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For Written Answer on : 09/09/2024
Question Number(s): 43 Question Reference(s): 34660/24
Department: Foreign Affairs
Asked by: David Stanton T.D.
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QUESTION
To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs if his Department will consider the introduction of an emergency passport appointment system, similar to what is available in the UK, for first-time passport applicants or for renewal applicants whose previous passport was issued more than 15 years ago; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
REPLY
The Irish passport has a strong international reputation due to the strength of the security features within the passport book and the robust processes involved in its issuance. The Irish passport was recently ranked 3rd in the Henley Global Passport Index as it provides our citizens with visa-free access to 193 countries.
In order to protect the integrity of the Irish passport, when processing a first time application, the Passport Service must validate the identity of the applicant and confirm their entitlement to Irish citizenship. In the case of first time passport applications for children, the consent of guardians must also be checked. This ensures that the Passport Service protects the rights of the child and their guardians. Due to the rigorous checking process in place, the processing time for first time applications is currently 20 working days.
All passport applications are subject to the provisions of the Passports Act 2008, as amended. Section 8 of the Act provides for the processing of personal data by the Passport Service as required for the issuance of passports and the maintenance of the integrity of the Passport Service system.
In order to comply with its obligations under data protection legislation, the Department will hold data which has been collected for the purposes of processing an application only as long as there is a business need to do so in line with the purposes for which it was collected.
In the case of passport issuance, the data is held by the Passport Service for 15 years after the date of issuance, i.e. the validity of the passport plus five years, as stated in the Passport Service’s Data Privacy Notice. After this time the data is marked for destruction and will be destroyed in line with internal guidelines and guidelines for destruction received from the National Archives. A minimum amount of personal data is held beyond this period for the purpose of fraud prevention in order to maintain the integrity of the Passport Service system.
Therefore an adult whose passport has expired more than five years ago and a child whose passport has expired more than 10 years ago will need to apply for their next passport as a first time applicant if their expired passport was issued more than 15 years ago.
In cases of genuine emergency, applicants can contact the dedicated travel emergency team that work to expedite passport applications in cases such as a need for urgent medical treatment overseas or the death of a family member abroad.
