Page 26 | Child’s passport only has 2 months on it. Flying to Spain on Saturday!

olympicsrock · 2022-02-15T10:39:01+00:00

Help!!! Just discovered that my 10 year old son’s passport only has 2 months left on it. We have flights booked to go to Spain on Saturday. . Has anyone travelled to Spain on this situation recently? What happened?? Were you refused permission to board the plane? I have phoned the passport office . There is absolutely no way to get a passport for him in the next 10 days as need to do face to face for child renewal , no appointments til next week abs then a week to deliver by post.

Namechangehereandnow · 15/02/2022 11:27

The child will literally NOT be allowed on the plane. No leeway, no give and take.

ENoeuf · 15/02/2022 11:25

I would absolutely try to get an appointment somewhere or if not do the online week one.

Original poster

olympicsrock · 15/02/2022 11:24

Not rude just very stressed having found out that our family holiday is up shit creek.
Very difficult situation. I’ve read the you gov website and phoned the passport office. Just clutching at straws and wanting personal experience of whether it would be worth attempting to travel on the understanding that two of us would then travel home if he was refused entry ( which is know is highly probable)

Sounds like they do check that the passport has enough time on it from these experiences. Bloody brexit

OP posts:

Tittyfilarious81 · 15/02/2022 11:21

*passport

Tittyfilarious81 · 15/02/2022 11:21

When I last went to Majorca the family in front of us handed in passports to be checked and there was not the required minimum on the child's passy and they were turned away and told they could not board the plane

katedan · 15/02/2022 11:20

This happened to me 10 years ago on my sons passport, we had to make an emergency appointment at the passport office in London. Dh and my daughters went ahead to Tenerife and me and my son went the next day. It was a nightmare but all done within 48 hours so if you get emergency appt today or tomorrow in London you could still make your flight on Saturday. Good luck.

feemcgee · 15/02/2022 11:20

OP, I'm so sorry, you must be stressing out! A similar thing happened to us the summer before lockdown, we discovered our DS's passport was out of date, a week before we went to Ibiza. Child renewals are different for adults so I had to get an appointment. Got one in Liverpool the next morning, so got his photos taken and the form filled out and drove down from Glasgow. The new passport arrived a few days before we left. Not sure if it will be different due to covid restrictions, but absolutely worth a try. All the very best xxx

Lou98 · 15/02/2022 11:19

This happened to my partner's cousin (in 2019 so pre covid). She never realised her passport had less than 3 months. It never flagged at the airport and they got there but at the other side they wouldn't let her through and she had to come straight back to the UK.

Even if they miss it at the airport here, it's extremely unlikely that would happen twice both in the UK and entering Spain.

Could you postpone the holiday?

Lockheart · 15/02/2022 11:19

@Ciaram55

So sorry Op. Wish there was a way out for you. I really don't understand why a passport shoudn't be valid until it actually expires.

It's because countries don't want people overstaying their welcome because they "forgot" their passport expired and now have to stay in their new country until it's sorted. It's also in case of emergency scenarios like being hospitalised or a volcano in Iceland kicking off (for example). It means there is a sufficient cushion of validity to enable people to travel home.

MsMarch · 15/02/2022 11:17

@Ciaram55

So sorry Op. Wish there was a way out for you. I really don't understand why a passport shoudn't be valid until it actually expires.

I think it's to do with unexpected travel delays? ie, if for some reason, you have to stay - eg you are sick and in an accident - your passport has to be valid. But I could be wrong.

Hangingwithmygnomies · 15/02/2022 11:16

@Ratched

You will be refused boarding. I am in Spain at the moment, left UK last Friday and a woman in front of me was denied boarding as she had 2months 3 weeks left to 4un on her passport (as she told anyone who would listen). There are no exceptions. As I understand it, if the airline let you fly, you would be denied entry to Spain, sent straight home and the airline would be fined. Disclaimer: not sure on the airline being fined, but the woman on the check-in desk was saying this.

Do not just turn up,,they will send you packing.

Yes absolutely true the airline get fined (I work in aviation).

OP your son will be denied boarding. On the very highly unlikely chance the boarding staff do not notice, you could get to Spain but then immigration will refuse you entry.

MsMarch · 15/02/2022 11:15

@Ratched

You will be refused boarding. I am in Spain at the moment, left UK last Friday and a woman in front of me was denied boarding as she had 2months 3 weeks left to 4un on her passport (as she told anyone who would listen). There are no exceptions. As I understand it, if the airline let you fly, you would be denied entry to Spain, sent straight home and the airline would be fined. Disclaimer: not sure on the airline being fined, but the woman on the check-in desk was saying this.

