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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Help! Travelling Monday - Passport Expiry.

136 replies

invisiblebark · 21/12/2024 18:14

Planned a day trip to Europe on Monday to go to a Xmas Market.

One of the kids passports expires on 16th January.

Will he be refused entry??

I believe you need at least 3 months left on the passport?

OP posts:

LiquoriceAllsorts2 · 21/12/2024 23:15

LikeWhoUsesTypewritersAnyway · 21/12/2024 22:07

Yeah you DO usually have to present passport details when you book - so, (as I said earlier,) I can't figure out how so many people (on MUMSNET) seem to book holidays, and then discover their passport is out of date just a few DAYS before the holiday.

Show quote history

I never enter passport details on booking. You normally have to do advanced passenger information at some point or upon check in but that normally a few days/ weeks before a trip.
I travel quite a lot.

LiquoriceAllsorts2 · 21/12/2024 23:18

MolkosTeenageAngst · 21/12/2024 19:41

Thats so annoying. It wouldn’t occur to me that a passport wouldn’t be valid for travel before it had actually expired, I would have assumed it was fine to travel up to the 16th January. It is an easy mistake to make and strikes me as an odd rule that you can’t travel with under 3 months left on a passport, why give an expiry date if actually it’s not valid from another, sooner, date?

to reduce the risk of you overstaying beyond the validity date

LiquoriceAllsorts2 · 21/12/2024 23:19

dementedpixie · 21/12/2024 20:45

No you cant. When leaving the EU you need 3 months remaining so can't travel up until the expiry date.

Show quote history

You can’t enter the eu but you are allowed to travel into the uk on a British passport up to the expiry date so the poster was correct

Original poster

invisiblebark · 22/12/2024 00:35

Thanks, all. He's a great lad so handling well. He's given us a nice big list of stuff to bring back. Won't be the same without him but never mind. We go on quite a few day trips to Europe over the year so there'll be lots more opportunities for him to join us.

OP posts:

KrisAkabusi · 22/12/2024 00:36

Redrosesposies · 21/12/2024 18:52

Bloody stupid anyway. You pay for a 10 year passport so it should be valid for travel until the date it expires. There is absolutely no good reason why it isn't.

Misses the point of the thread but just pisses me off.

I know others have answered but most have missed the point. It's so that if your journey home is delayed, you're not staying in the country with an expired passport. You might think a three month window is a ridiculous margin when you can normally just get a flight the next day, but huge delays can happen. Look at this ship that was stuck with hundreds of passengers on board for four months after the planned departure!

www.bbc.com/news/articles/c8ely932d64o

SharpShaker · 22/12/2024 06:49

This reply has been deleted

This has been deleted by MNHQ for breaking our Talk Guidelines.

pantalonmagique · 22/12/2024 07:21

Trickabrick · 21/12/2024 19:19

Not sure why there’s so many posters posting multiple times on this thread just to have a go at the OP, get a life! People make mistakes all the time - overlook something they should check, mis-remember information they thought they knew etc. FWIW, I know two very capable, organised and intelligent people who fell foul of the passport rules, it happens to the best of us.

OP it’s gutting when it sounds like you’ve been having a tough time if it already. I hope the rest of you still have a lovely time.

This. I'm sorry this has happened OP. I can completely see how this could have been overlooked with everything else going on. I hope you still manage to have a lovely time.

Longma · 22/12/2024 07:41

To think that you can go somewhere with less than 3 weeks left on your passport is ridiculous

To be fair for some countries you don't need behind your return date.
The Us and Canada, for example, don't require additional time iirr.

Longma · 22/12/2024 07:50

Yeah you DO usually have to present passport details when you book

I have never had to enter passport details at the point of booking most trips. It's only at the point of check in that's it's required, or when adding advanced passenger information for some countries. Thy is is almost always after booking however.

BeRubyHedgehog · 22/12/2024 07:55