Foreign Birth Registration

[littlerr]

That's great news for you and for everyone else in the U.K. in a position to avail themselves of the Passport Express service. Thank you for clearing up the earlier confusion on this point. The answer now seems quite clear: Passport Express can be used by applicants in the U.K. who want to get their hands on their Irish passport significantly faster.

Yes it would certainly seem so. The package that arrived on my desk at work today was indeed my new Irish Passport. That is 12 working days from
It appearing on the tracker (14 from submission at Liverpool Passport Express) to receipt of Passport, which is better than I expected. It also answers the question definitively: if you are a first time applicant from the UK using FBR as your citizenship route, you CAN use the passport express service and it will be expedited in around the turnaround times they state on the website. Good luck to anyone using this service, hope it goes as smoothly for you as it did for me.

Well everyone, 11 months after getting the confirmation email from the DFA saying they had received my application, that is me done. Thanks to all who gave their support on this thread and the last one, I found it to be most helpful and nice to keep things in check in lieu of there being no online tracker for FBR applications.

Good luck to everyone still waiting for their FBR Approvals, or passports! I’ll still be lurking on here from time to time if anyone wants to ask me a question

I saw on DFA that the current average turnaround time for UK Passport Express is 15 days (I assume it’s a combination of first time applications and renewals), while in the Rep of Ireland it’s 23 days for first time application (the vast majority of which will be via Passport Express).

And I was just told yesterday by them that it would take 2 weeks for my application to show up on the tracker. So that would be a total of 6.5 weeks from the application submission date. I hope it would work out much faster...

[Sulla]

Yes and I think if this really is the case then they need to take the 'applications take approximately 6 months to process' off the website, it only states on the website also that taking up to 12 months is for complex applications and I am sure that the majority of applications received are straight forward (as is mine, my father Irish but born abroad hence I am not automatically Irish and my grandparents Irish born in Ireland).

Jaxx

I too think that the FBR section ought to admit the reality of the situation to applicants. Publishing overly optimistic guidance times on their site is certainly not helping their image with anyone. Court offered an excellent suggestion on this some time ago: Send out an email, every couple of weeks, to all FBR applicants informing them of processing times and recent developments. If that was being done, people would not be so irate and the DFA would find that the phones did not ring quite as much. It is incredible that they have taken no action to simply communicate like this and ease people's valid concerns.

As for your application being lost, we have not heard of any instance of that on this thread or the former one. Not even a missing document, far less an application. As a consequence, as long as you have some kind of delivery confirmation from the postal service, you can be sure they have it and the prospects of it being lost are minimal. As you are well aware, I am hardly the DFA's greatest fan. However, when it comes to losing stuff, they seem to have a clean track record as far as I know.

Michael

Nice to see you back here. I wondered where you had disappeared to. Sorry to hear that you are now at 9 months and no apparent headway has been made. Try not to lose heart. Even if the worst predictions the DFA have given you prove to be true, you still only have 4 months left to wait. Compared to the wait you have already endured, that's relatively short. Ireland 2020 sounds like a good plan. Do you intend to just visit Ireland or also venture to the U.K. ? Ireland and Scotland would not be a bad combination for a longer trip.

[Sulla]

I saw on DFA that the current average turnaround time for UK Passport Express is 15 days (I assume it’s a combination of first time applications and renewals), while in the Rep of Ireland it’s 23 days for first time application (the vast majority of which will be via Passport Express).

And I was just told yesterday by them that it would take 2 weeks for my application to show up on the tracker. So that would be a total of 6.5 weeks from the application submission date. I hope it would work out much faster...

If you applied from the U.K. using Passport Express, then Brawn's case should warm your heart. It should be done comfortably within the time you indicate - 6.5 weeks. I am sure that applications from the Irish Republic that utilize the passport Express route will also not disappoint.

If, however, you have applied using either a traditional paper application, or have applied from overseas through an embassy or consulate, then you can anticipate in excess of 6.5 weeks. I applied from China and I am at 7 weeks today. My application has been in the tracking system and 'processing" since 2 hours after I handed it over in Beijing.

