Passports
Welcome to the pages of the Western European Passport Service. We are based in the British Consulate-General in Paris.
This service is available to British nationals in Italy, Malta, Switzerland, Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, France, Monaco, and the French DOM-TOMs.
Please note that our posts in Rome, Florence, Milan, Naples, Valletta, Geneva, Berne, Brussels, Luxembourg, Amsterdam, Lille, Lyon, Bordeaux, and Marseille continue to provide consular assistance in their districts, including the provision of single-journey passports needed in genuine emergencies.
The merger of the Italy, Malta, Switzerland, Benelux and France passport operations is being carefully managed to meet the needs of applicants. We aim to issue all correctly submitted applications within 10 working days of receipt.
If you are travelling urgently, you may wish to be aware of the following hints and tips:
- Instead of mailing your application to us, a courier company is almost always a quicker option. It can more than halve delivery times in certain cases. Alternatively, you can always call in to see us in person. Incidentally, we now return all completed passports to postal applicants by courier. The following pages will tell you more, but this new service is designed to speed up delivery and improve security.
- The front page of the passport application form (C1 for adults, C2 for children) invites you to enter your date of travel. Please do this if you are travelling urgently; we will aim to meet your deadline.
- Finally, our system allows you to apply up to nine months before your current passport expires without losing any validity. For example, if your passport is due to expire on 01 February 2010 and you were to apply to renew it today, your new passport would have an expiry date of 01 February 2020.
We are committed to ensuring that the quality of the passport service offered to British Nationals in the region remains high.
Graeme Wise
Consul-General, Paris and Consular Regional
Director for Western Europe
Important passport information
Processing Time
For customers who wish to renew their British passport, the current processing time is 10 working days from receipt of a complete application. These processing times do not include the time it takes to post or courier the passport to and from the Passport section. If your previous passport has been lost or stolen, it may also take longer to process.
If you need to travel within 72 hours, you may be eligible for an Emergency Passport. An Emergency Passport is a one page document valid for one journey only to the UK or elsewhere in the EU. It is issued to British Nationals previously issued with a British Passport, (i.e. they cannot be issued to anyone applying for the first time), in emergency and compassionate situations. Please click on Lost and Stolen Passports and follow the advice given.
In fairness to all our customers, applications are dealt with in the order that they are received. Applications received that do not have all the correct supporting documentation or fees will be returned to you.
If you are going to be in the UK for a long period of time and have an address there, you can apply to the IPS for a new passport.
Photographs
Telephone Enquiries
As a last resort, if you need to enquire by telephone please call our call-handling providers, Careline, whose details are provided below. Careline will be able to advise you on the status of your application. You can also call this company if your circumstances have changed and you need your passport more urgently than within 10 working days.
Calls to Careline will be charged at GBP 0.69 per minute for the duration of the call. Telephone service providers will also charge for the cost of the international call. Please ensure you have your credit card details ready before calling.
For applicants in Italy please call +44 208 082 4733 between the hours of 09.00 AM and 06.00 PM local time, Monday to Friday.
For applicants in Malta please call +44 208 082 4741 between the hours of 09.00 AM and 06.00 PM local time, Monday to Friday.
For applicants in Switzerland please call +44 208 082 4728 between the hours of 09.00 AM and 06.00 PM local time, Monday to Friday.
For applicants in France, Monaco and French DOM-TOMs please call +44 208 082 4729 between the hours of 09.00 AM and 06.00 PM local time, Monday to Friday.
For applicants in Belgium please call +44 208 082 4730 between the hours of 09.00 AM and 06.00 PM local time, Monday to Friday.
For applicants in Luxembourg please call +44 208 082 4731 between the hours of 09.00 AM and 06.00 PM local time, Monday to Friday.
For applicants in The Netherlands please call +44 208 082 4732 between the hours of 09.00 AM and 06.00 PM local time, Monday to Friday.
For customers with hearing difficulties, a Textphone service is available by contacting +44 1750 725368. This is a credit card payment service, charged at the same rates as above.
Feedback/Complaints
If you feel that your experience with Careline Services was below the high standards the Foreign and Commonwealth Office aim to provide, please email Careline Services directly at ukpassportservicewesterneurope@careline-services.co.uk. All complaints will be acknowledged within 1 working day.
