210. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade for an update on a passport application (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46441/26]

The Passport Service is successfully responding to demand, and has issued over 460,000 passports to date this year.

All passport applications are subject to the terms of the Passports Act, 2008, as amended (“the Act”). Under Section 14(1) of the Act, the consent of a child’s guardian(s) must be given before the Passport Service can issue them a passport.

In order to protect the integrity of the Irish passport and the rights of the child and their guardian(s), it is important that the Child Identity and Consent form is correctly completed, witnessed and validated by the Passport Service for both first time and renewal applications for children. Guardians must be present to the person acting as a witness.

The Passport Service continually works to enhance the service and support customers in submitting a correct application. A number of improvements have been made to the Passport Online platform over the past three years, including a bespoke list of the supporting documents required for passport applicants. When using Passport Online, the information provided by applicants is used to generate a custom coversheet that will provide the applicant with a bespoke list, in plain English, of the documents that they must submit as part of their application.

The Passport Service also has public education materials, including video tutorials and detailed instructions on the application process, available online: www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/passports/how-to-apply-for-a-passport/.

Should assistance be required with an application, Customer Service agents are available by phone and webchat services from Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m. The Customer Service Hub can be contacted at +353 1 671 1633, or via the WebChat service: www.ireland.ie/en/dfa/passports/contact-us/.

In cases where further supporting documents are required from the applicant, every effort is made to let the applicant know as soon as possible. The Passport Service operates a document management system whereby incomplete applications that require further supporting documents are prioritised once the additional documents are received by the Passport Service. These applications are then processed within 15 working days.

With regard to the Deputy's query, to date this year the Passport Service has received 124,221 child applications. Of these child passport applications received, 15,323 (12%) had at least one request for a replacement Guardian consent form.

I would ask the Deputy to encourage their constituents to apply for their passports through Passport Online. In particular, those who are travelling this year, especially families with young children, should apply online for their passports and in plenty of time.