Lost or stolen passport: cancelling it, and getting home

Cancelling a missing passport is the right thing to do and it cannot be undone. That makes the order you do things in matter, particularly if the passport went missing while you are abroad.

Published 7 August 2026. Last checked against GOV.UK on 10 September 2026.

Cancel it, and understand what that means

GOV.UK's instruction is that you must cancel a lost or stolen passport as soon as possible. There is an online service for it, and you will need a phone number. A photocopy or a photograph of the passport helps, because it lets you answer the verification questions.

Cancelling is permanent. There is no route back for the document, and the record follows it: GOV.UK's travel advice warns that you will be denied entry if you try to use a passport that has been reported lost or stolen. If it turns up in a coat pocket next week, it is still cancelled, and it is still refused.

That is not an argument for delaying. A passport in circulation is a usable identity document in somebody else's hands, and the harm of that outweighs the cost of a replacement. It is an argument for looking properly first, in the places a passport actually ends up, before you press the button.

If it goes missing in the UK

• Search first, then cancel. Once cancelled, the passport is finished regardless of whether it reappears.
• Cancel online as soon as you are satisfied it is gone.
• Report a theft to the police if that is what happened, and keep the reference.
• Apply for a replacement, which is a full application at the standard fee: £102 online or £115.50 by paper form for an adult.
• Allow the usual timing, which HM Passport Office quotes as usually within 3 weeks from when it receives your documents.
• Do not book travel until the new passport is in your hands, since the number will not be the same as the old one.

If there is a booked trip in the way, the 1 week Fast Track service covers replacing a lost, stolen or damaged passport for both adults and children. It does not cover a first adult passport.

If it goes missing abroad

This is where the order changes. GOV.UK notes that if you apply for an emergency travel document, you do not need to cancel your passport at that point. So if you are stranded and need to travel, the emergency travel document is the route, and the cancellation is handled as part of it: GOV.UK says your old passport will usually be automatically cancelled once you have paid for the emergency travel document.

Report the theft to the local police as well if the passport was stolen, since insurers generally want a local report rather than one made after you get home.

What an emergency travel document is

GOV.UK describes it as a document that lets you travel from abroad if you need to travel urgently and cannot use your UK passport. The key facts:

It is a document for getting where you need to be, not a passport substitute. It is not intended for a fresh holiday and its route is fixed, so the itinerary you give when you apply is the itinerary you get.

The online route requires a valid digital passport photograph along with contact and payment details, and it is aimed at people whose previous UK passport was issued after 1 January 2006. Anybody outside that has to use the contact form instead, which takes longer.

What makes it easier before it happens

• Photograph the personal details page and keep the image somewhere you can reach without the passport, since the passport number speeds up both cancelling and replacing.
• Keep the photograph separate from the passport, which rules out the same bag.
• Note where the nearest British embassy, high commission or consulate is for the country you are visiting.
• Check your travel insurance covers document replacement, and what it needs from you: a police report, usually, filed locally.
• Carry the passport only when you need it, and leave it secured otherwise.

Getting help

HM Passport Office runs the Passport Adviceline on 0300 222 0000, or +44 (0)300 222 0000 from outside the UK, open Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm and 9am to 5:30pm at weekends and on UK bank holidays. There is a webchat and an online enquiry form as well, with a stated reply time of 72 hours for general advice. If you are abroad and stuck, contact the nearest British embassy, high commission or consulate rather than waiting on an email.