himekena

Hi! Does anyone know the fastest and cheapest way to renew a british passport in Spain?

brisca

Don't think there is much choice. I think you have to send to the Embassy in Madrid for renewal. I'm sure Mrs Brisca will be about later and reply as she has done within the last year. Had some problems and it was sent back but i'll let her explain! All worked out fine tho!

Mr Brisca

Mitzyboy

I saw a company advertised in Pego that would do the whole thing for you, but you will pay for it. Afaik, the only way to do it is at Madrid .... still haven't sent mine off ... reminded me

mrsjdr

You can download the forms for renewal from here


http://www.britishembassy.gov.uk/ser...=1144249331947

Would advice you pay the extra when you send it off for it to be sent back by "special post", sorry can´t think of the Spanish word for it, but will be on the paper work when you down load it

Fred James

They have just increased the prices by a massive amount.

It is now £119 to renew.

Mitzyboy

You have to contribute to the repatriation fund I believe

Beachcomber

I renew mine at the UKPA, have it sent to a UK address and get someone to bring it over for me. I have done it this way three times since living in Spain and it has never been queried.

I haven't used it for years so the extra time it takes doesn't really bother me.

Fred James

That sounds like a good idea at £66 - just over half the price.

Incidentally, as an Ex-pat with residencia in Spain is it actually a requirement that you hold a valid UK passport?

Also, if you hold an out of date UK passport, could you be refused entry to the UK or prevented from leaving the UK to Spain?

mikelincs

Certainly you would NOT be able to travel either back to the UK or return to Spain without a valid passport, your residencia card, soon to become a certificate, is NOT an ID card valid for travel in the EU. Don't think shops etc check the pasport closely when you use it to validate credit cards. NO you don't need a valid UK passport to live in Spain, but if you don't have one then you are stuck in Spain.

brisca

I contemplated renewing my passport the same way suggested by Beachcomber, but would have had to have it sent from the UK by post - so decided I was BOUND to be the one in a million person whose passport got lost in the post! I didn't fancy answering tricky questions from the UKPA, so I "chickened out" and paid the extortionate fees at the British Embassy in Madrid!

Yes, Mitzyboy is correct - you do have to contribute to the repatriation fund

I renewed mine last September, before the prices went up yet again in October - so it cost me just over £100 (which was bad enough! )

As mrs jdr says, the forms are easy to download.
Maybe the post she's referring to is the Spanish equivalent of Recorded Delivery??
I used it, but I can't remember what it's called now either!
I just explained at the Post Office that I wanted to send my passport to Madrid using the safest possible way, and they gave me the relevant form.

The slight problem that I had, was in getting suitable passport photos!
I assumed that photos taken in a Spanish photography shop would be the correct size.............however, they're NOT!
They're smaller than those required by the UKPA, so I had to go back and ask for them to be done that specific size.
It cost me another load of postage, but actually I can't complain about the speed of the whole process. I received my passport back very quickly.

I wonder what's going to happen to all of us Ex Pats when the UK Government brings in compulsory interviews before you can renew your passport!?
I hope they don't expect us all to go trapsing back to Blighty for the privelige of a 5 minute face to face interview!?
Besides which, we'll probably all be too suntanned, and they won't believe we're really UK citizens!!