The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union has announced Civil Service industrial action that will impact staff at His Majesty’s Passport Office.
Dates
- 3 April to 6 May 2023
Locations
The proposed strike action will impact staff at the following locations
- HMPO Belfast, Law Society House, Belfast
- HMPO Durham, Freemans Reach, Durham
- HMPO Glasgow, 3 Northgate, Glasgow
- HMPO Liverpool, 101 Old Hall Street, Liverpool
- HMPO London, Warehouse K, 2 Western Gateway, London
- HMPO Newport, Nexus House, Newport
- HMPO Peterborough, Quay House, Peterborough
- Smedley Hydro, Southport
His Majesty’s Passport Office role is to issue passports to citizens of the United Kingdom on behalf of the Crown.
HM Passport Office has already processed over 2.7million applications this year (as of March 2023) and with the continued introduction of process improvements, the latest figures (as of March 2023) show over 99.7% of standard applications are being processed within 10 weeks, with the majority of those delivered to customers well under this timescale.
Advice for people who need to apply for a new passport
Applying online is the easiest and cheapest way to get a passport: Apply online for a UK passport - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
There are currently no plans to change our guidance which clearly states that it takes up to 10 weeks to get a passport. Please allow enough time when applying.
We advise all customers not to book travel without a passport that meets their travel needs.
Advice for customers with appointments at these locations during strike dates
We plan to maintain as many appointments as possible.
If you do have an existing appointment scheduled during strike action and it needs to be re-arranged, you will be contacted by HM Passport Office.
Please do not visit any passport office without a pre-arranged appointment.
Do I need a new passport?
Customers should check their passport and ensure it is valid for travel. How much time you need on your passport depends on the country you are planning to visit. You can check this on Foreign travel advice - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Apply online at Apply online for a UK passport - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) - it’s the cheapest and easiest method.
Customers can also use the Post Office Check and Send services. For further details please visit: Passport Check and Send service - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
If your passport meets your travel needs, you do not need to apply for a new one.
Advice for people who need a passport for urgent travel or compassionate reasons
For anyone that requires a passport on compassionate grounds for urgent travel, services will continue to be available.
To find out more about the criteria for urgent or compassionate reasons:
Urgent government business or compassionate travel (accessible version) - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
What we are doing to avoid disruption during strike action.
HM Passport Office is well positioned to manage an extended period of industrial action, with over 2.7million applications processed so far this year. The latest figures showing over 99.7% of standard applications are being processed within 10 weeks. As of March 2023.
Processing time guidance is provided to help ensure that people allow sufficient time to get their passport. There are no plans to change this guidance in response to the industrial action.
If you do not need a passport for travel within 10 weeks, we strongly advise to continue using the standard service.
How to contact HM Passport Office
Anyone who needs advice should contact the passport advice line on 0300 222 0000 which will remain open as usual (Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm and Saturday, Sunday/UK Bank Holidays, 9am to 5:30pm).
Remember
- A passport application can take up to 10 weeks to process, please allow enough time before your date of travel.
- If you have not got a pre-arranged appointment, please don’t visit a passport office.
- Apply online as the easiest and cheapest way to apply for a passport.
- We advise all customers not to book travel without a passport that meets their travel needs.