moriador

I can't seem to get any definitive information about this.

I'm a UK citizen living in British Columbia. My father passed away in the US, and I urgently need to travel there. My UK passport expired in 2006.

I know that in 2008 it was possible to get an emergency passport renewal in 24 hours from a consulate. But I've been told today that such documents have ceased to exist.

I was given the phone number for a person in Vancouver who might be able to help, but her voicemail indicates that she only deals with consular emergencies, and not passport issues.

I would have thought that emergency travel was a consular emergency. But I am wrong?

Is there no provision at all to deal with circumstances such as these?

One assumes that if I were wealthy, I could get an emergency travel document, fly to the UK, and then get a passport in one day in the UK. But my finances simply do not permit it.

I'm getting very desperate. This is a horrible nightmare. The emotional trauma is hard enough as it is, but I'm being blocked at every turn, with no help in sight. It's enough to make me want to hang myself just because I had the misfortune of being born British.

Englishtart

Sorry to hear of your sad news, I'm sure it's very frustrating for you. Sorry I can't advise on the passport issue, but I'm sure there are many on here that can help, or point you in the right direction...

Jerseygirl

Hopefully this information posted by Dean, British Consul will help.

If you have a problem you could always PM Dean...he drops by most days. BTW you will need to make 2 more posts before you can use BE's Private Messaging feature.

I am sorry to hear about your father...it's a very difficult time indeed for an expat.

lansbury

Can you not get an WHTI compliant travel document in Canada?

moriador

Thank you, Jerseygirl.

I did see that post by Dean. It answers the question very precisely, without actually answering my specific question.

In the meantime, I got a call back from the consulate in Vancouver, and I'll post the response so that others with the same question might be able to find the anwer.

My question was, "Can I get an emergency passport renewal in Canada?"

The answer is definitively, NO.

I can get an emergency travel document, as Dean says, which would get me to the UK. But not a passport that would permit me to travel elsewhere.

The only office in North America that issues UK passports -- which meet the requirements for entry into the US -- is the embassy in Washington, DC. Period. No exceptions.

The advice I was given was to include a copy of the death certificate and a cover letter explaining the circumstances along with my application, and send the packet overnight express to Washington. There would be a chance of the application being expedited. Maybe a good chance, maybe not.

I guess the main thing to note is that:

1. The website that is supposed to explain all this is missing some key information, and is wickedly difficult to navigate.

2. The people at the careline are about as well trained as your typical AT&T customer service reps, and you are paying them to click through exactly the same annoying website.

3. Most importantly, if you actually get hold of someone at a consulate, they are extremely professional, knowledgeable, and considerate.

Jerseygirl

Thank you for updating us. Make one more post then you can use the Private Messaging feature...I suggest you send Dean a PM he may be able to give your application a gentle nudge.

There is a lesson to be learned for expats...please make sure you have a valid, up to date passport...because you never know when you may need it.

JAJ

Sympathy, however ...

... if you are a Canadian citizen then your Canadian passport will do. If you're a citizen of another country you can use that passport as long as it is visa waiver acceptable for the USA.

If you're telling us you're British, living in Canada, and decided not to renew your passport (nor become a Canadian citizen) then you effectively are without a passport and that is something anyone living outside their home country should avoid.

moriador

Agreed. Totally.

But, as I'm about to go through the second probate in as many years, let me ask how many fully prepared people with up to date passports have nevertheless failed to make a will? I'll bet quite a few. Yet it's so often a terrible mistake causing serious and avoidable hardship to your family if it ever catches up with you.

Just as people without wills aren't expecting to die, if you don't believe you're going to have to travel, it's easy to forget about a document you basically *never* use.

Thank you everyone

British Consul

British Consul

Moriador,

Sorry to hear about your loss. We are introducing a new type of Emergency Passport that allows travel up to 5 "via" destinations. I'm not sure about the roll-out in Canada but all British Consulates in the US have the new product. If it's available in Canada, you should be able to travel to the UK and back on it, at least, and then apply for a full passport renewal once you get back (or whilst you are away). If it's not available yet in Canada then you could travel to the UK on the old-style Emergency Passport and then renew your passport there. Hope this helps.

Dean

British Consul

PS.. The website is getting a lick of paint in the next couple of weeks and the information is being updated to make it more user friendly.

Dean

johnh009

Hi Dean, I sent my passport from Canada to Washington for renewal and, upon return to Canada, it was "lost" for 2 weeks. This was because the courier service used (UPS) have the authority to leave parcels with neighbours who accepted and signed for the passport and conveniently forgot about it.

In these days when governments are so strict on exact identity, would it not make sense for the courier service to request identity when delivering a passport and ensure that the passport gets to the person it belongs to. Purulator, for example, always request identity when delivering a parcel.

moriador

OMG.

That is rather terrifying.

Not everyone has "helpful" neighbours. Some of my neighbours are criminals.

Of course, Canada Post likes to misroute my credit card statements to random buildings on my street every once in a while, as well. Sometimes I get the letters. Sometimes I don't. I'd use a PO Box, but couriers such as UPS won't deliver to a box. The irony.

Not surprised ID theft is such a problem.

johnh009

What is worse, it was even opened by mistake (allegedly) so who knows who has my details, copies, etc. When I phoned the help centre in Scotland, they were not at all alarmed by this and seem to think that this is a usual situation. Also, my birth certificate was in the package.

It would seem that once a passport leaves the passport office, they wash their hands of any responsibility but they are not short of posting rules and regulations that we should follow.

lisa67

FYI Green cards are sent out by regular mail here which always shocks me