British passport application

There have been a few changes regarding British passport applications.    ·         As of this week, Her Majesty’s Passport Office (HMPO) are no longer accepting the old passport forms (C1 and C2 and vets passport forms).  The passport requirements and new forms can be found on https://www.gov.uk/overseas-passports/y/zimbabwe . All applicants have to now download their forms, as we are no longer allowed by London to hand out forms at the Embassy.  The standard requirements for a passport renewal are: * 2 recent colour photos (guidance on the format of the passport photos can be found on the website mentioned above – it’s important that applicants submit their photos in line with HMPO’s requirements or they’ll be rejected, and thus delay the application).   * OS form (the new form mentioned above). *  A full colour photocopy of your passport (including all blank pages) *  Proof of residence (letter from doctor/school/work/commissioner of oaths confirming your address, although unfortunately London are not accepting utility bills or bank statements from Zimbabwe at present).   *   Any other form of photo ID (drivers license, national ID) *   The processing time for these is approximately 4 weeks.  Opening times for passport submissions and collections at the British Embassy are Mondays – Fridays 08.30am  - 10.30am.    ·         The fees remain the same:  $249 for a standard 32 page passport, $293 for a 48 page and $172 for a child’s passport.  Please also note that although our website states you can pay by credit card, we are not yet able to accept credit cards at post, therefore all payments will still need to be made in US$ cash. We have asked London to amend this but unfortunately at this stage they are unable to do so. We have received several complaints about the new requirement to submit colour photocopies of the pages in current passport, and the need to provide evidence of a Zim residential address other than via utility bills and/or bank statements.  We have approached HMPO about this, and are seeking a resolution favourable to our customers – I’ll let you know once this is resolved.     If you have any further queries, please feel free to contact the Embassy on 85855275/ 85855266/ 85855286