BritishToTheEnd

Dean said, in another thread, that they are not sending passport applications to the U.K yet and will not be doing so for a few months. Go figure?

UKng

So why the abysmally slow service? If you are going to charge these astronomical prices provide a professional service. Forms should be fillable online, a reference number with each application, traceable on the website so we don't have to put up with this careline rubbish. That garbage service made my blood boil. Why do these consulates surround themselves with this firewall, the US consulate is the same. If we had a tracking number they could filter out the time waster calls. They are charging the customer a premium priced service. Provide one that is professional and accountable or at least be honest on the website and say its going to take months even for a renewal.

BritishToTheEnd

i feel you brother - hear hear

Patriot75

This is my first post on this site. It's a bit long but hopefully it helps someone...

I submitted my passport renewal application on March 4, 2011. USPS Tracking web site shows it was signed for at the Embassy on March 7th but similar to others, when I received the green confirmation card back it was stamped as received on March 17th!

I phoned "Careline" on April 5, 2011 to get an update and they confirmed that the application was received on March 7th but they didn't start processing it until March 25th, three weeks after it was received at the Embassy!! I'm traveling back to the UK for a short vacation on April 20th so I'm now a bit concerned about timing. The gentleman I spoke to at Careline was very friendly but could only give me limited information from the "system". All he could tell me was that the renewal process started on March 25th and that there were no issues with my application. He couldn't tell me if I was going to get my passport before I travel on April 20th but he logged a case, gave me a reference and suggested I phone back by the middle of next week if I haven't seen anything in the mail.

Processing Time Ambiguity
I mentioned the fact that the published timelines for turning around renewals on the British Embassy website is four weeks and asked if that's four weeks from the time the application is received, or four weeks from the time the application process begins. I didn't get a definitive answer to that question but he suggested it's likely four weeks from the time the process begins. If that's true, then I likely won't see my passport before I'm scheduled to travel. I had stated that my date of travel is April 20th on my renewal application and the guy at Careline thought that might help (I noticed today that form C-1 has been updated and the 'Date of Travel' field on page 1 has been removed.)

I'm not sure if that was $20 well spent for an 11 minute conversation but time will tell!

Emergency Travel Document Option
At this stage, I'm keeping everything crossed in the hope that my passport arrives by late next week. Having said that, I'm due to be traveling with my wife and four children so we're also having to look at the alternatives. With that in mind I phoned the British Consultate in Boston today to see if I qualified for an Emergency Travel Document (ETD). Having listened to what seemed like an infinite number of options and pressing countless buttons, I eventually spoke to a really friendly and helpful lady at the Consulate who confirmed that given the circumstances, I would qualify to apply for an ETD. Like the gentleman at Careline, she suggested waiting until the middle of next week before booking an appointment and she advised me that if I go ahead, an appointment for an ETD will last approximately 45 minutes and that I'll need to bring two passport sized photos... oh yes, and $157!

My only potential issue with this option is that I'm currently in Adjustment of Status to Permanent Legal Resident so I'll be traveling with Advance Parole. I'm checking with my immigration Attorney to see if re-entry to the US with a UK issued ETD and Advance Parole is likely to be an issue.

Passport Renewal Process
Having read a couple of posts on this forum about applications being processed in the UK, I asked the lady at the Consulate if this is what might have happened to mine. She said that from April 1st this year, all new passport applications received would be sent to the UK for processing so mine should still be here in the US.

I know I'm not alone here but... What bothers me more than the not knowing is the fact that you have to pay for a phone call to find out your application sat un-opened in a mail room for three weeks! Not only that, potentially I'll have to pay for another phone call and if it comes to it, an ETD as well! (assuming I can get back in to the US with one.) I'll post an update as and when I get one (hopefully to say my passport arrived sometime next week )

Sally Redux

So from April 1st we'll be paying a huge premium to have the passports posted to the UK for us.

