DOHA: The British embassy in Doha issued 85 emergency travel documents in 2014.
Almost 50 percent of these were preventable as their passports had been lost, stolen or damaged, the embassy said yesterday.
It urged British nationals in Qatar to regularly check the location, condition, validity and number of empty pages they have left in their passports.
Ann Munro, Vice Consul, said, “When living overseas, it can be easy to forget to renew or not realise that your passport is filling up with stamps and visas. If you need to travel in an emergency, getting an emergency travel document is costly and time-consuming. This can further add to what may already be a stressful situation. In addition, you will still need to renew your full passport when you get back to the UK as you can only exit Qatar on an emergency travel document, you cannot re-enter.” Many think that by renewing a passport before it expires they will “lose out” on validity they have paid for. Any remaining validity on an existing passport (up to a total of nine months) will be added to the applicant’s new one.
Her Majesty’s Passport Office can issue applicants a second passport if they are eligible. The applicant will need to submit a letter of support (on headed paper) from a senior manager who employs him/her, detailing the necessity for a second passport together with the application and either the applicant’s current passport or birth certificate.
Residents will only be able to exit Qatar on the same passport they entered on, or the passport their RP is in.
Many British residents find themselves in difficulties when they need to renew their residence permits and discover all the pages in their passports are full.
They will require at least one clear page to renew their residence permit. They cannot add pages to a British passport, they must apply to renew it.
Applying for a new passport is simple: Apply online, pay online and keep track on the progress of the application.
Supporting documentation will need to be sent to the passport office in Liverpool for applications from Qatar. To apply online, go to www.gov.uk/overseas-passports. For enquiries contact Passport Advice Line on +44 300 222 0000.
The Peninsula
