Martin Lewis' team have issued a passport warning for UK holidaymakers.
Martin Lewis' MoneySavingExpert has urged people to check that they have up to date travel documents. The financial expert gave the warning as many Brits will be planning to escape the UK later this year for some summer sun.
Newly-issued UK passports now have a blue cover, but you don't need to get a new passport straightaway – you can keep using your burgundy passport until it's due for renewal. The blue passports will only be issued when you renew or apply for a new passport.
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You can apply online, which is the cheapest option, or by paper at the Post Office. How long it takes to get from the passport office to your hands will vary so it is always worth giving yourself a bit longer than the expected time just in case of any delays or issues.
While the estimated times are the Passport Office's current targets, they're not guaranteed to arrive within that time. Sometimes it can take extra days or weeks.
| Passport type | Time taken to issue | Online cost | Postal cost |
| Adult | Up to three weeks | £82.50 | £93 |
| Adult 'Fast-track' | One week after appointment | £155 | – |
| Adult 'Premium' (there is no child equivalent one-day service) | At the appointment | £193.50 | – |
| Child | Up to three weeks | £53.50 | £64 |
| Child 'Fast-track' | One week after appointment | £126 | – |
It was stressed that the only website you'll ever need to go to is the GOV.UK website. It has options for getting your first passport, renewing an old one or getting one for your child.
People have been warned that there are several sites that try to look just like the official Government site for passports but charge people as much as £100 on top of the official passport fee. The MSE website branded these as "just expensive form-filling services".
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