Passport Issues

[paperrings]

Starting to feel like we are the first family to ever apply for a passport for an adopted child!

LO 'has' passport in birth name, we don't know where it is and can only assume it is still with birth family but 100% not with us or social workers anymore.
We asked for it from SW at the time but it couldn't be sent until AO had been granted (almost a year after placement) and by that point her social worker had left anyway and no-one knows where it is so can only assume BM asked for it back or it was shredded.

Passport office need us to return or report lost/stolen old passport before they can progress the application for a new one.
I can't cancel her passport as I didn't apply for it and even if I choose different options on the online form they need to contact birth mum to cancel it or have her send it to them. Which is a big fat no for obvious reasons and she might not have it anyway!

Has anyone else had this issue? Have I been randomly flagged and hit a computer says no wall that I'm not going to be able to get out of?
Surely they shouldn't need to contact my child's abuser who had her parental rights removed by the courts just to issue her new passport? As well as the obvious risks of new name and address being given to BM by the passport office.

We have a holiday booked in the summer so there's not a big rush to get it back I'm just exhausted with how much more difficult any 'normal' child admin is when your child is adopted :(

Our son already had a passport when we adopted him, we didn’t have it. James Smith no longer existed legally, so we were able to apply for a passport as though it was his first ever passport.

We just needed to supply adoption paperwork which in Scotland is their new birth certificate. Can you speak to someone at the passport office?

No one could confirm for us if our LO had ever had a passport as birth family alternated between saying yes and no.
We just applied as if it was a first passport, provided adoption certificate as proof of name etc and it went through fine.

Good luck op, it’s a minefield!

Thanks for responses!

We applied as a new passport as old name is 'dead' but they connected her to the previous passport which is what has triggered this response.

Sounds like we've just been unlucky as we did everything the right way and hit a burocratic wall.

I've spoken to passport office a few times and been escalated for a call back from higher ups twice who can't get around this need to contact the original passport owner.

I made it clear on the phone that I don't give consent for them to progress the application if they need to contact BM and the lady I spoke to agreed that a letter on her doorstep with LOs new name and address shouldn't be the answer.