Home Office backs anti-fraud passport changes

by David Tiltman Marketing 01-Feb-06

The Home Office is to run a campaign highlighting changes to the way passport applications are handled.

Details of the activity are yet to be finalised, but it is expected to
include an advertising campaign that will break later this year.

The drive is being handled through the COI, which has begun contacting

agencies ahead of a pitch.

The overhaul of the passport-application process is intended to combat
identity fraud. From the end of 2006 all first-time adult applicants
will have to attend an interview to confirm that they are who they claim
to be. First-time applications account for about 75% of passport
fraud.

The UK Passport Service is in the process of setting up a national
network of offices to handle interviews with up to 600,000 first-time
applicants a year.

Other changes to the system include the introduction of biometric
passports, which store the facial image of the holder on a microchip.
There are also plans to store fingerprint data, and iris scans are under
consideration.

As a result of the additional security measures, the cost of a passport
will rise. The campaign is also intended to inform the public that
because of the changes, it will now take longer to apply.

A budget for the activity has not been disclosed.