Renewing passport at Post Office (where there take your photo and do the check)

[PilatesPeach]

My passport expired a year and a half ago and have had no need to renew but thinking about getting it done at the local big post office where they take the photo and send it all off with your old one - has anyone done this recently and approx how long did it take - I am not intending to do the paperwork at home and send off with photos (like I did in the "old" days). I did renew my driving licence at the post office last year and took a week but obviously not the same department

thanks

You can do it online and take a picture with your phone. It is cheaper online too. They charge even more to take the picture and check it at the post office.

I'd suggest you get the photo done at a local photo shop so you know it complies with the rules, and do it online. Our local shop only charges £5 for the photo and gives you a code for the online form. It works very well.

The last renewals I've done have used picture taken by my phone so costs nothing. All you need is a pale wall and no shadows on your face

yes am aware it costs more but am trying to ascertain if it is quicker - I have had friends who have waited 4 or 6 months doing it themselves and sending it off by post.

All you send by post is the old passport when you do the application online. We did ds"s this year and his new one arrived in 2 weeks. I dont think using the post office speeds up the process

The whole passport system has been in utter chaos for months , did you know that? Delays aren't due to your friends doing themselves

As other have said the post office check is a waste of money

Sending paper applications by post takes longer. I wouldn't pay the extra for the post office to do it. Online is usually cheaper and faster although there was a lot of chaos earlier this year which made the timescale increase to 10 weeks instead of 6 weeks

My daughter's passport expired during the first lockdown, and it was renewed online in March this year. She had her photo taken at Max Spielmann, and the whole renewal process was very easy.

Her passport took less than a month to arrive.

I also had to renew my passport. I did the online application on Aug 16th. I used my phone to take a photo and it was approved as part of the application. I posted my old passport off the next morning. I received my new passport on September 2nd, so just over 2 weeks later. Very easy. I would recommend doing it online.

great thanks

renewed DSs online with photo taken on mobile … took 8 working days at the end of July this year.

I agree with do it online on your phone it's really easy even I could do it

I used the PO service OP. I was renewing an expired passport (only expired a few months). I was updated by text frequently and new passport arrived a week later. Worth the £16 for me. The passport photo is awful!

My husband has just renewed his doing it online with photo done in local shop (or Timpsons).
Filled in form on Tuesday, got new passport back following Tuesday. A week, including a bank holiday!

Using the PO service won't expedite the passport application process.
What will expedite it is to get a proper passport photo and fill in the relevant sections correctly online.

I've just done the kids ones online and it only took 3 weeks for a renewal and 4 weeks for a first passport. I very much doubt the post office will be any quicker.

If you are able to do it online. I think you get a text within a day or two asking you to return your old one. Ours i only took about 2 weeks at Christmas.
The photos were Max Spielman - a bit pricey at about £11 but I knew they were correct. They give you an online code to upload them.

I wouldn't bother with the post office service. When applying for my first adult passport I took all the documents down and the guy insisted I didn't need to send two of them, and would not put them in with the application. These were two very basic documents that a lot of people born after 1982 would need to send. Not a complex situation at all.

I explained exactly why I included them but he insisted I was wrong, and in the end I thought yep, I probably have misunderstood, as this guy does these a lot.

A couple of weeks later I got a letter from the passport office asking for those exact documents.

I did get a refund of the fee in the end but unless I was really struggling to understand a form I wouldn't use that type of service again.

It's a waste of money and won't be any quicker. Its only useful for particularly complex applications (e.g. new citizenship) as if an application is filled in incorrectly or without the right documents it'll be delayed. They're trained to check and ensure the forms are correct to prevent delays.

For straightforward applications and renewals it's pointless though.

Do it online. My DC's took two weeks, mine took 10 weeks, my brother's took 2 weeks, so it's variable!

I think there may still be a backlog but as far as I know new passport applications are going through quickly. My husband and I both renewed our passports over the summer.

His took about 10 days. Mine was back within the week.

I did my application online before the weekend.
Yesterday I got 3 update emails to say

1. Old passport received
2. New passport approved.
3. New passport printed.

I'm impressed!