Passport Office strike!

[jeanlyon]

hope nobody is planning on getting a new passport in the next couple of months.  Passport Office going on strike for 5 weeks from 3rd april.

[Selbourne]

5 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

hope nobody is planning on getting a new passport in the next couple of months.  Passport Office going on strike for 5 weeks from 3rd april.

Oh dear. Just applied for one! Can’t be 5 solid weeks surely? They couldn’t afford to lose that much income!

[david63]

Actually it is only around a quarter of the passport staff that are going on strike - not sure if it is all at once or just some of them some of the time.

 

It won't be a total "no passport" situation but will obviously slow the process down.

[kalos]

38 minutes ago, Selbourne said:

Oh dear. Just applied for one! Can’t be 5 solid weeks surely? They couldn’t afford to lose that much income!

 

Once you have sent off for it ,you will get an e-mail that invites you to track the progress.

 

I sent off to renew my passport and sent with a few months left, so sent it Signed for post

on the 27th of January. Passport kept me informed ... Application history Status Date

Passport printed 7:34am on 17 February 2023 Application approved 10:04am on 16 February Documents received 1:57pm on 13 February.

Fingers crossed you should be ok .

 

 

 

[Selbourne]

12 minutes ago, kalos said:

 

Once you have sent off for it ,you will get an e-mail that invites you to track the progress.

 

I sent off to renew my passport and sent with a few months left, so sent it Signed for post

on the 27th of January. Passport kept me informed ... Application history Status Date

Passport printed 7:34am on 17 February 2023 Application approved 10:04am on 16 February Documents received 1:57pm on 13 February.

Fingers crossed you should be ok .

 

 

 

Yes I’m doing that. They have acknowledged receipt of the old one, so fingers crossed. 

[wowzz]

With regards to passports, when I booked our Azura 2024 cruise, TA agent diligently went through the issue and expiry dates of both our  passports.  I got the distinct opinion that many have run foul of the ruling that passports expire 10 years from the date of issue, not the expiry date.

The agent also said that the passport needed to have six months validity remaining on the date the cruise ended. I wasn't sure of the facts,  but I think that is incorrect. Anyone care to clarify? 

[jeanlyon]

That is correct.   10 years from date of issue and 6 months remaining after end of cruise.

[Harry Peterson]

8 minutes ago, wowzz said:

With regards to passports, when I booked our Azura 2024 cruise, TA agent diligently went through the issue and expiry dates of both our  passports.  I got the distinct opinion that many have run foul of the ruling that passports expire 10 years from the date of issue, not the expiry date.

The agent also said that the passport needed to have six months validity remaining on the date the cruise ended. I wasn't sure of the facts,  but I think that is incorrect. Anyone care to clarify? 

This might help. It all became much more difficult and messy after we left the EU:

 

https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/eu-passport-renewal-expiry-rules-uk-aRaVG6j5PpyJ

[terrierjohn]

22 minutes ago, jeanlyon said:

That is correct.   10 years from date of issue and 6 months remaining after end of cruise.

For the EU, the passport only needs to be valid for 3 months when you exit the EU.

[wowzz]

13 minutes ago, terrierjohn said:

For the EU, the passport only needs to be valid for 3 months when you exit the EU.

Yes - just checked the P&O web site, and it clearly says 3 months. 

A bit surprised that the TA did not know that, but I suppose it is better to be safe than sorry.

[david63]

I thought that the 10 year rule only applies to the Schengen Area. Most, if not all, of the rest of the world will allow a passport to run beyond 10 years from the date of issue.

[windsor26]

On 3/18/2023 at 12:36 AM, jeanlyon said:

That is correct.   10 years from date of issue and 6 months remaining after end of cruise.

Some countries  Chile for example require 9 months left on the passport  Need to check every country you are going to visit

[fruitmachine]

On 3/17/2023 at 2:16 PM, wowzz said:

Yes - just checked the P&O web site, and it clearly says 3 months. 

A bit surprised that the TA did not know that, but I suppose it is better to be safe than sorry.

I think you're allowed in for 3 months without a visa, and the passport must have the 3 months buffer you list at the point you leave, which is why the alternative view is that it's 6 months at date of entry.

[wowzz]

8 minutes ago, fruitmachine said:

I think you're allowed in for 3 months without a visa, and the passport must have the 3 months buffer you list at the point you leave, which is why the alternative view is that it's 6 months at date of entry.

Yes, but the TA was adamant that six months were required from the date of the end of the cruise.

[Selbourne]

New passport arrived today. Just 10 days from application to receipt. Good job that we applied when we did!