Passport problems

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just a word to all who have a British passports. My wife and I are due to go away at the end of the month. We were filling out our boarding passes on line when my wife noticed what she thought was a problem with my passport, Although the date of expiry was the 3rd of June 2026,  the ten year anniversary of the passport being issued was the 3rd of September 2025. That is a couple of days before we are due to return to the UK. This was because back then if you renewed your passport early they tacked on the extra months onto your new passport. Since Brexit this no longer applies !

I looked at the ABTA advice on the internet and it said if your passport is valid when you enter an EU country it’s OK as long as you have at least 3 months left on it when you come back. I looked on a UK government site and it said more or less the same thing. I thought I was in the clear. However I thought I’ll just check.

So I went to my local “ Hays “ travel agency - the girl says - I think you need a new passport but I’m not an expert, see the Post Office.

So I go to my Post Office - the girl says - yes, you need a new passport ! 
 

So today I’ve been over to Liverpool to sort out an emergency passport for twice the price of an ordinary one !  The woman at the passport office counter said - I definitely needed a new passport.

Everbody out there beware of this anomaly.

Edited 13 hours ago by Tyrone Shoelaces

[wilsdenrover]

3 hours ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Just a word to all who have a British passports. My wife and I are due to go away at the end of the month. We were filling out our boarding passes on line when my wife noticed what she thought was a problem with my passport, Although the date of expiry was the 3rd of June 2026,  the ten year anniversary of the passport being issued was the 3rd of September 2025. That is a couple of days before we are due to return to the UK. This was because back then if you renewed your passport early they tacked on the extra months onto your new passport. Since Brexit this no longer applies !

I looked at the ABTA advice on the internet and it said if your passport is valid when you enter an EU country it’s OK as long as you have at least 3 months left on it when you come back. I looked on a UK government site and it said more or less the same thing. I thought I was in the clear. However I thought I’ll just check.

So I went to my local “ Hays “ travel agency - the girl says - I think you need a new passport but I’m not an expert, see the Post Office.

So I go to my Post Office - the girl says - yes, you need a new passport ! 
 

So today I’ve been over to Liverpool to sort out an emergency passport for twice the price of an ordinary one !  The woman at the passport office counter said - I definitely needed a new passport.

Everbody out there beware of this anomaly.

I thought the rule was:

* Has to be issued within 10 years of your arrival in the EU.

* Has to be valid for 3 months after you’re departing the EU.

Your original passport meets both of those criteria.

I presume I’m more likely to be wrong than the actual passport office but you never know!!

edited to add:

Despite what you were told in the Post Office, their website says the same as I thought:

https://www.postoffice.co.uk/identity/guides/uk-passport-validity-checker

From the above link:

I can’t find anything elsewhere which disagrees with what I thought (makes a nice change!)  but can find plenty of further websites which agree.

Might be worth you making further investigations in case you can get some of the money you paid back??

Edited 10 hours ago by wilsdenrover

[wilsdenrover]

@Tyrone Shoelaces I’ve done some further digging.

The following is from the European Commison’s ‘ Practical Handbook For Border Guards’:

 

Edited 9 hours ago by wilsdenrover

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

That was my thinking as well. I went on the TUI passport checker ( I’m not going with TUI ) and put all my details in and it said I was good to go. It really is a confusing situation. I couldn’t take a chance though because the staff at the desk could still turn me away.

[wilsdenrover]

1 hour ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

That was my thinking as well. I went on the TUI passport checker ( I’m not going with TUI ) and put all my details in and it said I was good to go. It really is a confusing situation. I couldn’t take a chance though because the staff at the desk could still turn me away.

I understand that.

Personally I’d complain to the passport office but you might not think it’s worth the bother. 

[Upside Down]

Not being allowed back into England?

Sounds like a dream come true.