Guidance

HM Armed Forces passport applications

Updated 7 August 2024

Version 16.0

His Majesty’s Passport Office guidance for dealing with passport applications sent to us using the dedicated Armed Forces route.

About: His Majesty’s Armed Forces passport applications

This guidance tells HM Passport Office staff how we process passport applications sent from HM Armed Forces Units direct to the Forces team in Peterborough.

You must not use this guidance for applications sent in using any other route.

Contacts

If you have any questions about the guidance and your line manager or senior caseworker cannot help you or you think that the guidance has factual errors then email the Guidance team.

If you notice any formatting errors in this guidance (broken links, spelling mistakes and so on) or have any comments about the layout or navigability of the guidance then you can email the Guidance team.

Publication

Below is information on when this version of the guidance was published:

• version 16.0

• published for Home Office staff on 2 April 2024

Changes from last version of this guidance

This guidance has been updated to clarify how to identify an application from HM Armed Forces.

HM Armed Forces: identifying Armed Forces passport applications

This section explains how HM Passport Office staff identify an application from His Majesty’s Armed Forces, also known as ‘HM Armed Forces’ or ‘HM Forces’ and their dependants. It also explains how Sopra Steria Ltd handle HM Forces passport applications.

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) submit passport applications to us using the Armed Forces route. Applications sent to us using this route may include applications from serving members of His Majesty’s Armed Forces and their dependants.

Forces applications will always be made on paper application forms and sent in by the Armed Forces Unit Welfare Office and contain a letter of introduction or itinerary.

Civilian members may have their applications paid for and submitted by the MOD through the HM Armed Forces route. We will return their passports and document using this route, but we must confirm their identity and nationality using standard guidance produced for the general public.

Applications from HM Armed Forces can currently only be processed on AMS (Application Management System) by the HM Forces team in Peterborough.

Personal applications received from HM Armed Forces personnel

Customers may apply for a personal passport using any route. This includes additional passports which may be accompanied by a letter from someone in the armed forces, confirming the need for the additional passport. These must be processed as standard applications and must not be transferred to the Armed Forces team in Peterborough.

You can deal with a personal application in any office (using AMS (Application Management System) or DAP (Digital Application Processing)) using current guidance if the customer applies for a standard passport in a personal capacity.

You must only transfer the application to the Peterborough Armed Forces team if the application has been sent in by the Armed Forces Unit Welfare Office on a paper form and contains a letter of introduction or itinerary.

Transferring an application to the Armed Forces team

If you believe you have received an application that needs to be transferred to the Armed Forces team in Peterborough to process, you must first email the team to confirm the application is within their remit. This ensures that we do not transfer applications unnecessarily.

The Armed Forces team will review the application and any documents and advise you whether the application needs to be transferred to them (to be processed as an Armed Forces application) or whether you can continue to process the application as a standard (personal) application.

HM Armed Forces and diplomatic applications

The Diplomatic and Officials team in Durham, deal with passport applications for Diplomatic or Official passports from members of HM Armed Forces. You, the examiner, must refer the application to the Diplomatic and Official passport team if the customer wants a Diplomatic or Official passport.

HM Armed Forces: Sopra Steria processing

Sopra Steria Ltd will not write to the customer who applies using the HM Forces application route, if there is something missing (for example, if the customer did not send their birth certificate), they will:

• process and cashier the application as normal

• send the applications to HM Passport Office in boxes marked ‘Forces’

HM Armed Forces: examining applications

This section tells HM Passport Office examiners working on the Armed Forces team in Peterborough how to examine applications sent to us using the dedicated Armed Forces route, from members of His Majesty’s Armed Forces (HM Armed Forces) or their dependants.

For the majority of HM Armed Forces applications, the intended passport holder will ordinarily (normally) be resident in the UK.

You, the examiner, must deal with applications sent from overseas using the forces route as standard UK applications unless the intended passport holder is a dependant applying for their first British passport as an adult and they are not ordinarily resident in the UK.

Checking the letter of introduction or itinerary

Applications from HM Armed Forces must be sent with a letter of introduction or an itinerary from the unit. You must:

1. Check the application has a letter of introduction or an itinerary.

2. Check the letter of introduction includes a unit or base address.

3. Check the itinerary includes the name of the person who has applied for the passport.

4. Scan the letter of introduction or itinerary onto the customer’s application as a permanent record.

Examining addresses on HM Armed Forces applications

When examining applications from members of HM Armed Forces or their dependants, you must:

1. Check the system shows the customer’s Unit Welfare Office postal address (also known as the unit’s civilian address) as the customer’s home address (section 2 of a paper application form).

