Passport refunds for the UK in discussion

Voices argue refunding passport related fees

Those who have applied for British passports could be getting their money back if they have paid additional tax for accelerating the process, according to MPs.

The Home Affairs Committee agrees that travelers have been “exploited” by different ‘fast track’ appointments at the end of which, many have expected a 24 hour result.

However, the fast result didn’t occur in most cases.

During the summer season, in its early stages, the applications rose to over half a million. Along with these numbers, the issue has reached public attention.

The peak was during the end of June with none less than 537 633 applications.

Authorities have placed the guilt on the “exceptional demand” for the Passport Office to handle. However, the situation seems to have improved since then.

The UK Passport Office had to hire extra staff, extend opening hours as well as to increase the overtime and to organize worker deployment efficiently.

During mid-June, the Passport Office has announced that an exception of free upgrading to the fast-track service would be made for people who could demonstrate that their travel had been booked for 7 days or less, whilst their application had been placed in processing for more than 3 weeks.