Dublin South West TD, Seán Crowe, has appealed to the public to check their passport is in date now, well in advance of the upcoming holiday season, to avoid the stress and anxiety of a last minute rush to get a passport renewed.

The Sinn Féin TD said his offices have been inundated with queries from constituents who have booked a holiday only to discover a passport is out of date. He said emergency appointments can be made with the Passport Office if people need their passport renewed urgently.

Deputy Seán Crowe said:

“I don’t know if it was a fallout from the weather and heavy snow but my Dáil and local constituency office in Tallaght have been inundated with phone calls from constituents who have booked flights and a holiday in the recent airline sales, only to discover at the last minute that their passport, or a family members passport, is out of date.

“I am therefore encouraging people to check their passports, as well as the passports of all their family members, to ensure that they are in date. If they need to be renewed you will hopefully have plenty of time to get them renewed before the summer rush.

“People can renew their passport through An Post’s Passport Express service or online at www.dfa.ie/passportonline.

“If you are travelling within the next three weeks (15 working days) and you need to renew your passport you can make an appointment at the Passport Offices in Dublin. There are a limited number of appointments per day and proof of travel is required. You can make an appointment at www.passportappointments.ie.”

Crowe continued:

“There has been a huge surge in applications for an Irish Passport in recent years, with fears of Brexit and a loss of rights creating a demand that is unprecedented. A record number of passports – more than 779,000 – were issued in 2017.

“There is currently a backlog of almost fifty thousand applications being processed through the system so this creating a delay.

“Given the scale of applications currently being processed by the Passport Office I would encourage all those planning on travelling in the coming weeks or months to check their passport is in date now, and if necessary, submit their renewal applications or make an appointment with the Passport Office without delay.”

ENDS