2. Type the military unit address (for overseas units this is also known as the British Forces Post Office (BFPO) address) into the alternative address field on the system.

Establishing nationality on HM Armed Forces applications

When examining applications from members of HM Armed Forces (or their dependants) you must confirm the customer’s claim to British nationality, in line with nationality legislation.

You must use the British nationality act 1981 to work out a child’s claim to British nationality. HM Passport Office’s Immigration and Right of Abode guidance provides information on how to establish if a HM Forces parent is settled at the time of the child’s birth.

Examining the referee on HM Armed Forces applications

When examining applications from members of HM Armed Forces (or their dependants), you must check if the customer lives in the UK or overseas and make sure their application includes a referee).

You must accept the customer’s referee if they are an acceptable referee and the:

• customer and the referee both live in the UK
• referee lives or is posted either in the UK or overseas (in the same place as the customer)
• referee has known the customer for less than two years, providing the person who acted as referee holds the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) rank of OF2 or above. OF2 ranks include:
  • Lieutenant (Royal Navy)
  • Captain (Royal Marines)
  • Captain (Army)
  • Flight Lieutenant (Royal Air Force)

Examining photos on HM Armed Forces applications

You must check the customer’s photo meets HM Passport Office’s photo standards.

Dealing with additional passports for members of HM Forces

You must check the application has been sent in through the Armed Forces route and includes a signed letter from the commanding officer of the unit (or a superior officer) confirming the customer’s need for an additional passport if they have asked for an additional passport.

HM Armed Forces personnel and their dependants based in Gibraltar may request to renew their passport without sending in the current passport. This is due to the requirement to cross the border into Spain on a daily basis for employment / education etc. You must refer to frequent traveller exemption criteria within the additional passport guidance.

Lost, stolen & recovered passport applications

You, the examiner, must:

• deal with any application to replace a passport which has been lost or stolen using the lost stolen and recovered guidance

• consider if the customer must attend an identity interview

• consider if the application meets the criteria for multiple losses and requires a referral to an EAC examiner

Replacing restricted validity passports

Before 28 February 2017, members of HM Armed Forces were given a restricted validity passport if they could not attend an interview because they were being deployed within 2 weeks of their application. Since 28 February 2017, members of HM Armed Forces no longer need to attend an interview.

When examining applications from members of HM Armed Forces to extend restricted validity passports to full validity, you must:

1. Check that the customer is a serving member of HM Armed Forces

2. Check the customer has paid the correct fee.

3. Renew the restricted validity passport without sending the customer for an interview.

Dependants of serving members of HM Armed Forces are still issued with restricted validity passports. When examining applications from dependents of members of HM Armed Forces to renew a restricted validity passport you must follow the guidance for restricted validity passports and send the customer for interview if they fit the criteria for interview.

HM Armed Forces: interviews

This section tells HM Passport Office examiners (working on the Peterborough Armed Forces team) when to send a member of His Majesty’s Armed Forces or their dependants for an identity interview.

The passport issuing system automatically selects first time adult applications submitted in the UK for interview. You, the examiner, must override the system for members of HM Armed Forces applying for their first British passport.

You must consider whether a member of HM Armed Forces requires [an interview if they have reported their passport lost or stolen.

Interviews for dependants of HM Armed Forces members

We will interview dependents of HM Armed Forces members if they fit the criteria to be interviewed.

Dependant resident in the UK

Customer’s over 16 years who apply for their first British passport in the UK must attend an identity interview. You must send an adult dependent resident in the UK and applying for their first British passport for an identity interview if it is required, unless they are travelling within the next 2 weeks. If they are, you must:

1. Deal with the application using the urgent government business guidance.

2. Issue a restricted validity passport which will cover the travel needs of the customer.

3. Tell the customer they will have to attend an interview in the United Kingdom (UK) to renew the passport.

Dependant resident abroad

Customers of any age who are resident overseas are subject to risk-based examination and may have to attend an interview.

For applications submitted by HM Forces you must check the application and supporting documents to decide if the dependant or their parent (if the intended passport holder is a child) is ordinarily (normally) resident in the United Kingdom or abroad.

