A West Lothian man is worried he will miss out on a dream £7,000 holiday with his fiancée after waiting four months to receive a new passport.
James Cavan, 30, lost his passport when he moved house and sent off for a new one on May 7 - well in advance of his holiday on September 7 but as the getaway gets closer he is afraid it won't arrive in time.
The couple have already missed out on the holiday due to Covid travel restrictions and were looking forward to the dream trip but now fear it won't go ahead.
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James and fiancée Siobhan Ford are set to jet off to Mauritius next month. But without the replacement passport the couple miight have to remain at home in Livingston instead of jetting off for the luxury trip.
The shift manager told the Scottish Sun how he chased the passport office every few weeks to check on its progress and was repeatedly reassured that it was being processed and handled.
But it took until August 16 for James to realise something wasn't right after waiting nearly 15 weeks for no response.
He called the passport office only to discover that they were missing a lost passport number they needed BEFORE they could issue a new passport to him - after initially being told that they couldn't find his application at all.
James was left furious after having asked numerous times if they had all the information they required.
And to add insult to injury, he was then told he couldn't apply to have it fast-tracked until he was within two weeks of his travel date - and even then it still might not arrive on time.
Speaking to the Scottish Sun he said: “I applied on the 7th of May for my new passport, which was five months before the holiday.
“When I called the other day I asked if I could have it expedited and I was told no because I would have to wait two weeks before my travel day.
“I then phoned back within the two week window and was told that they were happy to put it on to the fast-track team but there was no guarantee that I would get it on time.
“That will have been 18 weeks I’ll have waited if it doesn’t show up - I think everyone can agree that is a joke.
“There’s definitely been a miscommunication somewhere - I’ve been asking them repeatedly if they needed anything and they said no they have all the information to process it.
James and Siobhan had looked forward to the holiday for months after they couldn’t get away anywhere for a few years because of the pandemic.
And he’s no hope of a refund if they can’t fly out. The stressful ordeal has led to him raising a complaint with the Home Office.
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James added: “I’m not demanding that they stop everything and deal with it, I just want assurances that I’ll get it for my holiday.
“Because at this rate I won’t be going. The holiday is for me and my fiancée and it cost a sizeable amount.
“If I left it super last minute then fair enough but I’m applying super early and those who applied after me have received one no problem.”
The Passport Office said: “We apologise for the delay in issuing this passport. This application has now been prioritised and will be processed as soon as possible.”
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