrect or incomplete will take longer to process.
With regard to the Deputy's query, it is not possible for the Passport Service to compile the requested figures for this Parliamentary Question response, as the data is not available. Passport applications that involve the calculation of a parent's reckonable residence can be complex. The Passport Service has a dedicated team of highly skilled and experienced entitlement officers who review these applications and engage directly with the applicant to ensure that all required supporting documentation is submitted.
I would ask the Deputy to encourage applicants with specific queries to contact the Passport Service for guidance and support. Applicants with any queries can contact the Customer Service Hub for assistance at +353 1 671 1633, or via the webchat service: www.ireland.ie/contactpassportservice/
Agents are available from Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m.
Ryan O'Meara (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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194. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade to consider implementing changes to the online passport tracker to better reflect processing times in the instance of a ‘non-standard’ or ‘complex’ application, as these applications currently present with an estimated issue date based on ‘standard’ application processing times and said estimated issue date does not update once it has passed, therefore leaving said applicants with no indication on turnaround times, as is afforded to applicants with ‘standard’ applications; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57067/25]
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Passport Service is successfully responding to demand, and has issued over 805,000 passports to date this year. Virtually all complete passport applications are being processed within or before advertised turnaround times.
The turnaround times for passport applications are:
- 10 working days for simple online adult renewals
- 15 working days for complex or child online renewals
- 20 working days for first time online applications
- 8 weeks for post passport or paper applications
The tracker provides an indication of how an application is progressing through the system and gives an estimated issue date based on the current average application processing time. As the website notes, the issue date of your passport is a Target Issue Date and not a guaranteed date. Information is updated intermittently on the tracker daily and reflects the current target turnaround times. The tracker updates applications throughout the day where these applications have progressed.
Turnaround time applies to fully complete and correct applications, and begins from the date that supporting documents are received by the Passport Service, not the date the online application is made. Applications that are incorrect or incomplete will take longer to process.
If an applicant has submitted an online application that requires documentation in support of same, the Target Issue Date will not display until all required supporting documentation has been received by the Passport Service.
It is important to note that complex applications may, by their nature, involve considerable engagement between the applicant and the Passport Service to ensure all necessary documentation is provided. Since 2022, the Passport Service has operated a document management system whereby incomplete applications that require further supporting documents are prioritised once the additional documents are received by the Passport Service. These applications are then processed within 15 working days.
The Passport Service continually works to enhance the service and provide efficiencies for customers. A number of improvements were made to the passport online platform over the past two years. These include a bespoke list of the supporting documents required for first-time applicants and a new integration feature with the General Register Office (GRO). These upgrades help to reduce the administrative burden for applicants.
The Passport Service's programme of reform will continue throughout this year and next year, with the delivery of a number of highly complex and transformational projects that are necessary to future-proof service delivery, enhance the customer experience, ensure business continuity, and safeguard the integrity of the Irish passport. Successful delivery of these projects will ensure that Ireland remains at the forefront of passport processing worldwide. The Reform Programme includes improvements to the passport tracker that would provide more accuracy on individual applications and their statuses.
Ryan O'Meara (Tipperary North, Fianna Fail)
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195. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of passport applications processing 6+ months; 12+ months; 18+ months, 24+ months, as of October 2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [57068/25]
Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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The Passport Service is successfully responding to demand, and has issued over 805,000 passports to date this year. Virtually all complete passport applications are being processed within or before advertised turnaround times.
The turnaround times for passport applications are:
- 10 working days for simple online adult renewals
- 15 working days for complex or child online renewals
- 20 working days for first time online applications
- 8 weeks for post passport or paper applications
Since 2022, the Passport Service has operated a document management system whereby incomplete applications that require further supporting documents are prioritised once the additional documents are received by the Passport Service. These applications are then processed within 15 working days.
An application is valid in the Passport Service system for a period of 6 months from when the online application is made. From the time that the supporting documents are received, the Passport Service works with the applicant to process the application and ensure all required documents have been submitted to prove the applicant's entitlement to Irish citizenship, to verify their identity, and in the cases of children, to ensure that consent of guardians is verified.
In a small number of cases, it can happen that all required supporting documents are not received by the Passport Service during the 6 month validity period. In such cases, the application will expire and a refund will issue to the applicant.
It has not been possible for the Passport Service to compile the requested figures in time for the Parliamentary Question response. The Passport Service will follow up with the Deputy directly with the requested information.
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