Normally resident in the UK

If the adult or child dependant is resident overseas because they have been posted there by HM Armed Forces or they are newly naturalised, you must:

1. Check the letter of introduction, or foreign passport to decide if the dependant (or their parent if the dependant is under 16 years old) is normally resident in the United Kingdom. You must check the customer’s foreign passport to see if immigration stamps show the customer is regularly travelling into or out of the UK.

2. Decide if an interview would be required if the dependant was resident in the UK.

If the customer does not need to attend an identity interview (for example if they are newly naturalised and we have checked their passport on Home Office records), you the examiner must:

1. Override the automatic system decision to send the application for interview.

2. Issue a fully valid passport.

If the intended passport holder would need to attend an interview if they were resident in the UK, you the examiner must:

1. Issue a restricted validity passport valid for the required validity.

2. Tell the customer they will have to attend an interview in the United Kingdom (UK) to renew the passport.

Normally resident overseas

If the intended passport holder or their parent (where the intended passport holder is under 16 years old) is normally resident overseas you must make sure the application is correctly categorised to decide if an identity interview is required.

Interviews when replacing a lost or stolen passport

HM Passport Office will consider if adult customers living in the UK need to be sent for an identity interview if the application meets the criteria for multiple losses.

Where a customer meets the criteria for an identity interview following a report of a lost or stolen passport, we will:

• not interview members of HM Armed Forces or their dependents in this circumstance if they are deployed overseas

• send them for an identity interview if they are resident in the UK

You must issue a restricted validity passport if the customer (a serving member or a dependant) is resident in the UK and is being deployed abroad within the next 2 weeks for less than 2 and half years. You must:

1. Ask the Unit Welfare Office to confirm the customer is being deployed in the next 2 weeks and the length of their deployment.

2. Deal with the application, using with the Urgent Government Business guidance.

3. Set the validity of the passport to match the length of the deployment plus any additional months needed to cover the validity requirements of the country they are moving to (up to a maximum of 3 years).

4. Tell the customer they will have to attend an interview on their return to the UK using system letter template 380 or 381.

You must issue a fully valid passport and not send the customer for an interview if the customer is being deployed within 2 weeks and the deployment will last more than 3 years.

HM Armed Forces: contacting the unit

This section tells HM Passport Office examiners working in the Peterborough Armed Forces team how to contact members of His Majesty’s Armed Forces (HM Armed Forces) or their dependants.

When we need to contact a member of HM Armed Forces, you, the examiner, must use the unit Welfare Office as the customers contact address.

We will contact the Welfare Office by phone, post or email. We must contact the Welfare Office by:

• email if their unit is overseas

• post if we need to send them documents, forms or photos

Emailing letters to overseas units

When emailing a letter to unit welfare office, you must:

1. Create the letter on the system.

2. Use only the surname, forename and initials of the customer.

3. Remove the address from the template.

4. Insert ‘sent by email’ in the address section.

5. Use the HM Forces email template and attach the letter to the email.

How to create a forces email template

This section tells HM Passport Office examiners how to create an email template, to use when contacting unit Welfare Offices for information about an application. You, must always use the unit email address.

To create an email template, you must:

1. Access your team mailbox in Outlook.

2. Click on New E- mail button at the top left-hand corner of screen.

3. Click on Signature button on the toolbar at the top of the screen.

4. Click on signatures button.

5. Click on New button.

6. You will be prompted to ‘type a name for this signature’.

7. Type Forces in the box and click on OK.

8. Using Arial 12 font size, type or copy and paste the template words:

Dear Colleague

[insert customer’s full name and date of birth and application number here]

The attached letter is for the person named above about their passport application.  This letter must be passed to NAME as they are the intended recipient.

Emails sent outside of the Government’s secure network may not be secure, therefore any personal information has been kept to a minimum.

1. Under Choose default signature for new messages select Forces from the drop-down list.

2. For replies or forwards select Forces from the drop-down list.

3. Click on OK.

4. The Forces template will now appear on all emails sent from the Overseas Armed Forces mailbox.

HM Armed Forces: urgent applications

This section tells HM Passport Office examiners in the Peterborough Armed Forces team how to deal with urgent applications from members of His Majesty’s Armed Forces (HM Armed Forces) or their dependants.

When dealing with urgent applications from members of HM Armed Forces or their dependants that were sent by post in the UK, you, the examiner, must:

1. Check the application includes a letter from the customer’s unit that confirms the customer needs the passport for urgent travel.

