INVESTMENT IN ONLINE infrastructure has meant those who have applied for passports will be able to check the status of their application online.
Foreign Affairs Minister Charlie Flanagan announced the update at the Holiday World Exhibition at the RDS where he said there will also be a real-time instant messaging service for people with queries.
Flanagan said the new updated measures are part of a reform programme he started in 2015 which sought to modernise the process.
“The programme is scheduled to run to 2019 and has a combined capital and current investment budget of €18.6 million. It aims to deliver a more efficient, integrated and citizen-focused passport service with an increased emphasis on fraud detection and prevention measures to maintain the integrity of the Irish passport,” he said.
Flanagan said “enhanced tracking” means that the applicant now has more accurate and tailored information on when their passport will be delivered. He said he hopes it will ease travel planning and reduce the need to contact the passport service for updates.
The Passport service had a busy year in 2016, issuing 730,000, a record number of passports. The represents an increase of 9% on 2015 and it is expected that this trend will continue in the coming years.
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