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Question for anyone who has renewed a UK passport from Sing

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jimwilluk
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Question for anyone who has renewed a UK passport from Sing

Post by jimwilluk » Sun, 10 Mar 2013 5:51 pm

Hi all,
I am about to embark on the convoluted UK passport renewal procedure (via HK and the UK).
I know you should submit your current/old passport but I would like to know if it gets returned once the application is complete along with the new one (cancelled of course)? I have tried searching around the web and looking through all the info on the FCO websites, but I can't find a definitive answer.

Any insight from anyone who has been through this process would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

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Mi Amigo
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Post by Mi Amigo » Sun, 10 Mar 2013 6:57 pm

Yes. In the past when I've renewed (latterly via the HK route) they have always returned my old passport (stamped as cancelled and with one corner of its cover cut off) along with the new one.
Be careful what you wish for

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Post by jimwilluk » Sun, 10 Mar 2013 10:19 pm

Great, many thanks for the helpful reply - just what I was hoping to hear.

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Post by Travailes » Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:22 am

As stated - your old passport comes back under separate cover about 2 weeks later. We have just renewed a passport but allow plenty of time (Min 4 weeks) if you need it renewed. Ours did not return in time for a foreign trip so we had to buy an 'Emergency Travel Document' valid for one trip only which cost about $200.
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Post by Mi Amigo » Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:40 am

That's interesting. When I last renewed mine (via HK), both passports (old and new) came back in the same package. So I guess they've changed their procedures.
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Post by BillyB » Mon, 11 Mar 2013 2:37 pm

The process can be hit and miss in terms of time taken - mine was done in 3 weeks, but I have friends for whom the process took twice as long.

And the process seems to have been devised by someone either on crack or with ties to the postal services. You send your docs to HK for them to check that you signed and fiilled everything in correctly. HK then send it London, who process the passport application. It is then sent back to HK for them to send it onwards to you in SG. Old and new passports are indeed sent separately.

British efficiency at it's best! :P

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Post by Steve1960 » Tue, 19 Mar 2013 2:21 pm

I obtained two passports before leaving the UK to come here. Not for this reason but it will surely help.

When I have to renew one of the passports I still have the other to travel on :-)

If you are a UK citizen it could be worth taking advantage of this.

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Post by zzm9980 » Tue, 19 Mar 2013 4:23 pm

Steve1960 wrote:I obtained two passports before leaving the UK to come here. Not for this reason but it will surely help.

When I have to renew one of the passports I still have the other to travel on :-)

If you are a UK citizen it could be worth taking advantage of this.
Does UK allow anyone to have two passports?

The US specifically denies this, but then gives an 'exception' for very limited circumstance. That circumstance being you're getting a visa from one of ~4 countries that keeps your passport for months while you get the visa, and the second is you have travelled to Israel and now have to travel to one of the ~4 countries in the world which will give you a hard time for having travelled to Israel.

I tried to take advantage of this by saying I travel to Malaysia, but apparently the US state department doesn't believe they're hardcore fundamentalist enough :P

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Post by the lynx » Tue, 19 Mar 2013 10:48 pm

zzm9980 wrote:
Steve1960 wrote:I obtained two passports before leaving the UK to come here. Not for this reason but it will surely help.

When I have to renew one of the passports I still have the other to travel on :-)

If you are a UK citizen it could be worth taking advantage of this.
Does UK allow anyone to have two passports?

The US specifically denies this, but then gives an 'exception' for very limited circumstance. That circumstance being you're getting a visa from one of ~4 countries that keeps your passport for months while you get the visa, and the second is you have travelled to Israel and now have to travel to one of the ~4 countries in the world which will give you a hard time for having travelled to Israel.

I tried to take advantage of this by saying I travel to Malaysia, but apparently the US state department doesn't believe they're hardcore fundamentalist enough :P
They are right. Malaysia is not that hardcore. They do make exceptions for technology-related visits, and football players.

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Post by Mi Amigo » Tue, 19 Mar 2013 11:47 pm

Yes, the UK allows this. I kept two passports going for many years; this allowed me to travel with one whilst obtaining a visas or renewing the other one. It was also useful to be able to keep stamps from certain countries in one passport that would have made it difficult to to enter certain other countries. IIRC many years ago you had to make a special application (providing the relevant justification) for a second passport, but I think the rules were relaxed in recent years.

TBH I deliberately stopped keeping a second passport a whie ago, so as to have an excuse to avoid travelling when things get really out of hand in that department.
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Post by zzm9980 » Wed, 20 Mar 2013 10:19 am

the lynx wrote:
zzm9980 wrote:
Steve1960 wrote:I obtained two passports before leaving the UK to come here. Not for this reason but it will surely help.

When I have to renew one of the passports I still have the other to travel on :-)

If you are a UK citizen it could be worth taking advantage of this.
Does UK allow anyone to have two passports?

The US specifically denies this, but then gives an 'exception' for very limited circumstance. That circumstance being you're getting a visa from one of ~4 countries that keeps your passport for months while you get the visa, and the second is you have travelled to Israel and now have to travel to one of the ~4 countries in the world which will give you a hard time for having travelled to Israel.

I tried to take advantage of this by saying I travel to Malaysia, but apparently the US state department doesn't believe they're hardcore fundamentalist enough :P
They are right. Malaysia is not that hardcore. They do make exceptions for technology-related visits, and football players.
I know hah, I was just trying to use it as an excuse :P

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Post by Steve1960 » Wed, 20 Mar 2013 10:23 am

As has been confirmed the UK does allow two passports and yes the rules are much more relaxed now.

As it happens I subsequently found that I do have to travel to Israel and Malaysia for my job now so it is very useful :-)

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Post by Mi Amigo » Wed, 20 Mar 2013 11:37 am

zzm9980 wrote:
the lynx wrote:
zzm9980 wrote:I tried to take advantage of this by saying I travel to Malaysia, but apparently the US state department doesn't believe they're hardcore fundamentalist enough :P
They are right. Malaysia is not that hardcore. They do make exceptions for technology-related visits, and football players.
I know hah, I was just trying to use it as an excuse :P
I once had an 'interesting' discussion with the person checking my passport on arrival at either SFO or LAX. Obviously he'd noticed the large number of stamps for a Muslim country (Alert! Alert!)...

Passport guy: "You seem to be making a lot of visits to Malaysia these days."

Me: "Yes, I go there to play golf."

If only I could have taken a picture of his face at that moment (obviously if I'd tried to, I'd really have been in trouble).
Be careful what you wish for

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