[littlerr]

I saw on DFA that the current average turnaround time for UK Passport Express is 15 days (I assume it’s a combination of first time applications and renewals), while in the Rep of Ireland it’s 23 days for first time application (the vast majority of which will be via Passport Express).

And I was just told yesterday by them that it would take 2 weeks for my application to show up on the tracker. So that would be a total of 6.5 weeks from the application submission date. I hope it would work out much faster...

If you applied from the U.K. using Passport Express, then Brawn's case should warm your heart. It should be done comfortably within the time you indicate - 6.5 weeks. I am sure that applications from the Irish Republic that utilize the passport Express route will also not disappoint.

If, however, you have applied using either a traditional paper application, or have applied from overseas through an embassy or consulate, then you can anticipate in excess of 6.5 weeks. I applied from China and I am at 7 weeks today. My application has been in the tracking system and 'processing" since 2 hours after I handed it over in Beijing.

I applied from Ireland. I was just amazed that the average time using Passport Express is actually shorter in the UK than that in Ireland.

[Sulla]

I applied from Ireland. I was just amazed that the average time using Passport Express is actually shorter in the UK than that in Ireland.

Yes, that does seem more than a little strange. They must have separate teams to deal with passport applications, based on where they originate from geographically. Perhaps Ireland is experiencing a summer holiday related issuance surge, whereas applications from the U.K. are more of a steady stream?

The people in this thread are no strangers to oddity or unevenness when it comes to application processing times for FBR. There are some truly massive and unsettling discrepancies, involving differences of many months between people who applied almost at the same time. Passport issuance being in a similar muddled situation is just pretty much what I would expect from the DFA.

[Sulla]

As expected, the passport tracker reached its end point yesterday and distressingly the tracking bar seems to have gone into reverse today. The blue progress bar is now hovering about the 80% level. It still reads 'processing application.'

So, I decided to use Webchat (which has now been re-branded as LiveChat) to find out what was going on with my application and hopefully get an approximate issuance date. This matters because I won't be in Turkey for much longer. I already received citizenship and at this stage I am just waiting on the Turkish passport to be issued - probably early next week. I plan on going back to Thailand / Malaysia soon and will have to get the Irish passport couriered from China to a new address - instead of the Turkish address I supplied.

Anyway, I was in a queue for 32 minutes and then spoke with a very polite and apologetic agent. Unfortunately, he could not give me any further information,except that all the documents submitted had been scanned and were in order. He told me I just have to wait for the application to work its way through the system.

And so I wait. I had already reconciled myself to the fact that it was not likely to come before the very end of May or start of June. If the FBR Iliad taught me anything, it was not to be optimistic about DFA delivery times.

[Lee2521]

First-time poster here, so for your first time Irish Passport application even submitting it via Passport Express in that post office in Liverpool the turn around time will be a minimum of 65 working days, the extra payment for that "express service" is just a postal charge. This type of service is only beneficial when you're renewing your Irish Passport and not a first-time applicant.

Also Lee regarding your passport that you submitted with your FBR application, the best thing for you to do is call and request it back. I'm pretty sure those emails won't be looked at.

Tom
I will call the FBR soon, I wasn't sure to wait until the 4 month mark before contacting them but it will be the 13th week mark this Wednesday and can't hurt to try this week and your right about the emails, I sent an e-mail on March 23rd this year but still no reply.

Great news
I got through to a nice chap yesterday after getting connected 2 times before but the first time I had to put the phone down after waiting nearly 25 minutes because my lunch break was over at work, The second time I didn't have my FBR info on me. So I got to speak to this nice chap and he told me there was a message on my file that my passport was being sent back to me and I would have to sign for it.

My request was followed through by the Irish embassy of London via the irishembassylondon@dfa.ie e-mail and didn't get anything from the Foreign.london@dfa.ie which I guess is because I didn't write like this Foreign. LONDON@dfa.ie doh.

E-mail sent to London Embassy 10th May
Passport received 16th May

Great result thank you DFA you just made me love Ireland more and more

Wednesday seems to be a good day to call the FBR and after 16.00pm GMT but before 17.00 GMT

[Jaxx22]

That must be a relief to you Lee. Am so glad they sent back your passport, I take it they took a copy or do you now have to supply a certified copy?

