The Institute of Registries and Notaries (IRN) has assured that the “passport issuance system is operational” following concerns raised by the Union of Registry and Notary Workers (STRN) in late July about ongoing technical issues affecting the issuance of urgent documents like the Portuguese Electronic Passport (PEP) during the holiday period.
The IRN reported 46,971 passport applications nationwide in July.
“During the summer months, there is typically an increase in demand for passport services, and in the last weeks of July, during periods of peak activity, the passport issuance system experienced some slowdowns, which occasionally affected service times for users and the service’s response capacity,” the institute explained.
The IRN also stated that it has “a dedicated technical team monitoring the system to ensure service stability.”
The union had noted that registries in Arruda dos Vinhos and Caldas da Rainha reported critical system failures, a situation “reflective of a nationwide reality.”
According to the STRN, the “technological failures,” which “severely impact the issuance of urgent documents such as the PEP,” are exacerbated “during this critical holiday period” due to “increased demand” and “staff shortages.”
As a result, the STRN has reiterated its call for the Government to take “urgent measures to definitively resolve the computer problems,” which the union claims have persisted for weeks.
