In March, people in Prague had a significantly higher interest in issuing passports
For example, in Prague 10, according to spokesman Jan Hamrník, in March this year the office issued 1937 finished passports and received 1921 applications for their issuance. According to him, last year it was 361 and 355, but the numbers apply to pandemics. Ten years ago, which is the period of validity of passports, the Prague 10 office issued 591 documents in March and received 494 applications.
“This year’s jump is undoubtedly related to the war in Ukraine. The people themselves say that they are afraid of what may happen and want to be able to leave immediately if necessary, “commented Jana Hatalová, Secretary of the Prague 10 Office. She added that the number of issued passports and applications has been record since 2000, when the documents were issued by municipal authorities.
The March increase was also confirmed by other Prague city districts, for example in Prague 2 they received 1,390 applications in March. “We have been recording a significant increase in applications for travel documents since about 28 February. If the statistics were to express this, the number of applications for a new passport would be two to three times higher than usual, “said Andrea Zoulová, a spokeswoman for the city district. The Russian invasion of Ukraine began on February 24.
In Prague 7, according to City Hall spokesman Martin Vokuš, they issued 700 passports last month and received about 1,100 applications. “The above situation is roughly double the current year. Last March was then specific in the opposite direction. Due to strict pandemic measures, interest in travel documents was very low. About 160 applications were registered and 110 passports were issued, “said the spokesman. The town halls of Prague 4, 5 and 8 also saw a significant increase in interest in passports.