OT: Second Passport - UK Passport Agency
 

I thought I'd provide a quick post for any UK Citizens who are considering obtaining a second passport. I thought the BA Forum would probably be more relevant then most.

Excessively regular travel has resulted in difficulties obtaining visas from certain countries (India, China etc) whilst on the move.

I applied for a second passport whilst overseas via the Dusseldorf Consulate. I used the normal form on the Embassy website, which allows you to select 'Second Passport'. I provided a letter from work and letter from myself and a copy of all pages of my passport (as requested). Within a day of the Embassy recieving the paperwork I received an e-mail confirming that they'd approved the application in principle, however I would need to send my current passport in to them, and they'd send it back as soon as possible.

Since I was travelling I told them that I couldn't send the passport at that time, and eventually managed to send it a month later when I had a few weeks in Europe and got it sent to our local office there.

It was fairly painless, but I think you do need a good reason to have a second passport for them to accept the application.

I got (a second) one from UKPA in London but without sending the previous one in as it was with one of the embassies being visa'd when I needed to travel.

I believe you need a good reason yes.

Thanks for the info.

I am considering applying for a second passport too for the same reason.

Is your second passport valid for 10 years or does it have the same expiry date as your first? My current passport will probably be full by the end of the year but still has several years to run and I'm uncertain whether I ought to apply for 2 passports now or just the extra one and retain my current one for European travel only.

See also:
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...d-embassy.html
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/briti...-passport.html

I'm in a similar situation and it's good to hear it's a reasonably painless process if you have the justification.

My 3-year-old standard passport is pretty full and I will be asking a 'jumbo' version ... 48 pages vs 32. Fortunately I will be in the UK and will stump up for the one-day premium service.

Actually, I don't know why they call it a 32-page passport .. there are only 25 usable pages :confused::confused: For some 'exotic' countries with full-page visas and a requirement for a empty facing page, that could amount to as few as 12 visits.

And as a note to anyone renewing their second (or indeed first) passport - make sure you send a letter explaining why you still need two.

10 year validity.

(In case any Australians want to know about theirs, Australian concurrent passport is for 3 years, and you don't get any discount for the shorter duration. UK seems rather generous, doesn't it!)

One such country resulted in my spending approx £1,000 flying into a nearest country with the consulate with an express processing service, cost of hotel (despite staying at a cheap place), and the cost of passport renewal on expedited service. I was not amused.

Another plausible reason is regular travel to Israel, as well as countries which don't get on with them (e.g. Syria, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Malaysia).

If you are applying to Paris, they will require a legible photocopy of your existing passport and a letter from your employer on headed paper stating why you need a second passport. Make sure that your employer is specific about your reasons - "Mr Smith travels a lot" isn't enough. Ideally the letter will set out your business travel plans over a set period of time, say three to six months, and the countries that require visas that you will be travelling to in a short space of time. The second passport is designed for travelling to multiple visa requiring countries within a short space of time so that you can apply for two visas at a time if travelling to two countries back to back. If you simply travel regularly, say between the UK and France, then that won't be a good enough reason - although you can include a covering letter asking to jump the queue. If they are feeling kind, it can be done the same day it arrives, although that is not guaranteed.

As mentioned, adult British passports are issued for ten years. IPS will add up to nine months validity from your previous passport if it is being cancelled - a second passport will be valid for ten years from the date of issue.

You can apply to replace your full one and request a second passport at the same time, although be aware that this will require two forms and two sets of photos.

Mrs J5a's passport was rapidly filling up with arrival/departure stamps at one point for work reasons. so she managed to get a second one by getting her work to write a letter that she was likely to start travelling to "incompatible countries" - UK FCO (as she applied for it via embassy) accepted and turned the passport around in 2 weeks.

Thanks for the advice. I am self-employed and was told by the UK office a while ago that I can write my own letter or ask my lawyer to do so. They also said that the reason I gave (frequent visa applications and requiring passport for travel at the same time) should be sufficient.

Currently sat in a coffee shop waiting to pick up both of mine (renewed both).

No difference in renewal as obtaining a second one originally, you just need current letters re- confirming the ongoing need, which they do check, so it needs to provide as much information as possible.
Note that this applies to renewing just one of them as well, and if you dont, they will refuse and leave you with just the one.

Was able to get my second one by same day service today, which is new. On previous occasions ive had to use the one week service before for a second one.

Also, be aware that anyone born in Northern Ireland, or parents / grandparents born in Northern Ireland or Republic of Ireland is eligible for a Republic of Ireland passport.

And very useful it is to - visas a bit cheaper to some countries and of course carries a 'politically neutral' feel.

When I renewed my 2 passports recently ( ouch) in addition to a supporting letter, I was asked to list which countries I visited frequently requiring a visa. These were then written onto the form.

You are actually allowed up to 5, although I would expect a serious grilling as to the reasons why - and a substantial bank balance!

Regarding concurrency, the best way to think about it is that they are two entirely unconnected passports, linked only by your name and date of birth, so applying for a second passport is like applying for a brand new passport - but with the additional requirement of strong evidence of previous or planned travel to visa-intense destinations.