Do not just turn up,,they will send you packing.

I don't think the airline gets fined so much as they have to fly you back to England, at their expense. Travelling alone with DD once to a country that requires both parents permission and my form was correct, but done differently to what the BA woman had seen before. She explained that the airline will be held responsible and would be responsible for me and DD being returned to England if my documents were considered insufficient. (incidentally, by this time, we'd checked in, gone through border control etc. It was at the gate that someone got concerned because she'd never seen the documents presented this way).

SheWolfOFFrancee · 15/02/2022 11:13

Happened last year to my DS. His dad had is passport still from their last abroad holiday and hadn’t bothered to check so when they got to the airport Ds was refused boarding.

My DH (Ds stepdad) had to drive to the airport to get Ds as his dad and his gf & kids still wanted to go on the holiday. PS before anyone gets shirty Exs gf and kids 1000% shouldn’t have given up holiday not their fault ex is an idiot

FajitaBonita · 15/02/2022 11:13

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AchillesPoirot · 15/02/2022 11:13

I would try for a face to face appt at another passport office if you can

Sammysquiz · 15/02/2022 11:12

Christ, you’re rude. I commented on your thread because I know for a fact that he’d be refused entry, and it’s totally irrelevant how many anecdotal posts you get from people saying they were turned away.

I’m sorry he won’t get to travel, but don’t take it out on us.

Ciaram55 · 15/02/2022 11:12

So sorry Op. Wish there was a way out for you. I really don't understand why a passport shoudn't be valid until it actually expires.

ENoeuf · 15/02/2022 11:11

We found out the night before flying that dcs passport had expired so I booked a flight to NI office from Midlands for the following week and we changed from a fortnight to ten days I think. Didn’t try despite dh wanting to just turn up!

Ratched · 15/02/2022 11:11

You will be refused boarding.
I am in Spain at the moment, left UK last Friday and a woman in front of me was denied boarding as she had 2months 3 weeks left to 4un on her passport (as she told anyone who would listen).
There are no exceptions. As I understand it, if the airline let you fly, you would be denied entry to Spain, sent straight home and the airline would be fined.
Disclaimer: not sure on the airline being fined, but the woman on the check-in desk was saying this.

Do not just turn up,,they will send you packing.

FabulouslyFab · 15/02/2022 11:10

Vassos on the Chris Evans radio show had his family refused on a flight to Tenerife for this reason this morning!
Sorry OP.

BlingLoving · 15/02/2022 11:09

@olympicsrock

Online premium is adults only Sammy’s quiz and Triffid - please don’t comment further. I can read. I understand the rules. I am wondering if anyone has actually been in this situation and what happened .

This was admittedly pre-covid, but a friend in a similar situation got a face to face appointment in another city for her and her DC. Cost them a fortune in train tickets to travel to, I think, Manchester for a day, but they got the emergency passport and were able to go on holiday. Perhaps that's an option for you?

Lockheart · 15/02/2022 11:09

@olympicsrock

Online premium is adults only Sammy’s quiz and Triffid - please don’t comment further. I can read. I understand the rules. I am wondering if anyone has actually been in this situation and what happened .

They're telling you what will happen, I'm afraid. If you're looking for anecdotes about how someone managed to sneak through under the radar and it was all fine then I think you will be looking for a while. It's gutting, I know, but if there is no way to get him a passport before Saturday then your energy would be better spent rearranging if at all possible.

ENoeuf · 15/02/2022 11:09

Sorry I meant fast track which is within a week and worth a punt?

GiltEdges · 15/02/2022 11:09

@olympicsrock

Online premium is adults only Sammy’s quiz and Triffid - please don’t comment further. I can read. I understand the rules. I am wondering if anyone has actually been in this situation and what happened .

But why are you wondering this? There’s only one thing that can happen i.e. your child won’t be allowed to board the plane. No one on Mumsnet can advise you any differently than that, because that’s the law and border officials aren’t in the habit of making exceptions to the law.

Triffid1 · 15/02/2022 11:08

@Nutellanjam

Hi This happened to a family member (child ) last month, although they didn’t realize and got to departure gate and were refused boarding. Hope you can sort it out before

This is what happens. I know you don't want me to comment further but I really don't understand the magical thinking here. Are you hoping someone will come along and say, don't worry, it was all fine? But I'll leave now. It is SHIT when a passport expires unexpectedly - we had to do an emergency dash to get one for DD last year (although we had a bit more time than you) and it was frustrating as hell. SO I feel your pain. But it won't change the outcome.