'Absolutely insane': A B.C. man describes his 11-month wait for a passport
When Bill Ferguson strolled into a Service Canada office in B.C. to renew his passport last August, he anticipated a quick, stress-free process. Turns out, it’s been anything but.
Ferguson was told that the New Westminster location does not do passports or even help with the application process.
He says he then went to a local post office to fill out the paperwork and send it off.
Ferguson admits his first attempt was unsuccessful due to an error he made. However he quickly re-sent all required documents including his expired passport.
Ferguson claims, that package was lost by Canada Post, forcing him to fill out a lost passport application.
"Another month goes by and they said, Oh no this won't do, since it was an expired passport anyway. It's a moot point, you need to re-apply all over again,” Ferguson said.
After a third attempt, Ferguson says he received confirmation that Service Canada had received the application on Feb. 16.
He says he contacted them again in March and was told he should be able to pick it up in Surrey in a few weeks.
But that never happened.
“In May, I got fed up and went to my MP, they said let us look after it and try and contact them,” Ferguson said.
However, as of Saturday, Ferguson is still a man without a passport.
"I never do anything, I never go anywhere, I never have any fun,"
"I've never been so frustrated in my entire life, I feel like gouging my own eyes out,” Ferguson said.
While Ferguson chose the mail route, thousands of others have braved lengthy lines, even waiting for days at a time just to get inside a passport office.
This week in Surrey, new triage measures were put in place aimed at alleviating the long lines and frustration. Those with trips within 48 hours are brought straight inside.
Ferguson however, says he’s not willing to risk booking a trip without already having a passport.
“It puts a kibosh on a trip to the U.S. or overseas that’s for sure,” Ferguson said
"I don't know what the solution is, It's just absolutely insane."
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