ONE MILLION Irish passports have been issued in 2022 according to the Department of Foreign Affairs.
This is the first time in history that the milestone has been reached in one calendar year. When compared to this time last year, just 634,000 passports had been printed.
This figure also breaks the previous record which had been set in 2019 with 935,000 passports issued.
Earlier this year there had been significant delays with the issuing of passports due to the sudden demand once international travel became more accessible following the pandemic.
Answering a question in the Dáil in March, Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney said over 240,000 passports had been issued from 1 January this year to 20 March, compared to 21,000 passports issued over the same period in 2021.
Despite a challenging year, the Passport Service today issued its 1 millionth passport in 2022. This is the 1st time over 1 million passports have been issued in a calendar year. Passport Online is the quickest and most efficient way to apply for a passport. pic.twitter.com/EJF9tfIVp6
— Irish Foreign Ministry (@dfatirl) November 1, 2022
The delays drew criticism of the service from opposition parties.
However, the Passport Office has said it is confident that the delays in issuing passports which was experienced earlier this year will not be repeated.
The office added that turnaround times for online adult renewals is now 10 working days and 20 days for first-time online applications.
The Passport Office says it has recruited the staff that it needs to deliver the forecasted demand for next year.
It also reiterated that the online application is the quickest and most efficient way to apply for a passport.
