To be annoyed with passport office

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I've just had an email stating that the person who signed my babies passport photo is not eligible, however this person has signed 2 others this year alone. So aibu to think the passport office is batshit 😅

I used to countersign loads of passports (dentist), but they became ever more complicated. After having an interview to confirm info. I stopped doing them for free. Now we charge we are rarely asked to do them. I’m happy to do the odd one or two for close friends but no one else.
When dental nurses were registered with the GDC a few years ago they were added to the list of professionals. One nurse was happy to countersign all and sundry until I explained the potential risk of passport fraud. She had no idea that she could be jailed for being involved in fraud.

a member of a professional organisation

The idea is to link eligibility to sign to people who have something to loose if they make a false statement.

Members of professional bodies would loose that membership if they falsely signed someone's picture so are regarded as more likely to ge honest.

That's the way it goes.

As it happens, I would much prefer having id papers so that passport eligibility would be just a bit of admin based on the id.

Not really, she'd be a member of a professional body, so there'd be a register against which the passport office could check if they wished. It's about them being able to "prove" someone's identity/reputation etc., and by default, by being in a professional body, there'll have been a level of background checking etc., same with "jobs" like being a pub landlord (regulated by local council licencing authority) etc.

The thing is, going in person to your town hall is so much easier and more efficient than the clunky understaffed national system here in the UK. And once you have your first adult passport it's even easier.

ID cards are not mandatory until age 14. And you can use them to travel in the entire Schengen area. It's a much better system - locally based and pragmatic.

The community is certainly standing better as a result of her work.

National ID cards would have saved so many problems, but unfortunately, the British Public didn't want them, not helped by the government of the day botching the "message" around them which led to lies, half-truths and myths abounding!

My neighbours (in her 40s) same as as me hasn't worked for a few years due to health issues. We used to be one another's signatories - she would put "(retired)" from her previous job.

If you are comparing it with French bureaucracy there, from my experience of it I'd stick with the Passport Office every time.

It could be due to the details details the counter signatory gave. I called the passport office when my counter signatory was rejected as she was definitely eligible and had signed for me, and others, before. The issue was that she used her home address as a self employed clinical psychologist (as the instructions seemed to ask) and they didn’t bother digging to prove she was registered.

I added her again to counter sign and she put a work address. It then went through no bother. I presume a certain portion are checked, and if it isn’t easily verified they knock back.

Why? They're degree educated healthcare professionals with registration with their professional body.

French bureaucracy is a nightmare. Dutch bureaucracy is pretty good. My DC did their passports there because we couldn't get a UK based appointment for love nor money. The whole process was simple and efficient. From face to face appointment to passport collection was 3 days. Yes, we had to travel but we just made it a mini holiday.

Nice!

The jobs are because you have professional certification so you’ve a lot fo lose if you lie. I’m an ex teacher but can still certify passports because I have a professional qualification.

He's a high ranking manager at my workplace.

Can you ask the passport office why he isn't eligible?

Or I can use a doctor and pay which I'm fine with but none have them have known me for 2 years due to the piss poor way the surgery is run, they leave after a few months. Plus other passport lust it states only if the doctor is a close personal friend not their patient. Its all bullshit.

I have filled in a feedback form but I do not have time to phone up and wait 2000 years to speak to someone whilst my 11 month old tries to climb the sofa and over the back if it.

"National ID cards" just move the problem. The countersignatory process is there to ensure that the applicant is using a photo of them and a name they actually use. Any photo ID needs to do that.

In practice a lot of people stretch the job description of their countersignatory a bit. People kind of have to because the accepted occupations are mostly such a narrow range of upper-middle-class professions.

I have not needed counter signatory in my native country for any of my first IDs. We get national one at 15

I had the same issue but even weirder. Sent in DTs passport apps with the same person confirming identity on both. Apparently she met the criteria for one and not the other! I spent over an hour on the phone to the passport office just to be told system error but nothing they could do and I'd just have to find another person. Infuriating

The same person did both my kids’ and one got rejected for this reason. The other one fine 😂

Oh and the person I used was most definitely eligible

I don’t understand why they even need to do this ? Surely there are other ways to verify identity ? People have NI number or nhs number it’s really simple to verify ? Countersigning seems outdated

Which category do you think he met?

Manager of a company