2. Check the customer has paid the UK standard fee.

3. Check Sopra Steria Ltd has processed the application as a standard application.

4. Set up a dummy refund for the difference in the fee if it has been scanned on as a Fast Track application (see Fees for HM armed forces for the refund process).

5. Scan the letter onto the application as a permanent record.

6. Process the application for the urgent passport.Process the application for the urgent passport.

HM Armed Forces: urgent applications made at Peterborough public counter

HM Armed Forces appointments at the Peterborough public counter are arranged through the Peterborough Armed Forces team not through the normal booking line When dealing with urgent applications made at the public counter in Peterborough from members of HM Armed Forces or their dependants, you must:

1. Check the application includes a letter from the customer’s unit and confirms:
   • the adult customer needs the passport for urgent travel
   • the child must travel urgently for urgent government business or compassionate reasons (if they are applying for the Premium service)
2. Take the standard fee payment.
3. Process the application as a Fast Track or Premium application.
4. Scan the letter to the application as a permanent record (we will only accept a child application under the Premium service if a child must travel for urgent government business or compassionate reasons).
5. Set up a dummy refund for the difference between the standard fee and the Fast Track fee (see Fees for HM Armed Forces for the refund process).
6. Process the application for the urgent passport.

HM Armed Forces: urgent applications from customers overseas

A courier will deliver urgent applications to the Peterborough office from members of HM Armed Forces or their dependants who are overseas.

When dealing with these applications, you must examine the application in line with current guidance and:

1. Check the application includes a letter from the customer’s unit and confirms:

   • the customer needs the passport for urgent travel; and,

   • gives the unit’s civilian address so the courier can deliver the package overseas (request a new letter if it shows a British Forces Post Office (BFPO) address, as a courier cannot deliver to a BFPO address); and

   • the courier can collect the passport

2. The customer has paid the standard UK fee.

3. Set up a dummy refund for the difference between the standard fee and the Fast Track fee (see Fees for HM armed forces for the refund process).

4. How to process an urgent HM Armed Forces application.

How to process an urgent HM Armed Forces application

You must examine the application as normal and resolve any queries. To pass the application for issue on the system and make sure that it is dealt with urgently, you must:

1. Select local print to send the application to the local print service.

2. Enter the unit’s civilian address into the alternative address field.

3. Gratis (make it free of charge) the application if the fees do not balance.

4. Select exam complete.

5. Place the application form in a purple wallet.

6. Place a yellow envelope with a blue sticker in the purple wallet.

7. Keep the documents in your section, while the passport is being printed.

8. Enter details of the application in the Urgent Forces book.

9. Give the application to a passport officer grade 1 (PO1) and ask them to take it to the local print room.

When the urgent HM Armed Forces passport is printed

When the local print room tell us they have printed the passport, you must:

1. Ask the PO1 to collect the passport from the local print room.

2. Add the customer’s documents to the yellow envelope containing the customer’s new passport.

3. Store the passport and customer’s supporting documents in a secure locked location until they are taken to the counter for collection.

4. Phone the customer to tell them their passport is ready for collection.

5. Tell the customer they must arrange for a courier to collect the passport and they must tell the courier:

   • the passport must be collected from postcode PE2 8YY

   • they must report to reception on arrival

   • they must ask for the Forces team on their contact number

   • they must tell the receptionist the name of the person they are collecting the passport for

   • the passport can be collected before 4 pm on the same day or between 8am and 4pm the following day

6. Tell the customer that after they have booked a courier, they must tell us:

   • the name of the courier

   • the name of the courier company

   • the date and time they will collect the passport

7. Give the customer the name of the examiner who is dealing with their application and the Forces team contact number.

When the customer has booked a courier

After the customer tells us they have booked a courier, you must email ‘Peterborough CSC Reception’ to tell them:

• a courier will be collecting an urgent ’Forces’ upgrade

• the name of the courier and the company

• the date and time of collection

• to contact the ‘Forces’ team when the courier arrives

When the courier collects the passport

When the courier arrives to collect the passport, you must go to the counter with:

• the yellow envelope containing the passport and any supporting documents

• the ‘Forces’ book

Before giving the passport to the courier, you must:

1. Ask the courier to sign the ‘Forces’ book to confirm they have collected the passport.

2. Fill in the delivery address on the courier’s collection slip.

3. Check that the delivery address matches the address on the letter of introduction.