Passport renewal/change: need to prove British citizenship again?

[SouthLondonDaddy]

When you apply for a British passport for the first time, you need to provide some documentation to prove you (or the child you are applying for) are, in fact, British: this can be a combination of grandparents' and parents' details, parents' immigration status if they are not British, etc.

But what when you renew a passport or change it? Do you need to provide the same data/ some data again, or not at all, because the passport office only checks your claim to British citizenship the first time? I'd hope it's the latter, but I'd like to be sure.
"Change" is the term used by the passport office for when you need to update a photo.

I am considering getting a new passport for DD, because she looks nothing like the 2-week in the photo and we were sort of told off at Gatwick because of this. I started the online application form, without submitting it (£ 46...), and the online form specifically asks for grandparents' details, even if this would not be DD's first passport.

Getting all these details would take me a while, and should, well, be irrelevant, because DD's British nationality has already been confirmed by the passport office - when she was issued her first passport. Can anyone confirm if this is the case? I'm hoping it's just some kind of IT glitch (the IT system should IMHO not have demanded the grandparents section at all for a renewal).

Thanks!

No need as far as I recall. The evidence will be on file.

Yes, if the child's parents were born after 1982 or not in the UK.

If it's a renewal you only need the 2 new photos (1 countersigned), the form and the old passport. You don't need all the other documents

But the form asks for the information!

The form asks for the information but you don't need to provide the evidence. We didn't bother with parent's passport numbers when we did DD's passport renewal this year.

How long is left on the passport?

I didn't renew dd's until we had to, even though she was a baby in the photo

The form asks for that information but certain sections don't need to be filled out for a renewal, even for a child. If in doubt, call the passport office. They're very helpful.

Definitely don't renew a child's passport until it is due. I agree that if there is information that is tricky to collate on the forms it is appropriate to phone the passport office for advice. I recently renewed my son's passport and it was a bit of a fuss getting all his grandparents' details onto it. If I'd not been renewing to a deadline, I'd have been tempted to only include the UK born grandmothers' details and leave out the rest!

I am currently renewing dd's passport. I got the paper form from the post office. As far as I can tell, the wording is that 'if both parents were born abroad, or after 1982....".

Only dh was born abroad, and I was born before 1982. So not 'both' of us. I therefore do not plan to include grandparent information.

You don't need all that for a renewal though as you provided it for the original passport

Thank you, all. I suppose I was confused because I started the application online, so I expected the IT thingy to show me only the sections which were relevant for a renewal/change.

So it seems that some of you provided grandparents' details at renewals, some didn't, but you all got your passports.

When I renewed ds's this year I put the passport numbers of dh and i and provided the certified photos of ds and returned the old passport. His new one was with us in less than 2 weeks

The guidance notes have a table saying what is required. Says you don't need supporting documents other than the old passport and new photos

From HMPO guidance notes for passports.

You don't need it for a renewal or change of photo though. Look further ahead at the table of documents required

From the FAQ:

I am renewing a child passport. What
supporting documents do I need to send?

Please send the child’s current passport and two photos. You will not normally need to provide extra supporting documents unless there is a court order which applies to the child. Please send us any court orders for the child that relate to parental responsibility, residence, contact or taking the child outside the UK.

The second screen shot shows other documents are not required. Your and your dh passports numbers show you are British citizens so other info is not required

Really though, don't renew a passport until it expires, child's or otherwise. Every five years in expensive enough!!!

I have managed to speak to the passport office. They said that, since it's a renewal, I only need to send photos and the current passport of the child. No documentation to prove her citizenship, as this was already verified when the first passport was issued. That's a relief! It was what I hoped but the guidance booklet wasn't clear.

Ah, as per the guide, if the applicant (child or not) also holds a foreign passport, this must be sent, too. I don't fully understand why (they want foreign passports but don't ask about other citizenships, one could be a citizen without holding a current passport), but these are the rules.

Yes, sending in any other passports held is an absolute requirement and a serious pain tbh - if you hold dual passports and so do your children so you can visit grandparents, then chances are your children's passports come up for renewal at the same time as each other. I presumed that "I've got an appointment booked in 2 weeks to renew the other passport" would be a legitimate reason to send a photocopy of the foreign passport with the UK renewal, but no that's not acceptable even then! So had a choice between waiting till I got the other one renewed to renew the UK passport, or sending it in for the UK renewal and hoping I got it back in time to get it renewed. (we were travelling to visit ill relatives, the passports expired during the summer so needed renewing before we went, and he'd had two choir tours earlier in the year so I hadn't really had time to renew the UK passport earlier ...)

I wonder why that is. There was a Freedom of Information Request on this: www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/requirement_to_submit_foreign_pa
but most of the links no longer work.
I find it odd they ask for foreign passports, but not whether the applicant holds other citizenship (which one could do without holding a passport). I wonder if it’s generic big-brother-surveillance, if they want to keep an eye on double citizens of certain countries (tax reasons? Potential terrorism threats?), or what.