That is a long time to wait to get through to them, I will need to call them as the local embassy just isn't replying to anything sent on the web contact form so I guess they do not deal with FBR queries on email/online any more. I will need to find a good time to call them because of the time difference for me, but not much point until I have a concrete moving date. I think I will start with the DFA and ask them if I need to also inform the embassy as they will be sending everything back I assume rather than it being direct from the DFA.

Congratulations to those who have completed their FBR journey recently.

[ricky7384]

Hi all,
I received my FBR certificate today.

Application received: 6th July 2018
Sent for final Approval: 21st November
Received certificate: 17th May 2019 (Nearly 10.5 months)

Also, rather worryingly, they delivered two envelopes to my address. One containing my FBR+Docs and another containing some other poor chaps FBR+docs. I'm going to forward it straight to him today. I hope this isn't a common occurence.

Good luck all

[Sulla]

Hi all,
I received my FBR certificate today.

Application received: 6th July 2018
Sent for final Approval: 21st November
Received certificate: 17th May 2019 (Nearly 10.5 months)

Also, rather worryingly, they delivered two envelopes to my address. One containing my FBR+Docs and another containing some other poor chaps FBR+docs. I'm going to forward it straight to him today. I hope this isn't a common occurence.

Congratulations Ricky. 10.5 months is a long time to wait, but is still shorter than what they seem to be quoting recently.
If you possibly can, try to use Passport Express for your passport. Otherwise, (like me) you might have to wait a long time staring at a progress bar receding away from the target rather than marching towards it.

What happened with the other applicant's FBR certificate & documents is a bit troubling for us and embarrassing for the DFA. Your sending the package on to him directly is doubtless the best way to go and he will thank you for it. If you sent it back to the DFA for redirection and it ends up as part of their incoming mail mountain, he could easily wait months to finally get it

[Mori68]

Hi all,
I received my FBR certificate today.

Application received: 6th July 2018
Sent for final Approval: 21st November
Received certificate: 17th May 2019 (Nearly 10.5 months)

Also, rather worryingly, they delivered two envelopes to my address. One containing my FBR+Docs and another containing some other poor chaps FBR+docs. I'm going to forward it straight to him today. I hope this isn't a common occurence.

Good luck all

I hope they’re mine!

[Lee2521]

That must be a relief to you Lee. Am so glad they sent back your passport, I take it they took a copy or do you now have to supply a certified copy?

That is a long time to wait to get through to them, I will need to call them as the local embassy just isn't replying to anything sent on the web contact form so I guess they do not deal with FBR queries on email/online any more. I will need to find a good time to call them because of the time difference for me, but not much point until I have a concrete moving date. I think I will start with the DFA and ask them if I need to also inform the embassy as they will be sending everything back I assume rather than it being direct from the DFA.

Congratulations to those who have completed their FBR journey recently.

Jaxx

Yes mate it is a relief and it was done so quick , now I can travel to europe or anywhere now and I
supplied a copy of the passport but I sent my passport because I thought I had to ,my stupid mistake if I was on this group before I sent it I could of checked but all is well now .

It will harder for you being in Finland to call them at the DFA , is it 1 hour or 2 hours difference to Ireland/UK ?

I still think Wednesday is a good time as Monday and Friday will be probaly the hardest days to get through so in the middle of the week should be a good time I have experienced and quess should be the case .

Good luck on getting your moving date soon and if you don't get anywhere soon you can always drop the Irish embassy in Helsinki a request to message on your behalf , this is what I asked the London Irish to do and they done it for me .

[fvigaud]

Hi all,

I was reading through older posts and saw a reference to providing original utility bills as the proof of address. I sent my application in last month with copies I printed out (in color) of my gas and electricity bills. I have opted for paperless billing and automatic debit on all my accounts, so nothing actually comes to the house. The only difference is the thickness of the paper and the fact that what I printed is not perforated. I realize I am getting super paranoid here, perhaps over-analyzing...any thoughts on whether I should ask my utility companies for some 'real' bills and send over as an addendum?

thanks!
fvigaud

[Laurie9434]

Oh my goodness! Just hit the 9 month mark. Considering it was 4-5 months when I applied! This is getting old! UGH!

