To wonder if I'm going to have issues with my passport?

[PinataHeeHaw]

I'm travelling to Spain in July. My passport was issued April 2015 and expires November this year.

Current rules say you must be returning to the UK within 3 months of the expiry date of your passport, which is fine, but also say that your passport should have an issue date of less than ten years before the date of travel. That means I'll be three months outside of these rules. Getting a new passport is almost £100. I'm going to have to get a new passport aren't I, even though it doesn't officially expire until November?

Yes you are.

Yes.

You need a new passport.

Well yes but you would have got a new one anyway, as yours expired this year, so it’s only bringing forward the cost a bit.

Yes you are. If it was issued in April '15 then for Europe it effectively expired in April 2025 as the months they added on in 2015 are no longer valid. My son's passport was issued in April 2015 and expired January 2026 according to the document but he was denied boarding to go to Norway.

Yes apply for a new one now.

For the EU the effective date it expires is 10 years after the date of issue rather than any expiry date stated in the passport.

you need a new passport now
i know it’s expensive but it’s then done - I did mine recently online and it took a week

Yes you are - and I'd go for the fastest service available if I were you, because we're now in the busiest time of year at the passport offices.

Yes you are - apply asap for a new one. I renewed recently and it only took a week. To be on the safe side if I were you I’d pay for the fast track service.

You need a new passport.

8 day turnaround recently. OP has plenty of time

It’s already expired, so yes you need a new one now!

And yet every year we get threads on here by people who sent off for a new passport at least 2 months in advance, are flying in a xouple of days and it hasn't arrived.

Officially your passport has expired.

You do need a new passport but you do have plenty of time. That being said I wouldn't delay but you don't need to pay for the express service.

I recently applied for mine and this was the timeline (and mine had a name change).
30th April - applied online and sent documents to post office same day.
13th May - new passport arrived in the post.

So just under 2 weeks.

Yes, and this has been the subject of extensive media coverage since brexit.

Yes, the last date you could have travelled on your current passport would have been in January this year.

Do we? Don’t recall any, just people panicking because they’ve realised very late in the day. Maybe you can link some though

There are threads every year where people are waiting on passports at the last minute or they've realised last minute that it's expired

Yeah I know. That’s what I said.

Don’t recall any that sent off months in advance though. The OP does not need to pay extra

But I used it in April.

Sorry I should have said date you could have travelled to Europe was January. Some countries outside of Europe will recognise the extra months.

Your passport expired in January for travel to Europe. It's only valid for 10 years and you need 3 clear months remaining on it

It has been clarified the two rules are actually separate.
It has to be less than 10 years from issue, and have three months from expiry for travel in Europe. Thats why you could travel in April, but not now.

Do it now, I applied early April and it was only approved today. My documents were received on the 22nd April, I wouldn’t be hanging about.

Edited to add: It was approved today, hasn’t been printed or posted yet, so maybe another week or so to wait.