To travel out of the UK without my passport being checked once

[funnyface31]

Just back from a girls weekend and not once was my passport checked leaving. We didn't have hold bags so it was just boarding passes until the gate.

It has made me think how relaxed security is and also how scary it is too!

I find that hard to believe to be honest. If you flew.

Freedom of movement is a fundamental right in the EU, it is a core principle, enshrined in the EU treaties, which works in parallel with the other three basic freedoms in the single market: freedom of goods, capital and services.

Anyway, security is not relaxed, it is largely intelligence led meaning that your average Joe business or holiday traveller are not harassed everytime they cross a border.

Really? Where did you go?

It happened believe me. If you have carry on bag nobody looks at your passport until you go to the gate. The guy was only interested in the boarding pass.

I've never known this. Even when travelling in the UK. Not once.

So they looked at it when you got to the gate?

I travel on holiday every year and it's ever happened to us as a family or with friends, hence the thread.

I flew out to Spain and they checked coming back.

Should say never happened as a family. Passports always been checked.

Same happened when I travelled back from Belfast a few weeks ago. Checked my boarding pass only. I offered both at the gate but was told only the boarding pass was needed.

The thing is, generally speaking, countries aren't particularly interested in who is leaving the country. They are more interested in who is coming in. So passport/immigration focuses on those coming in.

The passport checks done by airlines on departure are often more because if you are travelling to a country where you do not have permission to go (no visa etc), the airline gets fined if you are deported on arrival.

School trip, I take it? Or some sort of girls team sports tour?

What age were the girls? Did yours get overlooked because you weren't included in some group check?

That would be wrong, but perhaps not that high risk if everyone else was properly included. Exit checks are often cursory, but I'd have expected more care on entry (even within EU as UK is not in Schengen).

And exploiting a travelling group of girls probably isn't that effective a way for terrorists, but I suppose might be attractive for contraband.

Running

You do realise that Belfast is part of the UK?

Did i imagine seeing in the news that they were going to start checking everyones passports on departure?

A 30th birthday consisting of 6 women.

But you wouldn't have been able to get the boarding pass without your passport - the airline asks for that now when you buy the tickets.

Running - errr you were on an internal flight, of course you didn't need your passport!

I do, Pan. Sorry. I was just sharing a story.

Did you fly? You must have shown photo ID or had your passport scanned by a machine to get on a plane even if it was within the same country.

You need photographic ID Titchy. Passport, license, ID card etc but they weren't checked.

sounds normal to me, we usually get checked when arriving at destination.
it is about to change though, has been announced last couple of weeks.

Titchy, the ticket was purchased online and passport details entered days before to print pass.

Maybe I just assumed that my passport would be looked at before I boarded the plane.

duh
domestic flight. of course you weren't checked

Border control going into the rest of Europe is slack. We flew to Portugal with onward flights out of Europe. They were checked only then. Last year my non EU husband went from UK to France without a single check, then onwards, still nothing. Coming back was a different story, in France they asked why he hadn't been checked/stamped he said "you tell me". The customs officer said they often concentrate on the riskier borders. Leaving from UK or from France is not a priority. Coming back, that's different.

mousmous I think you need to open a geography textbook, Spain isn't part of the UK and therefore not a domestic flight.

I wouldn't leave my passport at home if I was flying in the UK - I know someone who went by ferry to Belfast and couldn't get his flight home. You usually need it for ID.

The government is currently changing the rules on this but was delaying until after the Easter holidays to avoid chaos.

I am guessing you were checked coming back into the UK?

Most airlines do look at your passport, they require photo ID. I needed it with Flybe last week for flights to and from the Channel Islands (you don't need it for the ferry as CI aren't considered to be abroad). But maybe if they are busy they don't always bother, but that's their own check, nothing to do with the government.

I think BA ask for photo ID for internal flights. However, although we've always taken it for flights to and from Scotland it's never been checked. However, they always ask to see your boarding pass again when you board the plane, I don't know if that's security or because they think you're too thick to work out where your seat is. Flybe did check the passports at the gate, but didn't ask to see boarding passes again when getting on the plane. It's swings and roundabouts.