8-13-2018 Sent application to Dublin

8-15-2018 Received email stating they received
application and supporting documents.
This email stated that expected time frame
was no more than 6 months.

[Court2]

Hi all,
I received my FBR certificate today.

Application received: 6th July 2018
Sent for final Approval: 21st November
Received certificate: 17th May 2019 (Nearly 10.5 months)

Also, rather worryingly, they delivered two envelopes to my address. One containing my FBR+Docs and another containing some other poor chaps FBR+docs. I'm going to forward it straight to him today. I hope this isn't a common occurence.

Good luck all

Can you tell us the region/county of the UK that the other person's FBR was addressed to that you received?

[ricky7384]

court2 and mori68

I posted his docs today. The address was in Birmingham area.

[Koolboy]

court2 and mori68

I posted his docs today. The address was in Birmingham area.

Maybe mine
I am from Birmingham and applied in July 2018.

[rdslight]

Hi all,
I received my FBR certificate today.

Application received: 6th July 2018
Sent for final Approval: 21st November
Received certificate: 17th May 2019 (Nearly 10.5 months)

Also, rather worryingly, they delivered two envelopes to my address. One containing my FBR+Docs and another containing some other poor chaps FBR+docs. I'm going to forward it straight to him today. I hope this isn't a common occurence.

Good luck all

Great stuff, at least it seems the July ones are being processed!

[Sulla]

I was reading through older posts and saw a reference to providing original utility bills as the proof of address. I sent my application in last month with copies I printed out (in color) of my gas and electricity bills.

The requirement is for three separate proofs of address for overseas applicants. All should be from a different organisation and originals. I mention this because you only highlight sending gas and electricity bills. I hope there is another document included as well.
As for your query about the validity of printed out bills, I imagine it will not be a problem, as this is actually the format you receive your bills in. Moreover, the DFA are probably aware of this possibility, as they process many applications from the United States. I probably would have included a statement explaining the paperless billing situation when I submitted my application - if I had been in the same position. However, I would wager it will not be an issue and if you are contacted concerning it, an explanation may be all that will be required.

[Michael123]

Yes and I think if this really is the case then they need to take the 'applications take approximately 6 months to process' off the website, it only states on the website also that taking up to 12 months is for complex applications and I am sure that the majority of applications received are straight forward (as is mine, my father Irish but born abroad hence I am not automatically Irish and my grandparents Irish born in Ireland).

Jaxx

I too think that the FBR section ought to admit the reality of the situation to applicants. Publishing overly optimistic guidance times on their site is certainly not helping their image with anyone. Court offered an excellent suggestion on this some time ago: Send out an email, every couple of weeks, to all FBR applicants informing them of processing times and recent developments. If that was being done, people would not be so irate and the DFA would find that the phones did not ring quite as much. It is incredible that they have taken no action to simply communicate like this and ease people's valid concerns.

As for your application being lost, we have not heard of any instance of that on this thread or the former one. Not even a missing document, far less an application. As a consequence, as long as you have some kind of delivery confirmation from the postal service, you can be sure they have it and the prospects of it being lost are minimal. As you are well aware, I am hardly the DFA's greatest fan. However, when it comes to losing stuff, they seem to have a clean track record as far as I know.

Michael

Nice to see you back here. I wondered where you had disappeared to. Sorry to hear that you are now at 9 months and no apparent headway has been made. Try not to lose heart. Even if the worst predictions the DFA have given you prove to be true, you still only have 4 months left to wait. Compared to the wait you have already endured, that's relatively short. Ireland 2020 sounds like a good plan. Do you intend to just visit Ireland or also venture to the U.K. ? Ireland and Scotland would not be a bad combination for a longer trip.

I haven’t disappeared totally.

I have been known not to be the most patient person, posting about my wait only make me annoyed. I look every few days to check on the status of other applicants and will reply to if I notice my name. But yes, Tuesday will be 9 months, just behind Laurie by a few days and ahead of Liam by 1 day.


