The Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Charlie Flanagan TD, has announced that 733,060 passports were issued in 2016, an increase of 9% on the previous year.
There was a strong increase in demand for passports in the first half of the year. According to the Minister, this was due to a variety of factors including the fact that more Irish people traveled in the first half of the year, the Euros Championships and a historical spike in applications from 2006 feeding through in the 10-year renewal cycle.
Following the UK Referendum on EU membership in June, passport applications from Northern Ireland saw an increase of 26.5% over 2015 to 67,972 while application levels from Great Britain increased by 40.6% to 64,996.
Looking abroad, Canberra was the busiest Embassy with regard to the arrival of Ireland’s youngest citizens with over 490 applications for infants. Abu Dhabi was also a popular choice for the Irish under three’s with over 300 applicants.
April, May and June were the busiest months for the Passport Service. On 4 May alone, 6,464 passport applications were submitted. Citizens who plan to renew their passport in 2017 are strongly advised to do so in the off-peak period to ensure the shortest renewal time.
Source: www.businessworld.ie
