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Original poster

time scale for child passports ?

23 replies

JayTree · 18/08/2002 20:47

As we have an imminent MIL and FIL visit in the next few weeks, I am desperate to plan a holiday - haven?t had one for a couple of years now and it is time we took DD away someone just the three of us.
The problem is that I have yet to put her on one of our passports and feel that I can?t book anything until I have a reliable time scale for them to turn around the paper work and send it back to us. I know that when I applied for a new passport a few years ago it took ages and ages to be returned - longer than the form said.
If anyone out there has gone through the process of applying and getting a child passport in the last few months or so I would really appreciate hearing from you. Thanks
We are thinking of the Canary Islands - any info on villa rental/ best choice of quiet, non 18-30 type clubbing zones would be gratefully received also...

OP posts:

Deborahf · 18/08/2002 21:01

Hi Jaytree

I applied for a new passport for my dd and ds in May as we were going to France in August. I got the paperwork checked at my local postoffice (not all do the service, but worth it if you can get it and costs about £5 each passport). The new passports were back within three weeks!! I was delighted and amazed. Have a great holiday. We stayed at Playa Pariso in Tenerife last year at a hotel, but I think there are villas there too - it's lovely and quiet, but close to town if you want to visit. Best of luck.

Original poster

JayTree · 18/08/2002 21:07

Thanks DeborahF

If it only takes 3 weeks that will be brilliant. I will definitely go down to the Post Office tomorrow and sort it out asap. Thanks for the tip about Playa Pariso - I will check that area out on some internet sites later on

OP posts:

allatsea · 18/08/2002 21:16

When I took the passpor application for ds into the post office to have it checked, they wrote the date it would be delivered on the form! I think it actually came a day earlier than expected

helenmc · 18/08/2002 22:27

the kids were already on my passport - but I'm pretty sure it came back under a fortnight.

WideWebWitch · 18/08/2002 23:56

Jaytree, applied for ds' first passport in Jan and seem to remember it came back within 2-3 weeks. He went on holiday mid feb and I always do these things at the last minute so it must have been quick! Make sure you fill in the form 100% correctly though or it will get delayed. And put a date of travel on the form if you know it as they will try to process it before this.

bloss · 19/08/2002 00:23

Message withdrawn

lou33 · 19/08/2002 01:09

Jaytree I don't know if it was just a typo, but children have to have their own passport now if they are not already on a parent's one. It cost me a fortune last year when dh and my own passport ran out, which had 2 children already on it, and we had produced another 2 , so 6 new passports all at once were needed! Having said that the post office service was very good and they did state when the passports would be delivered , and they arrived a day or two early as a bonus.

SueDonim · 19/08/2002 01:58

I had to get a passport for my youngest, earlier this year. As well as getting the passport we needed to have her name removed from both our passports, one of which was in the UK and the other in Indonesia. The Passport Office were really helpful about my DH's passport not being available and made arrangements with the British Consulate here for him. In spite of those difficulties we still received the new one within about three weeks.

JaneyT · 19/08/2002 08:55

JayTree - We got dd2 passport - it says on the forms that to do it by post takes 2 weeks, plus the posting time, and I sent it off last month and it came back within 2 weeks, we aren't travelling till sep so I didn't have it checked at the PO but that is only £4 more.

Philippat · 19/08/2002 09:11

Did dd's at the end of June this year and it took 2 weeks and 3 days from posting.

calcium · 19/08/2002 10:19

I applied last week for a passport for my dd and did the postoffice thing paying abit extra for them to check it and post it urgently as we are going away end of September. Lets hope it comes back quickly but I have heard only good things on this service (makes a change for the PO don't you think?)

Harrysmum · 19/08/2002 10:28

Sorry to disillusion you but I have just had a complete nightmare with passports and the post office checking system. Essentially they got it wrong and by the time I realised that an error had been made by them I had to travel to our passport office (3 hours away) on Saturday to deal with the whole thing in person as there wasn't enough time for them to process, send back and me resend to guarantee the passport coming in time for us travelling. I am in the process of writing a v strongly worded letter of complaint claiming for my rail fare, a refund of the checking fee and the additional cost (£30 per passport) of getting them done at the office (and it still takes a week for the passports to come). If you have any questions phone the passport helpline as the people there couldn't have been more helpful and friendly. Hope you get them!

