Travel to Greece - passport query!

[Beach198]

Due to travel to Greece tomorrow (23/7/24). Date of issue was 16.9.14 and so I am within the ten year rule. Expiry date is 16.06.25 so more than 6 months left on passport.

I think I’m fine to travel? Just having a slight panic! Any advice gratefully received.

It will expire 10 years from the start date, since we left the EU those extra months don't count

Yours will expire 16/9/24

Yes you're fine
This is a useful checking tool: https://www.tui.co.uk/passport-checker

Thanks for your response. So I am fine to travel?

I called the passport office and they said to check how many months a county requires you to have left regarding the date of issue (i.e months before the ten years runs out) but according to entry requirement for Greece, as long as you have 6 months left after your expiry date and are within the ten years of date of issue then you are fine?

I can’t find any guidance on months needed
before date of issue ends!

My first thought was that you're not ok, as you need 3 months validity (greece is a Schengen country) from the date of return based on the 10 years from issue, not the expiry date.

So yours actually expires 16.9.24 which is only less than 2 months.

The TUI calculator doesn't say this but the UK Gov website does:

Greece follows Schengen area rules. Your passport must:

• have a ‘date of issue’ less than 10 years before the date you arrive – if you renewed your passport before 1 October 2018, it may have a date of issue that is more than 10 years ago
• have an ‘expiry date’ at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave the Schengen area

There’s so much confusion over this, and even some airlines don’t know the rules. The Tui website is correct. Your passport must be less than ten years old on the date you enter the country, but you can include any extra time over the ten years in your three months validity. You’re fine to travel, but I’d check that your airline know the rules before you go.

There are passport calculators which will tell you if your passport is valid for your destination;

mybritishpassport.com/passport-validity-calculator/

You can also check specifications for your destination here (under entry requirements).

www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice

Thank you everyone! According to the passport checkers (I have done both) I am fine to travel but I am still concerned about not having three months from the date of issue expiry. I guess I’m going to have to go to the airport and keep my fingers crossed!

I called the passport office and they said to check how many months a county requires you to have left regarding the date of issue (i.e months before the ten years runs out) but according to entry requirement for Greece, as long as you have 6 months left after your expiry date and are within the ten years of date of issue then you are fine

Where did you find this information because there are 3 factual errors in that short paragraph?

The rules are here.

https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/greece/entry-requirements

Anything that anyone tells you, (because people mis-speak or mis-hear, even from official sources) or is written on any other website cannot be relied on to be correct, so ignore.

From the above:

Passport validity requirements

Greece follows Schengen area rules. Your passport must:

• have a ‘date of issue’ less than 10 years before the date you arrive – if you renewed your passport before 1 October 2018, it may have a date of issue that is more than 10 years ago

• have an ‘expiry date’ at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave the Schengen area

The above two tests are independent so the fact that your passport lasts more than 10 years between issue and expiry doesn't impact on the '3 months to expiry' rule.

Thank you - I am just confused if the date of expiry is the actual ‘expire date’ which for me is June 2025 or it would be three months before my issue expiry - which I have now passed!

thank you so much!!

@ScoobyDoesnt

You quote the correct government advice, but your comments suggest that you have misunderstood it.

@Beach198

For travelling into the Schengen area, the relevent date is the date of issue, which must be no more than 10 years previous to the arrival date (so in the case of the OP, her passport fulfils the entry requirements until 15/9/24.

The next requirement is the "expiry date" which must be more than 3 months after the date that the traveller plans to leave the Schengen area. The 10-year rule is not relevent for this - it is the printed expiry date that is the deciding factor (so the OP's passport is well within the 3-month rule if the holiday is only for a week or two).

For anyone thinking "but what if I get ill or have an accident and cannot leave before my passport expires or falls foul of the 3-month rule" the EU rules are very clear that in these instances, as long as the supporting documentation is provided (doctor's note, hospital record etc) an exception will be made and the traveller will not face any fines or sanctions.

This is why it's so confusing!

I'm quite glad my old red passport has the same issue and expiry date, and that when I go away in a couple of weeks I've got 6 months left still!

Ok thanks all! I spoke to EasyJet online and they asked me to complete my information in the following website which says I’m fine to travel. It didn’t ask for date of issue of passport but seeing as I’m within the ten years I’m going to hope that’s ok too! It’s too late to get an emergency passport renewal so will head to airport tomorrow and keep fingers crossed.

www.traveldoc.aero/

Nothing like some last minute holiday stress 🤪🤪

Date of issue 16/9/14

Your expiry for entry into the EU is 16/9/24 so your passport is under 10 years old if you are travelling tomorrow.

You need 3 months remaining on your passport when leaving the EU and as your passport expires 16/6/25 it is valid there too.

This only applies for the date of entry into the EU
The actual printed expiry date is used for calculating whether there are 3 months remaining on the passport.

We're getting about one question a week about this, and in every case so far, the passport has been fine. That is also the case here.

I hope that this post will help you make sense of the rules.

Sorry, but this is not correct. There are two things to check, one for entry into the EU and the other for exiting, and it's important to understand the difference. Please see https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/holidays/5087929-passport-expiry-query?reply=135725865&utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share which includes a copy of the actual EU legislation (which is very readable).

I just thought I would update you - I made it to Greece without a single person questioning my passport including passport control in Greece so no issues there.

I will ensure I replace my passport after this trip as the ten years from issue will be up soon!

Thanks all for your help and advice 😊