Being bled dry is starting to get tiresome.

pTeronaut

I hope for my sake that the are being rigid to that date, as mine was received the day before.

dani_b

I sent my passport to the british embassy March,1 2011. It was received on March 3, 2011 so it has not been five weeks since I sent it to them. The british embassy in washington claims they don't handle the passports so you have to call the UK. My mum called them and they said they didn't have a trace of our passport renewal application in their system. The lady my mum spoke to said she would follow up with our case (this was about four days ago) but we havent heard anything from them yet. My older brother sent his passport for renewal a while back and didnt experience anything like this. I have to say that the service that is being provided is horrible. On top of that I cant begin to understand why the British embassy of Washington knows nothing about the passports we sent to them. They wouldnt and couldnt even talk to me about receiving the passports on the 3rd of March. Also if passports are suppose to go to the UK starting in April then my passport should still be here right? This is just one big mess.

steevun

This is a bit odd, considering other posters on this thread had their passports received around the same time and processing on those began over a week ago.. They are supposed to process based in the order that applications are received, so yours should've had some movement already..

British Consul

Slight misunderstanding. Although the Identity & Passport Service assumed responsibility for the overseas passport operation on 1 April, passports are still being processed and printed in the USA. This You Tube video will explain what's happening and how it will affect British nationals living overseas: http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/news/latest...s&id=581203482

Dean

British Consul

The British Embassy in Washington doesn't handle passports. However, the UK Identity & Passport Service Regional Processing Passport Centre, also based in Washington, does.

Dean

UKng

Hi Dean, I appreciate your input to this discussion. I watched the video, sounds like the emergency passport was thought up because of the obvious chaos this revamp was going to cause. However if you read the rest of this thread you will see there are many people who have applied and are waiting excessively long times for the passports to be issued. This is inexcusable and the Careline service is a joke. The cost of these passports should not have been raised until the system was functioning at an acceptable level. Many Brits in the USA need passports for identification in their employment not just for vacation travel, my wife needed hers for dealings with the FDA, another poster on here needed it for the CDC. The lack of concern for the customer is a disgrace.

Patriot75

In relation to the Emergency Passport or Emergency Travel Document... Does anyone know if this is something we ex-pats can use to re-enter the US with? I'm having trouble getting a clear answer on this. Everything I've read so far seems to suggest the ETD is used only as a way of getting Brits back into the UK but it can't be used to return to the US, even if you're a resident. Also, is the Emergency Passport and the ETD one and the same thing?

mama4mia

Hi
I applied for my son's first passport on Feb 16th. The money was taken out on Mar 10, but then nothing. We were supposed to go away at the end of March but had to cancel. I called the helpline, and they said that there is no information in the system for my son yet. They said that it is taking 6 weeks from the date that the money is taken out not from the date that they receive the application. The guy on the helpline said it was a bit weird that my son was not showing in the system and said that I should call back in 2 weeks, so tomorrow I will try again. We had to send my son's US passport with the application so I am very concerned that they have lost everything. Will post if I get anymore info. Has anyone actually been able to talk to someone in Washington DC not on the helpline? Did you call the general embassy number?
Has anyone ever had to start an investigation into the whereabouts of a passport?
Really worried and pulling my hair out.

UKng

Anyone looking for a good laugh, check out this document regarding Careline http://www.careline-services.co.uk/d...ine_cs_fco.pdf

mama4mia

I posted yesterday about my son's passport nightmare. Today I called the helpline for the 2nd time. This time they have escalated its priority and I should receive a phone call in the next 72 hrs to tell me what the hell is happening. The money was taken out 4 weeks ago and there is still no sign of the application in the system. Has anyone gone through this?
Really worried that it is all lost and that we will be stuck without a passport and also no birth certificates including mine and my husbands (as it was his first passport). I can't believe this system. The US passport took no time at all. When we applied for my daughter's UK passport, it took the stated 6 weeks. What is going on?!!