Page 3 | HELP! Flying out tomorrow ,passport expires in July 2026

Potterxoxo · 2026-05-20T22:36:13+00:00

Hi all, Bit of a panic here and hoping someone has been through something similar. Just realised my 6 year old’s British passport expires July 2026 and we’re flying to Albania tomorrow from London, coming back on 13 June 2026. I’ve read that Albania needs 3 months validity left after you leave and now I’m worried we might not be allowed to travel. Has anyone actually been in this situation? Did you get stopped at check in or were you still allowed to go? I’m just trying to work out how strict this really is in real life,a part of me hopes miraculously they will let us through. Any experiences would really help !

KNpepper · 21/05/2026 07:16

We had similar with my son’s passport last year (we were 2 days shy of having 6 months left on the passport and only realised the night before when we could not check in).

Minimum turnaround for a child passport renewal is a week so that wasn’t an option.

Instead we went to the Embassy of the country we were travelling to and they issued us a waiver letter for the requirement. BA allowed us to check in with the letter - without it they said they would have turned us away (the system flagged as not allowed to board as soon as they scanned the passport at check in). Got in by the skin of our teeth and luckily it was an evening flight so we had a few mad hours to run around and sort. No issue entering the country or returning back to the UK at the end.

user1473878824 · 21/05/2026 07:17

Potterxoxo · 21/05/2026 00:39

Tried to call the airline but their phone lines are closed till 8 am tomorrow.
Haven’t even thought about our flight back ,I guess they wouldn’t deny us entry in our own country .
I am a foolish optimist,I know the kids will be disappointed but can’t help but think that there is a slight possibility that we might be allowed in.
Will call the airline first thing tomorrow.

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Of course they could deny your entry back. Thats the point of passports….
sorry edited to be clear - why would they let you fly OUT of Albania

Bookloveruk · 21/05/2026 07:17

m1ghtl1ke · 21/05/2026 07:09

I have just renewed my passport for this reason. Would have been one week short of six months, the rules for the country I’m going to is three months but I didn’t want to risk a row with an employee! Annoying but peace of mind at least

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You would have been fine. They work to the government rules so I take a screenshot with date stamp. I went to turkey with 5months and 2 weeks remaining when it’s 5 months. Passport office said I didn’t need to renew as it was 1 day less than 6 months when I went. Then I went to Poland with 3 months and 1 week remaining when I returned . I have to admit I was nervous but passport office had emailed and said clearly I didn’t meet to renew.

you have to ensure though it’s not the extra months on your passport that you used to get if you renewed early. My friend got caught by that as she travelled on a passport that was 10ths and 6 months added. They wouldn’t let her travel

McSpoot · 21/05/2026 07:18

notacooldad · 21/05/2026 07:15

But even what you've posted agrees with me - she does have a "valid, unexpired travel document" for entering the UK, so would not be denied boarding for coming back. And the bit about when you arrive at the border is entirely irrelevant because it isn't an expired document.
Yep, of course!!! I'd slipped and gone into thinking about expiry.
Terrible for OP.
Recently I had 5 months on my passport and suddenly remembered the rules and had to do a quick passport application for a trip, Thankfully it came back in time.

Ah, yes - expiry would be a problem coming back. And it has caught people out recently due to the "extra days" that some have on their passwords.

DancingNotDrowning · 21/05/2026 07:19

As others have said the problem is that immigration in Alabania will not let you in, so even if you slipped through the airline checks you’ll be stopped on arrival.

You’ll then be detained until you can be sent home. This is done at the expense of the airline which is why they are so strict.

what being detained means in real terms varies depending on country. A friend who was caught out in similar terms in Italy was allowed to stay freely in the airport, until the flight the following day but even that lost its attraction by 3am when she had no comforts, no phone charger and was pretty much the only person around, trying to get comfy in a plastic airport seat.

Feis123 · 21/05/2026 07:19

Let us know please how it went - whether A.A.Gill was right?

Gridhopper · 21/05/2026 07:20

@curious79 that’s a scam website - don’t be ringing those guys OP!

RedToothBrush · 21/05/2026 07:21

Galvanized · 21/05/2026 06:57

I might as well double down on the pile on - it's three weeks, not two, so even in your fanciful example the child (children) are missing at least a week of school.

