Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what his Department's objectives are for the timeframe in which to accept, investigate and come to a final adjudication on Emergency Travel Document applications.

For British nationals who have held a full validity British passport within the past 10 years we aim to process Emergency Travel Documents (ETDs), ready for collection two working days after the application is made. Applications may take longer during periods of high demand, where the fee and appropriate documents have not been submitted, where the application is for a child under 16 or where an interview is required.

For those who have not previously held a British passport, or where their British passport expired more than 10 years ago, they should normally apply to HM Passport Office for a full validity passport. Applications for ETDs will only be considered under exceptional circumstances and due to their complexity, there is no set time frame for applications to be completed.