Turnaround times for new passport applications have fallen by three weeks but the under-pressure service is continuing to be criticised by some TDs.
Amid unprecedented demand for travel documents, those seeking first-time passports through the online application system now face a wait of about 25 working days, down from 40.
There are also indications that a post-pandemic surge in applications is easing, with the numbers received last month falling by 30 per cent to about 100,000, compared with 146,000 in May. The Passport Service expects demand to return to more normal levels over the coming months.
However, TDs are still being regularly contacted by constituents hoping to travel but facing often lengthy waits for the documents.
Limerick TD Maurice Quinlivan, who has worked in the travel sector, said there was no justifying a lack of preparation for passport demand following more than two years of pandemic related travel restrictions.
“One certainly did not have to be an expert in aviation trends to anticipate that there would be a large number of people seeking to travel after a two-year moratorium,” he told the Dáil recently, questioning why a third of staff offered temporary clerical roles to help deal with the surge had turned them down.
Mr Quinlivan said there had been a “dramatic increase” in complaints about the service, putting it at 359 so far this year.
“Providing a passport is a basic function of the Department of Foreign Affairs and, unfortunately, it is often shambolic and a national embarrassment when people have put in applications on time and cannot travel.”
Despite an apparent scramble to deal with levels of demand anticipated since last year, the service has bent under the strain and been unable to shake ongoing criticism. The frustration felt by applicants has been passed on to elected representatives. It emerged last month that TDs had sent more than 12,000 status queries to the Passport Office on behalf of constituents since the start of the year.
Significant efforts have been made to address the issues raised. The appointment of 570 additional staff over the last year has helped process 720,000 passports as of mid-July, compared with 634,000 in all of last year.
“Processing times for online adult renewals are among the fastest in the world, with almost half of these applicants receiving their passports within two working days,” Minister of State Malcolm Noonan said in response to the concerns raised by Mr Quinlivan.
In recent weeks, he said, the number of calls fielded by the Passport Office’s customer service hub has increased to more than 2,000 daily and the service is now operating at its highest ever capacity, “hitting an average of 6,000 passports per day”.
Efforts to amend the Garda witnessing process, in which officers validate applications with signatures, a system that had contributed to some delays, are also ongoing.
In cases where Garda signatures cannot be verified by calling the relevant station, a new electronic system has been established between the Passport Service and An Garda Síochána.
“An average of 15 applications per day are verified in this manner,” Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said recently, in response to a parliamentary question from Social Democrats TD Catherine Murphy.
“This system was fully rolled out across the Passport Service in June 2022. The Passport Service and An Garda Síochána will keep the system under review to ensure that it continues to operate effectively.”
