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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Aibu to remind you all to check your passports

144 replies

Theimpossiblegirl · 18/04/2018 08:28

Just that really. Every year we have the panic as holidays draw near and people realise they have expired.
I just renewed mine and dds but hadn't realised mine needed doing until I checked.
Online is cheaper now too.
If posting this saves just one person getting to that awful panic of trying to get it done last minute I'll be happy. :)

OP posts:
Original poster
Theimpossiblegirl · 19/04/2018 20:40

Yes, end of March. Online is cheaper than postal.

With the EHIC, we have been advised to carry them on us in case something happens when out and about. There may not be time to get documentation from the hotel.

OP posts:
CaveMum · 19/04/2018 20:43

On a related topic don’t forget that photocard driving licences also have an expiry date on them. It’s a fine of up to £1,000 if you are caught driving with an out of date card.

Fintress · 19/04/2018 21:14

In your colleague's defence, the paper ones lasted until your 70th birthday. I was unpleasantly surprised when I had to pay to renew my photo driving licence after ten years in my new house...

I had to replace my lost driving licence, did it online and gave my passport number, it links to the photo. Imagine my horror when I got my new licence with a horrific passport photo from 7 years ago rather than my more recent passport photo. Not only that, it has to be renewed in 3 years as my photo will be out of date. Ridiculous.

Rememory · 19/04/2018 21:29

How long before you travel do you apply for an ESTA? Also, ETA for Canada ... off to google I go!

HelpTheTigers · 19/04/2018 21:37

Thanks OP, I've just checked and found that although I had assumed that I'd need to renew my passport, I don't have to do this as my holiday destination doesn't require additional months unexpired after my return date. If you hadn't reminded me and I hadn't read the threat, I would have renewed my passport unnecessarily.
Thanks for the EHIC reminder too as I've just sorted that on line.
Happy holidays Wine Grin

thenightsky · 19/04/2018 21:43

Thanks for the thread OP.

Just checked ours and DS's health card has run out and we go away in three weeks!

Also, his passport runs out next Feb and we are supposed to be going away in December to a place that needs six months!

HelpTheTigers · 19/04/2018 21:46

Read the threat? Read the thread ffs! Were you threatening us to get our passports renewed OP? If so, it worked!

cassgate · 19/04/2018 21:49

For ESTA you should do at least 72 hours before travel as it can take that long to get a response. Dh and I did them in Jan for a trip in feb and it took 3 days to be approved. I have just renewed my passport so had to do mine and the dc’s today for our summer holiday and it was approved within a couple of hours.

dollydee · 19/04/2018 21:54

Help The Tigers

I'm sure some airlines still have a 6 months rule - i.e. Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months, even if the country you are going to doesn't insist on this.

dementedpixie · 19/04/2018 21:58

If you renew your passport a bit early then they add up to 9 months onto the new passport so you don't lose out

HelpTheTigers · 19/04/2018 22:40

Thanks for the heads-up dolly, I hadn't thought about that. I'll check it out. Bugger.

BitOutOfPractice · 19/04/2018 23:01

Skiiltan I doubt very much if that's been decided yet! They can't decide anything so far!!

tallbirduk · 19/04/2018 23:41

Apparently if you are a UK citizen you don’t need your passport to be valid for any longer than your trip if you are going to the USA. Which is a surprise (but a relief because we are off to NY in May & DS1’s passport expires in August.....) .

Uniglo18 · 20/04/2018 00:41

tallbirduk are you sure about this? Have you got it in writing? I wouldn't rely on apparently and word of mouth. If you're going to NY during May, it's not too late to get a new passport on a quick turn around. They do emergency ones within a few days, I'd hate for you to go to the airport and be turned away. It happened to someone I know and they were only going to spain.

GeekyBlinders · 20/04/2018 06:33

Yes that's what I thought after checking the US and U.K. passport/visa websites, but I called my airline to double check and they said they'd refuse to let me board with only 3 months left. So definitely check with the airline.

2ManyChoices · 20/04/2018 07:20

No OP you are NBU, I booked some flights to Italy for march 25th, got passports out to check in on the 15th and mine and 10yo DD had expired in Feb. Yay.

Masterbuilders · 20/04/2018 07:32

The 6 month rule is a myth for a lot of countries and quite often worryingly staff and travel agents don’t even know. Airlines should be following FCO advice. Legally you are able to board with less than six months for certain countries. Like the EU, USA.

