UK travellers holding onto their pre-Brexit burgundy passports are being warned to urgently check their passport’s expiry date before locking in any holiday plans. Despite no longer being issued after Brexit, the old-style passports remain valid until 2025 as long as they haven’t expired. However, many destinations require a minimum of six months’ validity for entry.
Alvaro Iturmendi, the travel insurance expert at Confused.com, advised: “Booking your holidays can be very exciting, and a welcome distraction to the beginning of the year blues. But no matter how far in advance you’re planning, it’s never too early to check your passport’s validity, so you don’t get caught out last minute.”
A common oversight for Brits travelling to EU countries like Spain or the Netherlands is the requirement for passports to have been issued within the last 10 years from the departure date, reports the Mirror.
Always check the date on your passport just in case
(Image: Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Alvaro added: “Our research found that less than half (43 per cent) of travellers knew that if you’re heading to the EU, your passport must have been issued less than 10 years before their departure date. And if your passport doesn’t meet this regulation, it could mean you’re denied entry into the country, or may not even be allowed on the flight in the first place. Either way, it’s likely to lead to a lot of disruption to your holiday plans.”
Since Brexit, the UK has switched to issuing blue passports, and most citizens are required to renew them every 10 years. Alvaro noted that an emergency passport could cost ‘”up to £207 depending on its urgency.”
He continued: “And if you leave it to the last minute, having to take time off work and travel to visit a passport office could become costly and time consuming. This is especially true if you need to visit an office far from home. Unfortunately, travel insurance will not cover the cost of last minute travel for an emergency passport, nor for any missed flights or holidays.”
He concluded with advice: “It’s important to always double-check your passport’s expiration date as soon as you start planning your trip, and leave yourself ample time to renew it if needed. By using our passport checker, you can save a great deal of time, money, and stress.”
You can apply for a passport renewal either by post or online.
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