Funny, I can look at a product on line and consider purchasing it for days or weeks but as soon as I but it, Im looking for a tracking number and can’t wait to get it.

Any word from Liam? I haven’t seen him post in a long time, maybe since the old thread. I can only imagine that he is in FBR limbo as well.


I have lost interest due to the disappointment of the original 4 month expectation. I recall thinking that it was going to be a great Christmas with my citizenship, maybe Christmas 2019?

#IrishCitizenship 2037!

[fvigaud]

I was reading through older posts and saw a reference to providing original utility bills as the proof of address. I sent my application in last month with copies I printed out (in color) of my gas and electricity bills.

The requirement is for three separate proofs of address for overseas applicants. All should be from a different organisation and originals. I mention this because you only highlight sending gas and electricity bills. I hope there is another document included as well.
As for your query about the validity of printed out bills, I imagine it will not be a problem, as this is actually the format you receive your bills in. Moreover, the DFA are probably aware of this possibility, as they process many applications from the United States. I probably would have included a statement explaining the paperless billing situation when I submitted my application - if I had been in the same position. However, I would wager it will not be an issue and if you are contacted concerning it, an explanation may be all that will be required.

Thank you Sulla for allying my concerns! While I only referenced 2 utility bills, I did also send in a mortgage statement as a third proof. So all good ok that front.

Thanks,
F

[theonlyh]

court2 and mori68

I posted his docs today. The address was in Birmingham area.

Maybe mine
I am from Birmingham and applied in July 2018.

I’m Birmingham too- could be mine??

[Master Caution]

Good Morning all,

I have been following this and the closed thread regarding FBR for some time so I thought as well add my experiences of the FBR process to date.

I am applying for citizenship via FBR because my Grandfather was born on the Island of Ireland.

Timeline.

July 2018 to August 2018:

Collection of all required documentation. Meticulous in my efforts might I add.

August 26 2018:

Paid the fee online and printed out the form. Got it signed by an approved witness.
Sent the forms to the Irish Embassy in Berlin.

September 11 2018:

All original documents returned, but with a request to supply my marriage certificate and the divorce certificate of my parents. This was requested in the form of a handwritten note on the "required documents" page that I printed off so obviously, being meticulous requires a degree of crystal ball consultation as well.

October 2018.

Marriage cert and divorce cert of my parents sent to Berlin. As to date, I haven't seen these documents again.

28 November 2018.

Email from DFA saying that my application has been received and it can take up to six months etc.

Entry onto FBR: Unknown

FBR Certificate: TBD

Passport application: TBD

If I hear anything or receive anything, I shall post straight away, particularly considering the email I received confirming application is just about to hit the 6 month mark from the day it dropped into the inbox.

Good luck to those waiting for information

MC

[Jaxx22]

Lee

2 hours ahead of UK/Ireland so it will be finding a time that suits this end too that won't be too busy that end but I will probably try on a Wednesday anyway so thanks for that advice

Master Caution

Hi and welcome

I will take that as a good sign as you had documents returned asking for additional ones within a month so I will take that as mine have been pre-checked and are okay (of course I won't take that as gospel just yet) as you have had confirmation of receipt from the DFA I would say that yours are all in order

Fvigaud

I would think that is okay, I don't recall it stating that it needs to be an original letter, that is the problem with a lot of things like this, most people have everything paperless these days so logically they should understand this.



It is nice to read that some people are again receiving their certificates and congratulations to all. It is a bit concerning that someone else's documents were sent to the wrong person but hopefully now they have received them and are celebrating

[Marwin]

September 11 2018:

All original documents returned, but with a request to supply my marriage certificate and the divorce certificate of my parents. This was requested in the form of a handwritten note on the "required documents" page that I printed off so obviously, being meticulous requires a degree of crystal ball consultation as well.

October 2018.

Marriage cert and divorce cert of my parents sent to Berlin. As to date, I haven't seen these documents again.

Same here! I have been told that I will receive my parents original marriage and divorce certificates at the end of the FBR process. I don't really get why Berlin returns all other original documents but not these. In particular, because they do not proof Irish descent.