Passports have been at the forefront of recent travel talk as many holidaymakers plan their first holiday since the beginning of covid-19.
High demand at passport offices has caused extensions added to passport return times, making it more important than ever to check your passport before getting ready for a trip.
But what must you look out for? NI Travel News have put together the ultimate list to ensure your passport is holiday ready!
1. Is your passport in date?
British and Irish passports (for adults) have a lifespan of 10 years making it valid for this time. If you are leaning on travelling this year, this is definitely the key one to look out for; after all ,it has been 2 years since passports have been in use!
Travel within the common travel area differs slightly with this as out of date passports can still be used as a form of I.D.
This, however, is not valid for travel abroad.
If your passport is out of date, travellers should look to renewing asap as to avoid disappointment- The UK home office has indicated that passports will take a minimum of 10 weeks to get back to the customer.
2. Have you checked the passport requirements of the country you are travelling to?
Lesser known to the public, different countries have different requirements when it comes to passport validity. This means that even if your passport is not due for renewal just it, it may not be valid for entry to the country you are travelling to.
As a general rule, most countries require passports have a validity of 6 months before expiry when entering the country, however ,this is not always the case.
Countries such as Australia, Canada and the USA only require the passport is valid for the entire length of stay, whereas, countries such as China, Thailand, Egypt and Turkey require a minimum of 6 months.
Countries such as Germany, Norway, Italy, Iceland and Latvia require a 3 month passport validity form the date you arrive in the country.
It is also important to note that all Schengen countries require a validity date of at last 3 months form the date you plan on leaving the EU.
To find out what your holiday destination requires, visit www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice
3. Is you passport expiry longer than 10 years?
If your passport was issued prior to September 2018, is it likely that your passport expires beyond 10 years; This is because up until this point, the UK government ‘rolled over’ unused time and added it to the new passport up until 10 years and 9 months.
This is one to watch as before Brexit passengers could use their passports up until this new date, however now, as non-EU members, Uk passport holders entering the Schengen Area must have a validity period of 10 years, according to the UK government. This means that any additional time added to the passport is invalid in this circumstance.
Many airlines have adopted this policy also and therefore is one to look out for when travelling to the Schengen area.
To find a full list of this countries, please visit www.schengenvisainfo.com/schengen-visa-countries-list/
