Dutch expats have called on the government to speed up the process of digitalising passport applications to spare them long and costly trips to their embassies.

The problem has been exacerbated in recent years by the decision to close smaller consulates in order to cut costs, so that Dutch citizens face long round trips to the capital city to renew their passports.

“We are one of the most advanced countries in the world when it comes to digitalisation, so why are we lagging so far behind behind in issuing passports abroad?” Antoinetta Sgherzi, chair of Stichting Goed, which campaigns on behalf of Dutch residents abroad, told AD.nl.

Expats are urging the government to make the issue a priority ahead of the annual ambassadors’ conference in The Hague, which begins on January 28.

Miranda Jansen, who lives near Milan, told AD she had tried three times in the last year to renew her passport when the Dutch embassy’s travelling roadshow came to Milan, in order to avoid a 1400-kilometre round trip to Rome.

Lottery

“They can only deal with 63 people each time and you have to book ahead online,” she said.

“Every time I tried to make an appointment the system crashed, and after that there were no places left.”

Another man in his sixties, who lives in Spain, said his passport had expired last year, leaving him unable to access basic services such as a bank account.

“I withdrew all my money from my account and now I pay for my gas and electricity in cash,” he told the newspaper. “The tenants in my apartment can’t pay me via the bank either.”

Sgherzi called for the ambassadors to press the government to modernise the system and come up with temporary solutions in the meantime, such as pop-up embassies in areas with large numbers of expats.

“Applying for a passport shouldn’t be a lottery where you need to be lucky to secure an appointment,” she said.