CSC to upgrade U.K. passport and ID services

Computer Sciences Corp. will upgrade Britain’s passport and identification services under a 10-year contract with an estimated value of $570 million.

The managed information technology services award calls for CSC to assume responsibility for several existing legacy IT service contracts from the United Kingdom Identity and Passport Service.

IPS is an executive agency of the Home Office responsible for issuing British passports and identification cards.

CSC will upgrade the existing system to process applications for passports and ID cards. The additions include the ability for customers to apply online, improved background checking, and a new system for reporting lost and stolen passports and ID cards, company officials said. Other improvements are customer support for updating personal data and new IT and telephony systems.

Working with IPS and its other delivery partners for the National Identity Service, CSC will play a prominent role in enabling the agency to deliver the next generation of biometric passports and support the introduction of ID cards.

CSC, of Falls Church, Va., ranks No. 9 on Washington Technology’s 2008 Top 100 list of the largest federal government prime contractors.