Passport panic!

[Laquila]

Disclaimer: I KNOW we shouldn't have booked travel until a new passport was safely in our grubby little mitts and I KNOW we should have returned my kid's old passport to the passport office via signed for/special del rather than just posting it 1st class (without even a Cert of Posting) but we are where we are, I'm afraid...

I completed the application online for my kid's new child passport back in early April. We then posted his current passport back, very frustratingly not via a tracked service ( see above). It's now 2.5wks and the online tracker is still saying "send us your old passport". Just spent ages on hold to them and they've said that u til it's been 4wks, I can't report it lost or stolen as it could still be going through their system. If it doesn't turn up by 4wks I can report it lost, get a ref number and phone them to change my application to a replacement one rather than a renewal. I then have to send a signed letter and their "special team" will try and help sort it, but the agent was vague about whether it could be upgraded to the 1-wk service. AGGGHHHHH!!!! We're traveling on 28 May. I don't know why I didn't just do the bloody 1-wk Fastrack in the first place but hindsight is a wonderful thing. Has anyone else been in this situation and had it miraculously resolved by the returned current passport suddenly turning up and the new one getting issued super-fast??! I'm absolutely kicking myself!

Bump...

if it helps - we're mid getting new passports - it was 18 days from making the application and sending off our passports straight away until we got the passport received notifications/tracking and approved another 2 days after that.

Some people said they got it early. But in my case my child passport renewal has not approved yet. I applied online on 18th Feb... still waiting here. We cancelled holiday :(

Some people said they got it early. But in my case my child passport renewal has not approved yet. I applied online on 18th Feb... still waiting here. We cancelled holiday :(

Some people said they got it early. But in my case my child passport renewal has not approved yet. I applied online on 18th Feb... still waiting here. We cancelled holiday :(

My passport was turned around is a fortnight (but no special issues involved to slow down the process). DCs ones were sent to a different address (as the online info advised) and are due any day now.

Mine has arrived slightly quicker than DCs but in all cases, a surprisingly quick turnaround. It could be because it is straightforward renewals with no unusual circumstances.

Thanks so much everyone - appreciate these responses. I've learnt my lesson!

@Jelly0naplate did you get an email once it was approved and posted put? For some reason I thought that if they were asking for your old passport then the new application would automatically be approved...if they reject my countersignatory or the bloody photo now I'll lose the will...😱

I get emails at each stage, so approval, printed and ready to go to courier. So process started 2nd April and today I had an email saying passports have to be signed once received (adult passports). My child renewal passport is also on that timeframe.

My other child's first passport is still sat at documents received stage on the tracking. We don't go until end of July though so trying not to worry at the moment!

Mine took 3 weeks to acknowledge receipt but I had it within the week once received

Mine was stolen. The post office sent me 6 1st class stamps.

Had to start from scratch.

I just applied for a new child's passport. Checked the tracker & was still being asked for docs but they were received 11 days ago (checked on track) so theft is a delay between stages and the online system being updated. Still annoying though

We sent our DS passport back on 7th March by tracked post next day delivery, we knew it had been received by them on 8th March but didn’t get the email saying it had been received until 21st March! We then got an approval email on 24th March and received the passport in early April. So there is still time, and I wouldn’t jump to conclusions that it’s been lost as it seems to take them 2 weeks to open their post!

Similar situation here - we can see that ds old passport was received by the passport office on 14th April but the application is still saying they’re waiting for it….

Oh God I've have been so bloody cross! Did you do the fast-track service second time round?

Similar Ouse to @ceeveebee. I knew it had been signed for but it took 2 weeks I think for them to acknowledge it in the tracker. But once they did the new one was back in a few days.

This is very comforting, thank you 😁 clings to shreds of hope...

Just renewed mine and DDs (first adult passport for her). Mine was sent signed for on 19/3 and I could see the Royal Mail tracking showed as received the next day but two weeks later it was still showing on the PP system as waiting the old one, so assume they just sit in a pile somewhere waiting for them to be actioned.

At 2 weeks and 4 days I got notified that they had received it and then 2 days later it was approved, 2 days later printed and arrived 2 days after that and similar timescale for DDs.

I think they are probably snowed under with applications as everyone starts renewing for the summer. Fingers crossed yours is there soon.

Posted DS birth certificate (signed for) on the 15th hitting the easter bank hol. It showed as delivered on RM track a few days later and got the text/email confirmation today. Still linking to the website saying up to 10 weeks but thankfully for us we don't need it yet