18 October 2023
45 Pipitea Street, Wellington 6011
Phone +64 4 495 7200
dia.govt.nz
Felix Lee
fyi-request-24193-
[email address]
Tēnā koe Felix
OIA request 23/24 0203 Request for Passport processing timeframes
Thank you for your Official Information Act (Act) request received by the Department of Internal
Affairs (Department) on 20 September 2023.
You requested –
I have heard that some people got their passport processed within days and some people
ned to wait weeks for their passports. I would like to make this OIA request to find out if
there are "buckets" or "workstreams" for passport applications, where different
applications go through different processes and take different amounts of time, similar to
how citizenships by grant are processed.
If there are buckets can you let me know:
1. name of each bucket
2. the criteria for applications to be sorted into each bucket
3. for each bucket, the procedure each application need to go through in order to be
approved.
4. For #2 and #3, if there are documents that refer to it, please provide me with a copy. If
no documents, could you please write a brief explanation.
5. average processing time for each bucket, by month, for last 12 months
6. number of applications processed for each bucket, by month, for last 12 months
Your request has been interpreted to be for information regarding standard New Zealand
passports.
In response to your request, I can provide you with the following information:
It is important to note that New Zealand passport applications are not processed using the same
‘workstream’ system as citizenship by grant applications. Therefore, your request is refused
pursuant to section 18(e) as the information requested does not exist.
.
It may be helpful for me to explain, exception-based processing is used for passport
applications. Each application goes through a series of automated checks completed by the
passport system, based on information provided by the applicant. If an application does not
pass a check, it will drop out as an exception. That exception will need to be manually checked
by a Life Identity and Service Officer (LISO) to ensure the applicant is entitled to a New Zealand
passport.
Passport applications with exceptions are not sorted by the number of exceptions but will stay
in chronological order. LISOs will pick up the next application based on time spent in the system,
regardless of how many exceptions the application has.
An applicant’s photo will always be manually reviewed by a staff member.
If no exceptions are detected, a passport application will go straight into the queue to be
printed, hence why some passports can be processed quickly. All LISOs are trained to deal with
all exceptions.
The Department continually looks for ways to improve passport application processing. We take
actions daily to, for example, review demand, allocate staff to tasks, enhance productivity,
progress recruitment, or train staff.
Applicants who have lodged a standard passport application can check the status using the
onlin
e passport application status checker.
As this information may be of interest to other members of the public, the Department has
decided to proactively release a copy of this response on the DIA website. All requestor data,
including your name and contact details, will be removed prior to release. The released
response will be made available here:
https://www.dia.govt.nz/Official-Information-Act-
Requests-2.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision.
Information about how to make a complaint is available at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
freephone 0800 802 602.
Ngā mihi
Anne-Claire Wyseur
Manager Operational Policy and Official Correspondence (Acting)
Service Delivery and Operations
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