Fionn · 19/08/2002 12:34

Jaytree - when I applied for a child's passport in Feb it only took 2 weeks. As this is a busy time though you should apply asap. The only delay I had was my own fault - the photograph of me holding the baby had too much of me and not enough of him so it was rejected. You should go to one of the booths where you can check the pose and don't have to accept the photo until you're happy with it. Also, personally, I wouldn't bother paying the extra to have the PO check it. It's not a very complicated form for one child's application. If you apply now and say you're travelling mid-Sept you should be fine.

Philippat · 19/08/2002 12:49

Our travel agent gave us a fantastic tip regarding the photos - lay your child down on a white sheet and takes lots of photos from different heights above. Get double prints. One will allow you to cut out the right size portrait. It worked for us (much better than my attempt to struggle with photo booth in Sainsburys - I gave up looking very silly).

Original poster

JayTree · 19/08/2002 12:51

Thanks for all your advice - although some of you have had a few problems, it seems that most of you found it took only a couple of weeks. I am going down this afternoon to get on with it but wont book any holiday until the return - last minute break out of the school holiday shouldnt be too much of a problem - fingers crossed.
Lou33 - it wasn?t a typo - I didnt realise they needed their own now. Thanks for putting me straight on that one and saving me embarrassing myself at the PO !!

OP posts:

calcium · 19/08/2002 17:00

putting your babe on the floor on something white is one way of getting your picture although mine looked hysterical as she was all body and arms also if you are doing it in a photo booth where a round neck white Tshirt and white gloves! sounds funny but then all you get is your babe and not your neck and hands.

musica · 19/08/2002 17:08

We had a disaster trying to photograph ds in photobooth - the first 3 photos didn't have his head in the picture, and then on the 4th we managed to get him in the frame, and he promptly threw up!

Jaybee · 19/08/2002 17:29

I had to get new passports for my two when my passport ran out at Christmas - they were previously on my passport. I found that our local chemist could do passport photos - not a booth - but someone points the camera at you and it produces four identical passport sized photos - my two were able to sit and pose but they laid my friend's dd (who was only a few weeks old) on a white lambswool type rug which seemed to work ok.
Our passports took less than two weeks to be returned.

lou33 · 19/08/2002 19:18

Got my children done at a concession in asda, though sainsburys do it too I think. They took the pictures until we were happy, and we only paid for the one we wanted. Ds2 was only 6 weeks old when he had his done so they put him on a big bean bag type cushion and stood over him to take the shot. I think it only worked out about 50p per child more expensive than a photo booth.

SueW · 19/08/2002 19:21

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at OP's request.

Original poster

JayTree · 19/08/2002 21:12

I don?t fancy having to have my mug on the photo along with her little angel face so I think I will get DH to play with his digital camera and see if we can get a decent shot that way. She is such a wriggly little girl that a booth sounds like a nightmare. Otherwise I guess I will just have to pay out for someone to do it for us - thanks for the tip about Asda and Sainsburys, lou33 - will keep it in mind.
Stupidly I had not even thought about how I was going to get the photos for the passport....lack of sleep is really affecting my ability to think and plan properly at the moment. I feel like I am all over the place. I washed a load of washing this morning. Did 1 load, took it out to hang up and loaded the next lot into the machine. Only once it had started and I am standing in the garden marvelling at how dry the clothes were did I realise that I was washing the same lot twice and busily hanging out a dirty dry bunch....
Thanks for all your continued words of advice and stories - much appreciated.

OP posts:

SofiaAmes · 19/08/2002 23:00

We got my ds's passport in about 2 weeks when I had it done in early 2001 (I too used the po service). As he was only a month old I took his photo from above with him lying on his back on a white (imp. that it's white) sheet. I took several photos from various heights so that I could make sure to get the right amount of his face in and then had two copies of the photos done when developing. I actually have always done my own passport photos this way (not lying down though) as they always look better and then you have the negs for all the other things that you need passport photos for.

Ailsa · 20/08/2002 00:21

I filled in my passport renewal application online, they printed the form with all the relevant boxes already filled in, posted it to me, I checked it, signed it, attached my photos and payment and sent it back. In total the whole process took ONE week!

When you have completed the form, you are given a serial number which you can use to email The Passport Office to check on the status of your application.

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