British Passport Renewal - Pleasantly Surprised

[lifelongexpat]

I've just renewed my British Passport and I'm pleasantly surprised. All in all it has taken 7 working days including the day of submission. During submission they told me 4-6 weeks.

To break the process down:

Friday July 15th July - Application submitted at Kuningan City Mall and couriered to Liverpool the same day.

Monday 17th July - The fee of £114.01 was debited from my credit card.

Friday 21st July - I got an SMS from DHL informing me the new passport had been dispatched from the UK.

Monday 24th July - Delivered by DHL at Midday and an email from the application centre at 4:30pm saying I can collect at my convenience.

For once something has gone smoothly for me and not involved pain and exasperation.

 

[scouser59]

Amazing ! so they are not being done in hong kong anymore ?

Kuningan City Mall is that a consulate ?

 

[Vanhelsing]

That's very quick. For some reason I thought as a Brit if you lived in Asia UK passport renewals were processed out of Hong Kong consulate (I'm probably wrong). I was in the UK 18 months ago and decided to renew mine while there (I've dual Aust/Brit citizenship) and if memory serves me correct it took more than two weeks in country.

 

[Anglian]

Sounds promising

 

[lifelongexpat]

The High Commission in Hong Kong no longer handles passport applications.

A company called VFS handles them along with UK visa applications. They handle visa submissions for Australia, NZ, Singapore and Europe as well as the UK.

They also have branches in Surabaya and Bali.

 

[scouser59]

I have just checked the vfs website but they dont advertise the passport renewal service , I will make further enquirries here in bali ,

Its bloody fast and cheap compared to the consulate .

the consulate wont be happy losing revenue !

 

[Davita]

The guide to renew a UK passport in Indonesia is here....
https://www.passport.service.gov.uk/overseas/information/indonesia/renew/adult

 

[lifelongexpat]

You have to email [email protected] to make an appointment if you live in Jakarta or [email protected] if you live in Bali.

 

[scouser59]

great info guys ! the benoa square office is only 5 min from me .

 

[snpark]

I can confirm passport renewals done at Kun City Jakarta and process usually yes less than 7 days start to finish, the appointment is just to deliver the docs, payment by CC next day, they courier same day to UK, you get sms from DHL and you get your new passport quickly. Don't listen to them if they ask for your old one, you don't need to give it to them. BTW no UK staff interaction, just Indo's who can speak English working there, one queue for Brits, another for the rest. I have renewed / replaced several passports through VFS without any problems.

 

[Imagem]

I did mine at VFS in Benoa Square earlier this year. Took less than 2 weeks.

 

[Smallworld]

Is it the same for Uk driving licence renewal or do I have to contact DVLA by myself?

 

[lifelongexpat]

Is it the same for Uk driving licence renewal or do I have to contact DVLA by myself?

As far as I'm aware, it's no longer possible if you're a non-UK resident:

Changes to British legislation resulting in the implementation of the Second EC Directive on Driving Licences (91/439/EEC) since 1 January 1997, have required that driving licences are granted only to drivers who are resident in this country.

 

[Anglian]

DVLA in the U.K. , if you are an elderly person, say 70 years old, you will need a medical check up, I'm not sure if you can do this outside the U.K.

 

[Anglian]

As far as I'm aware, it's no longer possible if you're a non-UK resident:

Changes to British legislation resulting in the implementation of the Second EC Directive on Driving Licences (91/439/EEC) since 1 January 1997, have required that driving licences are granted only to drivers who are resident in this country.

I suppose you could lie( shock horror) and use a relatives address

 

[lifelongexpat]

I suppose you could lie( shock horror) and use a relatives address

You can do all manner of things when you tick the 'I confirm I am a UK resident' box.

Renew a drivers license, take out insurance, apply for credit/finance etc etc.
It all depends on your appetite for risk

 

[Smallworld]

I suppose you could lie( shock horror) and use a relatives address

THX Anglian, I would give a try. I don't have any international driving licence and Indonesian licence is not accepted in EU/UK. It is a bit of a shocker for me to hear that the licence cannot be prolonged just because I am "not a resident".

I met few immigrants from Pakistan who used their uncle address (outside Bradford) for cheaper car insurance. Apparently car insurance in Bradford is more expensive. Not sure if this is legal or not.

 

[lifelongexpat]

Using an address you're not resident at can invalidate your insurance. British insurance companies will look for any excuse to invalidate your policy and not pay out. However, they're more than happy to take your money when purchasing a policy.

 

[Davita]

I don't have any international driving licence and Indonesian licence is not accepted in EU/UK. It is a bit of a shocker for me to hear that the licence cannot be prolonged just because I am "not a resident".
.

In UK..... I believe anyone with a proper foreign licence can drive there for up to 12 months.

 

[Anglian]

I don't recall the car hire companies now, I think it might have been Eurocar and enquired about car hire, they totally refused an Indonesian driving licence, I tried another company and they were quite happy with it, so I expect you may have to hunt around