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So recently we had to renew a child’s passport online (well actually three!) so I actually feel like something of an expert in the area of Renewing a Child Passport online.

I’m not, obviously, so don’t hold me to that but I thought I’d share some tips and some of the things you have to think about particularly as I have recently read a hilarious article in the Telegraph asking Why Renewing a Child’s Passport is so difficult! Definitely worth a read! Passport renewal child humour!

Can you renew a childs passport online?

Short answer is yes you can renew a child’s passport online and here is how.

How to Renew Child Passport Online

• Don’t book travel until you have a valid passport – doing so is at your own risk.  It can take 6 weeks to get your child passport, but should take 3 weeks for a renewal.
• It costs £49!!! Yes that’s right £49!! I almost cried when I had to pay £147 all at once – that’ll teach me to have three children so close together won’t it.  In fact if you need it quickly it will cost you £122!
• You’ll need a debit or credit card to use the service. Charges for children’s passports are £49 online and £58.50 in the post. Child passport renewal joy!
• You need to take the photo – get this right before you start the form!  The photo requirements are stringent to say the least  (you can find the standards here) and can take some time to get right! You can use a service at one of the high street photo shops, but we did manage to get it right taking the photos against a white wall.
• The online system recommends that you submit a digital copy.

A great addition to the new online service is the automated check.  It will automatically tell you if the photo you have uploaded isn’t appropriate and why.  I am sure this isn’t foolproof but it does save you sending off applications in the post and waiting for weeks only to be told you haven’t done it right.

• You then continue through a series of questions with boxes that need to be ticked. Date of Birth, Old Passport Issue date, Is your passport damaged, Do you have dual nationality?  You are then prompted to use a different service if you need the passport more urgently.

Passport Renewal Child

• You will always need to provide a Countersignatory for the photos if the child is under 11.  You should read the guidelines for who can sign and make sure the countersignatory you want to use is available when you are submitting the application. They now do this online.
• You will also have to send your child’s old passport back to the passport office so they can cancel it.  They usually then return it to you.
• Another new addition to the service is free text or email updates and you can pay £3 extra to have your passport sent back by Special Delivery too.

NB: Do double check the address of where you need to send the passport to. A friend of mine recently did this for her children and the address for each of the children she was given was different. She only noticed this after she had posted them to the same address. This caused a delay which thankfully wasn’t an issue for them but could be for others. So check!

For full details on renewing childs passports please do visit the Government Website as this article is only based on my own experience.

Visit gov.uk/get-a-child-passport for full details.

If this all seems rather complicated you could always use a company like this one to help you apply for British passport, whether a child passport, renew child passport uk or a second passport.

Why not PIN this post about Renewing a Child Passport Online: