HM Passport Office received 7,110,404 passport applications in 2025, about 19,481 a day, and about 1 in 5 passports it issued were held up while it asked the applicant for more information. January is the busiest month, and applications from British people abroad reached a record 300,985 in the first three months of 2026.
Every figure is from the Home Office's own data: Home Office: Passports and citizenship data, April to June 2026 (Migration transparency data, published 27 August 2026) (spreadsheet), read on 3 November 2026. Shares and totals are worked out from its tables. Free to quote with a link to the Home Office data and this page.
| Year | Passport applications | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 6,946,504 | |
| 2016 | 7,091,695 | +2% |
| 2017 | 6,931,924 | -2% |
| 2018 | 6,827,805 | -2% |
| 2019 | 6,865,638 | +1% |
| 2020 | 4,037,168 | -41% |
| 2021 | 4,904,225 | +21% |
| 2022 | 8,355,287 | +70% |
| 2023 | 7,924,177 | -5% |
| 2024 | 7,800,233 | -2% |
| 2025 | 7,110,404 | -9% |
2020 and 2021 fell because of the pandemic; 2022 to 2024 were the catch-up. In the first half of 2026 there were 4,408,621 applications, against 4,437,888 in the first half of 2025. Source: table PCCR_01.
| Quarter | Passports issued (UK applications) | Issued after a request for more information | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Q1 | 2,035,154 | 364,345 | 18% |
| 2025 Q2 | 1,787,480 | 344,332 | 19% |
| 2025 Q3 | 1,296,655 | 265,691 | 20% |
| 2025 Q4 | 1,027,651 | 228,890 | 22% |
| 2026 Q2 | 1,772,052 | 353,236 | 20% |
The Home Office doesn't break these down by reason. Missing documents, a countersignatory to check and a photo that doesn't meet the rules can each mean a request for more information. Source: table PCCR_03.
| Quarter | Overseas applications |
|---|---|
| 2025 Q1 | 151,504 |
| 2025 Q2 | 138,748 |
| 2025 Q3 | 115,619 |
| 2025 Q4 | 104,173 |
| 2026 Q1 | 300,985 |
| 2026 Q2 | 190,795 |
The previous high was 294,172 in 2020 Q3. Source: table PCCR_02. British people abroad apply online and add their own digital photo: see UK passport photo code problems.
297,813 British citizenship applications were received in 2025, and 92,851 in January to March 2026, the highest quarter in the table, which starts in late 2021. Each new citizen's first British passport needs a photo too. Source: table PCCR_06.
The strictest passport photo rules by country: 45 countries' rules scored on glasses, head coverings, ears, head size, background and file size.
Picproved checks a UK passport photo against GOV.UK's rules before you add it, so the photo isn't the reason your application waits. HM Passport Office still makes the final decision. Make a UK passport photo