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In what way is the message not shitty? Care to clarify? You still know nothing of the situation.

Namesuggestion101 · 21/05/2026 07:22

Sorry I missed part of your original post, but it does look like @KNpepper has the same idea as me. So worth checking.

Clearinguptheclutter · 21/05/2026 07:22

Cailin66 · 21/05/2026 07:12

One of my children managed to fly from Dublin to Portugal on an expired passport 2 years ago for an end of school holiday. They even managed to fly back again. Only it actually happened to us I’d never have believed it. They phoned me at 5 am from Dublin because they were denied the third flight which was from Dublin to the continent where we live.

Dublin airline/airport made a mistake for the flight to Portugal. My hunch is Portugal turned a blind eye to the flight back to Dublin as they just want the tourists gone after the holiday. Export the problem. Ryanair blocked them on the third flight as they take zero chances on expired passports.

Best of luck OP, if you get out, apply for a passport today. You might need emergency papers in Albania to return, try the British embassy/consulate there.

That’s within the EU though. I thought within the EU you don’t need an actual passport at all, just identification
i don’t think this situation compares at all

OP your dc won’t be travelling

notimagain · 21/05/2026 07:23

user1473878824 · 21/05/2026 07:17

Of course they could deny your entry back. Thats the point of passports….
sorry edited to be clear - why would they let you fly OUT of Albania

Edited

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The UK generally won't deny entry back into the country for UK passport holder, even with an expired passport.

Getting the airline doing the flight into the UK to accept the individual for travel might be more problematic.

Newlittlerescue · 21/05/2026 07:23

KNpepper · 21/05/2026 07:16

We had similar with my son’s passport last year (we were 2 days shy of having 6 months left on the passport and only realised the night before when we could not check in).

Minimum turnaround for a child passport renewal is a week so that wasn’t an option.

Instead we went to the Embassy of the country we were travelling to and they issued us a waiver letter for the requirement. BA allowed us to check in with the letter - without it they said they would have turned us away (the system flagged as not allowed to board as soon as they scanned the passport at check in). Got in by the skin of our teeth and luckily it was an evening flight so we had a few mad hours to run around and sort. No issue entering the country or returning back to the UK at the end.

So this looks like the only potential solution OP (given there are no fast-track options for children's passports).

Offherrockingchair · 21/05/2026 07:23

It won’t be a valid travel document. Didn’t you check when you booked? That’s the first thing I do when I book - double check all passport end dates and we’ve just renewed a couple of ours! Saying that, it isn’t helpful that the regs differ between countries, I’m sure I read that the US doesn’t need months left on a passport. Maybe you can get a new one on a one day service and travel out later in the week?

Nearly50omg · 21/05/2026 07:26

It’s the airport they won’t let you travel. Make an emergency appointment to the passport office nearest you today

Priceyyy · 21/05/2026 07:31

Galvanized · 21/05/2026 06:57

I might as well double down on the pile on - it's three weeks, not two, so even in your fanciful example the child (children) are missing at least a week of school.

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Wrong. I work at a private school and they have three weeks off. Never jump the gun without the facts because it makes you look a bit silly.

Flowerlovinglady · 21/05/2026 07:36

So sorry - this nearly happened to us but my adult daughter was able to get a passport the day before flying using the fast track service but for children, I believe it is about a week.

Whatarewedoing · 21/05/2026 07:38

Sorry OP I think you will be stopped at the gate. At least that is how far DH got when we went to Croatia last October. We left him behind and he had to get an emergency appointment to renew his passport. That was not possible until a few days later and so he missed most of the holiday on top of the extra cost for passport and another flight.🙄

Mummyoflittledragon · 21/05/2026 07:40

KNpepper · 21/05/2026 07:16

We had similar with my son’s passport last year (we were 2 days shy of having 6 months left on the passport and only realised the night before when we could not check in).

Minimum turnaround for a child passport renewal is a week so that wasn’t an option.

Instead we went to the Embassy of the country we were travelling to and they issued us a waiver letter for the requirement. BA allowed us to check in with the letter - without it they said they would have turned us away (the system flagged as not allowed to board as soon as they scanned the passport at check in). Got in by the skin of our teeth and luckily it was an evening flight so we had a few mad hours to run around and sort. No issue entering the country or returning back to the UK at the end.