Many airlines have been in the news having to compensate because they’ve wrongfully denied boarding.

mommybunny · 20/04/2018 08:15

To the PP who asked how someone could miss a passport expiry, it is so easily done. I don’t forget my own renewal as I only have one (foreign) passport and it renews every year there is a “milestone“ birthday iyswim. As it is an adult passport I can do it online and it takes a couple of weeks.

But my DCs’ are a different matter. They have dual citizenship and their cycles for both countries are still every 5 years and I didn’t get each child’s first one at the same time. Their U.K. passports are pretty easy to renew (didn’t stop me getting caught out once with an expired passport for DS when we went to Portugal) but their other ones require a trip to London and a morning wasted at the embassy, so I only do it if I absolutely have to.

And on the 6 month rule, even for travel within the EU ferry operators require at least 6 months’ validity. Luckily when my DD was taking a school trip to France the school gave me enough notice that I had time to renew her passport, as it wouldn’t have had sufficient validity if I hadn’t.

Sorry if I’m being thick, and not wishing to hijack the thread, but does anyone know what the purpose of the 6 month rule is?

BarbaraofSevillle · 20/04/2018 08:39

I pointed out that everyone knew you had to have more than 6 months on your passport to leave the EU - he said this wasn't common knowledge

It's not common knowledge, because it's not true. None of the none EU countries picked at random from the foreign office website that people regularly holiday in require passport validity beyond the end of the trip.

Canada
Cuba
Dominican Republic (as a tourist)
Mexico
USA

Most useful piece of advice is that you can renew your passport 9 months before the expiry date without losing any time. We did ours one January and they were back within a week. Saves the early summer panic when 'everyone' notices that their passport is about to expire and turnround times grow massively.

Its a good idea to keep a list of these things. As well as passports, there's EHICs, driving licence photocards, car tax, insurance, MOT, house insurance, all very important and easy to forget if you don't keep on top of things. I have a spreadsheet with a to do list in that I look at once a month on payday when I check our bank accounts and credit cards. Other people use various phone calendars and apps.

Not the most exciting thing to do, but part of being an adult and the consequences of not keeping on top of things can be anything from annoying to quite devastating if your house insurance runs out and you have a fire, for example, or you lose your holiday because your passport has expired.

BarbaraofSevillle · 20/04/2018 08:45

And on the 6 month rule, even for travel within the EU ferry operators require at least 6 months’ validity

Do they? Please link to the T&Cs where it says this. For this to be true and enforceable, there would have to be clear information that pops up when booking, and it just doesn't

Sounds like a lot of airlines and ferry operators are staffed by people who make up rules in their heads and try to enforce them without any justification.

hellokittymania · 20/04/2018 08:56

Not just the date, but also the pages left. Because I travel in Asia quite a lot, my passport fill up very quickly. I've had my current one for six years, but it only has maybe two pages left. It won't expire until 2023, but I will have to renew it soon. Visas for Vietnam Cambodia, Laos, etc. take up a full page. The passport I had before that, only lasted for years. It was completely full. So make sure you have enough space for stamps and vases as well. Sorry, using dictation, visas not vases.

Kannet · 20/04/2018 09:00

I set a reminder on our family calendar 9/6/3 months before each passport expires. Saves panic

Masterbuilders · 20/04/2018 09:01

Which is why airlines and holiday companies have been paying out when reusing someone boarding when legally they were able to board. If a company refuses boarding you can claim back your costs. It’s such a worry that the people in travel still don’t understand the legal requirements and fuel the 6 month myth. Which is only applicable to some countries and non EU passports.

FWIW we have travelled plenty of times including ferry with passports under 6 months. There are 6 of us. I wasn’t going to renew when legally I didn’t have to. Especially when the kids were coming up to an adult passport. Pay once to pay again? No thanks.

BitOutOfPractice · 20/04/2018 09:33

And on the 6 month rule, even for travel within the EU ferry operators require at least 6 months’ validity

No they don't. Have travelled on may ferries with months (even weeks!) left on passport. Are you sure that wasn't a "rule" imposed by the school for the trip Mommybunny?

Travellingmamma · 20/04/2018 13:44

Thanks for this! We are off to Cape Verde in July, Googled and it states passports next to be valid for 6 months from date of entry, which means my 4yo’s passport falls 9 days short. Don’t know how strict they are and don’t want to find out! Renewal application submitted today Smile It wouldn’t really have crossed my mind as I knew it expired 2019, so very glad you mentioned it!

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