People will no longer need to have a Public Services Card to get a passport.
The decision is believed to follow the consideration of the report of the Data Protection Commissioner into the Public Services Card over the past month.
The document - published on Tuesday - is understood to note that the card can no longer be used for State services, apart from welfare.
A spokesman for the Passport Office told the Irish Mirror applications can go ahead if applicants show a Government-issued ID or attend an interview in Dublin or Cork.
However, he insisted the PSC is "an important means of identity verification for applicants".
He said: "The Passport Service is aware of the Data Protection Commission’s concerns on matters pertaining to the PSC.
"The Tánaiste directed the Passport Service to undertake a review of documents required for first time adult passport applicants with specific reference to the requirement to submit a copy of their PSC as part of their application.
"Following this review the Passport Service will continue to accept a copy of an applicant’s PSC as valid identification for first time adult applications and other applicable categories of application.
"Where the applicant does not present their PSC, an application can proceed if an applicant either presents original Government-issued photographic identification, such as a driver’s licence or a passport from another country, or attends for interview in person at the Passport Offices in Cork or Dublin.”
Members of the public repeatedly quizzed the Passport Office as to whether or not it would be accepting the DPC’s ruling.
Those would have been replied to with a statement, which said it was “currently reviewing our documentary requirements for first-time applicants”.
Up to now, the card had to be needed for all first-time applicants, or those whose passport had been expired for longer than five years.
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