PASSPORT applications are expected to soar this year with many Brits looking to holiday abroad.
However, one simple mistake on a passport application has already left over a million people out of pocket.
An investigation by MoneySavingExpert found that more than a million people still applied for a passport in person, despite this being £9.50 more than a digital application.
According to the money experts, 1,054,943 Brits applied for their passport using a paper form.
These applications include anyone applying for their first passport, renewing an old passport, changing their name (or other personal details), or applying for a passport for a child.
Brits who want to apply via the post will now be paying an extra £10.50 after passport application fees rose yesterday.
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Applying in person through the Post Office has risen from £85 to £93 for adults.
For children the application fee has shot up to £64 from £58.50.
Meanwhile standard online applications shot up from £75.50 to £82.50 – increasing by £7.
New passports for children also increased from £49 to £53.50.
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This means a family of four could be forced to pay an extra £23 if they need to update all of their passports at the same time – paying £272 rather than £249.
Overseas standard paper applications increased from £95.50 to £104.50 for adults and £65.50 to £71.50 for children
The Home Office says the new fees will help "move towards a system that meets its costs through those who use it".
Anyone with a holiday planned for February half term are unlikely to get their passport back if they need a new one unless paying extra for a fast-track passport renewal.
Speaking to MPs last month, the Permanent Secretary at the Home Office Matthew Rycroft, said they would "need to be ready for next year to be even busier” when it came to passport renewals.
Rycroft added: “Now would be a very good time for anybody listening [to renew their passports]" and warned that there could be "an extra million” applications than normal in only the first half of this year.
And while it may seem obvious to go to the government website when renewing, there are some fake websites that can catch you out too.
Bounce's Cody warned: "These websites attempt to charge users £20 – £100 on top of the official passport fee, by offering additional ‘validation’ services."
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