10 year passport rule ruins woman's holiday as she is refused from TUI flight

A woman has taken to TikTok to warn travellers about a '10 year passport rule' after she was refused permission to board a TUI flight for her holiday in Greece.

And yes, the issue comes down to Brexit and the rules and regulations millions of Brits have to abide by when travelling to countries in the European Union (EU).

With the UK voting to leave the EU in 2016, it became subject to many of the same rules that are applied to other non-EU countries. And some of them aren't too great, with banning orders of three years now a possibility.

What happened to her?

TikTok user Fran Hainingg was set to fly off to Greece earlier this month but was stopped from boarding her TUI flight at its departure gate due to an issue with her passport.

It meant she couldn't board the flight and instead, had to turn around and head home to try and fix the issue.

Fran said: "I got declined to get on the flight because my passport was two days out of date from being 10 years old. So now we're driving to London from Bournemouth, which is going to take us three hours.

"So hopefully, fingers crossed, I can get a passport so we can get on a new flight."

Fran on her way to get a new passport (TikTok/franhainingg)

What is the 10 year rule?

Under old rules before Brexit, UK travellers could carry up to nine months left on an old passport on to a brand new one. It effectively meant your passport was valid for more than the 10 years issued.

Hypothetically, a passport could have been in March 2014 and still be valid in, say, November 2024 - some six months after the 10 year cut off for being valid.

But leaving the EU meant the rules changed. As a result, all EU countries except the Republic of Ireland will not accept a British passport issued more than a decade before your date of travel.

On top of that, your passport should be valid for at least three months after the date you intend to leave the EU. So

In Fran's case, her issue date was 30 August, 2014 and expiry was 28 February, 2025.

But because 30 August 2024 is less than three months from the date of her travelling in June this year, she was refused from the flight as per the guidelines. It saw Fran lost four days of her holiday as she booked an appointment to get a new passport in person before flying out to Greece.

Fran's new passport after being refused travel (TikTok/franhainingg)

Checking your passport

If you are travelling to any country in the European Union, as well as Iceland, Norway, Lichtenstein and Switzerland, UK passport holders should ensure their passports:

• Have been issued less than 10 years before the date you enter the EU country; the 'date of issue', not the expiry date
• Are valid for at least three months after the day you plan to leave

Blame Brexit (Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

'We recommend six months'

Gemma Brown, Head of Commercial and Travel expert at Travel Republic, said: “If travellers make it all the way to their boarding gate without checking, airlines can refuse those holding passports that were issued over 10 years ago. In this instance, passengers should be aware that denied boarding is reasonable due to inadequate travel documentation.

“The likelihood is that travel insurance providers would not cover any costs associated with invalid or expired passports, as it’s down to the traveller to triple check their documentation is correct.

“Our advice would be to ensure that your passport is within the 10 year issue date and is valid for at least six months from the date of departure to ensure you will be accepted into most countries.

"Regardless of passport rules, it’s important for all travellers to research the country they plan to visit and ensure they know what travel documentation is required upon entering and leaving. You can find foreign travel advice on the government website to make sure you have everything covered.”