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Complaints procedure - HM Passport Office

What you can expect from us

We aim to provide a high standard of customer service in all our dealings with customers. You can expect:

  • staff to be polite, helpful and professional

  • passports to be issued in line with our published standards

  • details on your passport to be correct and your supporting documents to be returned promptly

  • registration certificates to be issued in line with our published standards from the General Register Office (GRO)

  • special provisions and services for people with disabilities

  • clear and helpful explanations from our staff if you are denied a British passport because of citizenship or on other grounds

Passports

Step 1

If you have a complaint about how we handled your passport application, please contact our customer contact centre by phone, in writing or by using our online enquiry form.

Phone

0300 222 0000 Textphone 0300 222 0222 Text Relay 18001 0300 222 0000

Write to
HM Passport Office
PO Box 767
SOUTHPORT
PR8 9PW

Online

Complete our passport enquiries form.

When you write to us, please provide:

  • full details of the problem
  • the name and date of birth of the person the passport was for
  • the date the application form was sent to us
  • which of our offices the application form was sent to
  • the barcode number from the application form, if you have a note of it
  • the passport number, if you have one
  • information so we can contact you (name, address, postcode, day and evening phone numbers, and a fax number and email address if you have these)
  • the date and time of your appointment and an appointment reference number if you visited one of our offices to get your passport.

When we receive your complaint, we will investigate and let you know what went wrong and advise you what we are doing to put things right. We will contact you within 15 working days from receiving your complaint, either with a full reply or to let you know what is happening if we have not finished our investigation.

Step 2

If you have followed step 1 and are not satisfied with our response, you can ask us to review your complaint.

Step 3

If you have followed steps 1 and 2 and are still not satisfied, you may ask your Member of Parliament (MP) to raise the matter with our Director General.

If you are outside the UK follow the advice to find an MP where you were last living in the UK. If you have never lived in the UK, or you are having difficulty contacting an MP, you can write to our Director General using our general enquiry address or a Home Office minister via the Direct Communication unit.

Step 4

If you are still not satisfied, you can ask your MP to request an investigation by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (the Ombudsman). You can only do this through your MP.

The Ombudsman’s role is to investigate complaints by members of the public about the way government departments, and their executive agencies, have treated them.

Compensation

We realise that sometimes our mistakes may cause you expense or financial loss. In these cases, you should follow the instructions in step 1 and write us a letter. You should send any documents that prove your claim with the letter. We only normally offer compensation for financial loss which has occurred as a direct consequence of an error made by the General Register Office.

General Register Office

Please note that GRO does not deal with passports. For passport complaints, please see the information above.

If you have an enquiry, please contact us:

by email or through our online enquiries form

If your enquiry relates to a certificate which you have ordered from GRO, you can use our certificate service order enquiries form to send us a message.

When you submit this form, it will generate an email to us with the details you have supplied.

by phone

0300 123 1837 (+44 300 123 1837 if you are calling from overseas)

Monday to Friday: 8am to 8pm

Saturday: 9am to 4pm

Our contact centre staff will do their utmost to put things right. If we cannot give you an immediate answer, we will agree a convenient time to call you back, as we may need to arrange for someone with more detailed knowledge to speak to you.

in writing

Customer services manager
Room C1.11
General Register Office
HM Passport Office
Trafalgar Road
Southport
PR8 2HH

Please provide:

  • full details of the problem

  • a reference number you already have from us if this is an ongoing case or a certificate order (this is usually found in the top right hand corner of any letter we have sent you or provided at the time of ordering a certificate)

  • contact details (name, address, postcode, day and evening phone numbers, and an email address)

If you have a complaint, please contact us:

by email or through our online complaints form

If your complaint relates to a certificate which you have ordered from GRO, you can use our certificate service order enquiries form to send us a message.

When you submit this form, it will generate an email to us with the details you have supplied.

by phone

0300 123 1837 (+44 300 123 1837 if you are calling from overseas)

Monday to Friday: 8am to 8pm

Saturday: 9am to 4pm

Our contact centre staff will do their utmost to put things right. If we cannot give you an immediate answer, we will agree a convenient time to call you back, as we may need to arrange for someone with more detailed knowledge to speak to you.

in writing

Customer Services Manager
Room C1.11
General Register Office
HM Passport Office
Trafalgar Road
Southport
PR8 2HH

Please provide:

  • full details of the problem
  • a reference number you have already have from us if this is an ongoing case or a certificate order (this is usually found in the top right hand corner of any letter we have sent you or provided at the time of ordering a certificate)
  • contact details (name, address, postcode, day and evening phone numbers, and an email address or fax number if you have these)

Step 1

When we get your complaint we will:

  • let you know we have received it (if it was a letter or email)
  • investigate it
  • respond to you within 2 weeks, either with a full reply or to let you know what is happening if we have not finished our investigation

Please remember that while we always aim to provide the best possible service, we have to work within the provisions set out in the legislation covering the work of our office.

Sometimes it may be that we simply cannot meet your wishes because the relevant piece of legislation does not allow it. In those circumstances, we shall always aim to explain to you why we feel unable to act further.

Step 2

If you have written to or phoned us and are not satisfied with our response, please write to:

Senior Operations Manager
Room C1.11
General Register Office
HM Passport Office
Trafalgar Road
Southport
PR8 2HH

Step 3

If after writing to the Senior Operations Manager you are still dissatisfied, you may ask your member of Parliament (MP) to raise the matter with the Registrar General or the Home Office minister responsible for the GRO.

Step 4

If you are still not satisfied, you can ask your MP to request an investigation by the parliamentary commissioner for administration (the Ombudsman).

The Ombudsman’s role is to investigate complaints by members of the public about the way government departments and their executive agencies have treated them. You can only request an investigation through your MP.

Compensation

We realise that sometimes our mistakes may cause you expense or financial loss. In these cases, you should follow the instructions in step 1 and write us a letter. You should send any documents that prove your claim with the letter.

We only normally offer compensation for financial loss as a result of delays in our guaranteed services, for example, priority certificate orders or certificates ordered by special delivery, where these have not been despatched on the due date.

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Martina Birk

Update: 2024-05-05