Minister Ablonczy Celebrates Canada’s Simplified Passport Renewal Initiative

Minister Ablonczy and J. Ian Burchett, Canada’s consul general in Hong Kong, present Law Kok Yu with his renewed Canadian passport

January 24, 2013 - Hong Kong - The Honourable Diane Ablonczy, Minister of State of Foreign Affairs (Americas and Consular Affairs), and J. Ian Burchett, Canada’s consul general in Hong Kong, present Law Kok Yu with his renewed Canadian passport, which was received quickly and efficiently thanks to Passport Canada’s new simplified renewal process.

The simplified renewal process was first launched as a pilot for Canadian missions abroad in October 2012 and is now being implemented  across the globe. The process gives Canadians living abroad a new level of convenience for renewing their passports while maintaining the security and integrity of these documents. The simplified renewal process uses a shorter, simpler application form and eliminates the need for proof of citizenship, a guarantor, and additional supporting identification.

In 2012, the Canadian mission in Hong Kong issued over 23,000 passports, the most passports issued of any Canadian mission abroad.

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