Aaaargh Fast Track Passports - any experiences?

[LadyGardenersQuestionTime]

I have just discovered my passport was issued too early for our holiday in Croatia (needs to be within 10 years, we travel on 18th June mine was issued 12th June (sob!).

Will be spending the coming week trying to book a fastback appointment - any experience/advice/hopeful stories? I am absolutely gutted!😥

I went to Peterborough for a fast track appointment, I ordered 3 passports including a child's first passport. They arrived in 7 days but I had to wait 3 weeks for the appointment. I had my appointment last week but not sure if its easy to still get hold of a slot.

We had an appointment recently, my advice would be to keep trying the website as appointments do become available often at very random times of day. I couldn't find any rhyme or reason and the website often crashes which is quite stressful when you're trying to book one but just try to stay calm and wait for it to work again. They usually release new ones every day for 3 weeks time but also other ones for sooner, cancellations etc.

When my husband went to the passport office for the appointment there were 2 queues, a short one for people with an appointment and another much longer one for people without so that's an option if you're very desperate! There's a Facebook group as well where people post of appointments come available but you've got to be quick. Good luck!

Appointments do appear online, you just need to keep hitting refresh.

I got one for 3 weeks in the future, grabbed it, paid for and got the confirmation email, then once I had that I just kept hitting 'change' in that email and eventually got one for only a week later!

Experience at the office was fine, lots of people outside but staff came out regularly to see who had appointments and let me in.

Lovely staff at Glasgow, and passports (one child 1st and one renewal) should be arriving this week.

I've done a same day appt for myself in the past and my ds1's first passport we did the week fast track. If you can get an appt I wouldn't worry about it at all, the service is very good and if they say you'll have it then you will.

Yes I discovered similar recently and realised my passport expired early May 2022, and we are travelling at May half term! I got an online fast track appointment the day after I realised for three weeks time. All worked well. My advice, get your photo taken now so it's all ready to go. In my experience a fresh set of appointments were released at 7am - so keep refreshing. Have all your details - passport, digital photo and card details ready.

I saw on a facebook post about this very thing that the appointments become available between midnight and 4 am and ppl are setting alarms and getting appointments.
*disclaimer-I have not done this myself but worth a go....

My friend got one last week for today, you just need to keep checking day and night. Good luck

And if it's any reassurance, we needed to renew our DD passport (child's one). Paid for a one week turnaround fast track appointment that was last Tuesday and the passport turned up today. As others have said, the slots do suddenly turn up as people who have booked them suddenly can't make them and need to reschedule, or they release more etc.

I got one! Popped up this morning at 8:30, I nearly had hysterics. Picking up on the 30th in Newport (only a couple of hours' drive). THE RELIEF!

Oh thank god. Amazing. Just make sure you have all your documents and what not. I was petrified i had done something wrong. Using a black Biro is vital. The man at my last appointment licked his finger and dragged it across the writing to make sure it didn't smudge CF. He saw me looking askance and claimed the computer would say no if I'd used a rollerball or fountain pen, and he'd have to reject the sodding application. Joyless git.

I booked one a few days ago. I’d been trying for ages then read the appointments are released at midnight - still nothing..

I randomly tried at 133pm and had a “service unavailable “ message which I knew meant appointments were being uploaded so I hit refresh a few times till they showed up.

hope that helps OP