Wow that was smart! Maybe op can do this.

hahabahbag · 21/05/2026 07:44

Passport turnarounds can be quick, apply for a child fast track and see if there’s appointments today, you’ll be late going but hopefully within the week

Groobey · 21/05/2026 07:45

Bookloveruk · 21/05/2026 07:17

You would have been fine. They work to the government rules so I take a screenshot with date stamp. I went to turkey with 5months and 2 weeks remaining when it’s 5 months. Passport office said I didn’t need to renew as it was 1 day less than 6 months when I went. Then I went to Poland with 3 months and 1 week remaining when I returned . I have to admit I was nervous but passport office had emailed and said clearly I didn’t meet to renew.

you have to ensure though it’s not the extra months on your passport that you used to get if you renewed early. My friend got caught by that as she travelled on a passport that was 10ths and 6 months added. They wouldn’t let her travel

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Ha it was Turkey I was going to, where I had 5 months and 2 weeks left (it was a short notice trip to see a sick relative) but the lady at the gate insisted it needed to be six months. She only called someone more senior because I wouldn’t accept what she said. She was determined to stop me from travelling, and as I say, she had a smirk on her face when she saw my passport so clearly would have enjoyed stopping me!

If I hadn’t checked the rules myself beforehand and been able to argue that she’s wrong, I would have been removed from the flight, so they can still get it wrong at the airport.

GetAbsOrDieTrying · 21/05/2026 07:46

Galvanized · 21/05/2026 06:31

Really? OP is asking about UK passports and says in her replies the trip is planned from today to 13th June.

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So school closes today for my kids and opens on 1st June, I have friends with kids in private school and it re-opens a week later. So I doubt OP l’s kids are missing that much school. Also if her kids are under 5 there are no restrictions or penalties for missing school.

Whinge · 21/05/2026 07:47

hahabahbag · 21/05/2026 07:44

Passport turnarounds can be quick, apply for a child fast track and see if there’s appointments today, you’ll be late going but hopefully within the week

Fast track passport appointments for adults can be quick, but for children it will always be at least a week before a new passport is issued. Due to safeguarding checks.

WhyUniverseWhy · 21/05/2026 07:49

notacooldad · 21/05/2026 07:04

She would be denied boarding the plane to Albania because she isn't eligible to get into Albania and the airline would need to pay for her to fly back (plus pay a fine). She is eligible to enter the UK, so the same reason doesn't apply when coming back. If anything, she'd be "deported" from Albania and sent back to the UK.

I did a quick check. I just think even if they do manage to get into Albania, why risk making things complicated coming home, especially with a child.

The Airline Boarding Block
Airlines are legally required to verify that every passenger has valid, unexpired travel documents before allowing them on an international flight. 1, 2, 3]

Fines for Carriers: Governments impose severe monetary fines (often thousands of pounds or dollars per passenger) on airlines that transport anyone with invalid or expired documentation.
Denied Boarding: Because of these strict rules, airport gate agents will strictly enforce expiration dates and deny boarding to any child traveling on an expired passport. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

At the Border Counter

If you manage to reach your home country's physical border—such as arriving via a land border crossing or a ferry—border control officials cannot turn a citizen away. 1, 2, 3, 4]

The Process: The border agents will confiscate the expired passport.
Delays: You will be pulled aside into secondary questioning while they run background checks to manually verify the child's identity and citizenship status.
Entry Guaranteed: Once citizenship is officially confirmed, the child must legally be allowed into the country.

I did a quick check

You asked AI, which often gets things wrong, and posted the response without any further checking. You should be upfront about this.

Imthefunfriend · 21/05/2026 07:55

This reply has been hidden until the MNHQ team can have a look at it.

Rebook you and your child’s flight
Please don’t rely on incorrect advice from people on here. This service isn’t available for children.

I nearly got caught out by this myself recently. There should be some sort of error message on booking or a requirement to enter the passport expiry date that flags these issues.

Uptightmumma · 21/05/2026 07:57

My brother in law was allowed to fly out but they then wouldn’t let him fly home and he had to go the embassy and get emergency travel documents