Passport warning for Brits who have European holidays booked this summer
Are you eagerly booking your holibobs (that’s holiday to you and me) this summer?
There’s something you might not know which could ruin all your plans if you’re not careful!
Whether you’re a seasoned traveller or not, there’s a lot of rules surrounding passports that even a nomad could miss.
So, let’s go through the UK’s favourite holiday destinations to find out what the official Government advice states so that you’re not left on the tarmac with your flipflops and sunscreen in hand.
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Spain
If you’re itching to rush jet to Benidorm or Ibiza, make sure that you have at least three months left on your passport before it expires at the time you’re supposed to leave the country.
Also, make sure it was issued less than 10 years before the date you enter the country.
There’s also a little-known-rule that Brits might get caught out with if you’re staying with friends.
If you’re bunking with mates or family, you could be fined £8,000 if you don’t bring a letter of invitation with you, and the person you’re staying with needs to apply for this at their local police station up to two months prior to your visit.
Turkey
Ah, Turkey is an amazing country and there’s no surprise that the number of UK visitors entering the arrival gate is rising.
However, if you’ve not got at least 150 days left on your passport before you arrive, don’t bother!
UK nationals also need to ‘have a full blank page for entry and exit stamps’ and several other rules:
“If you are a resident in Turkey, your passport must be valid for 6 months from the date you arrive.
“If entering Turkey through a land border, make sure your passport has a dated entry stamp before you leave the border crossing.”
If you find that your passport doesn’t meet the entry requirements, you’ll need to renew it before you go, otherwise you may be left teary eyed at security after being turned away.
Tourists in Turkey also need to carry a form of photo ID with them at all times, so don’t forget to put your best pic in your bag.
Greece
If you are planning to travel to Greece, similarly you’ll need a passport issued less than 10 years before the date you enter the country along with at least 3 months validity after the day you plan to leave.
Portugal
This one you need to make sure your passport was ‘issued less than 10 years before the date you enter the country’ and is ‘valid for at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave’.
If your passport was issued before 1 October 2018, you might be able to receive extra months added to its expiry date. (Make sure to check)
But it’s not a walk in the part to access beautiful Portugal.
At the Portuguese border control, you may need to show a return or onward ticket, prove that you have enough money for your visit, show evidence of when and where you entered or exited the Schengen area, ask border guards to add this date and location in your passport and enter through the e-gates where the border officer will stamp your passport.
If Portugal is on your list, then it's always worth checking flight prices too - as you could end up paying more on getting there than you'd probably like.
Woah, that was a lot!
I mean, it’s worth it right? Just don’t forget the rules!
Passport renewals these days cost £82.50 per adults if completed digitally, or £93 if by post.
For kids under 16, you’ll be looking to fork out £53.50 online and £64 by post.
With ten weeks of processing time for online passport renewals, make sure you’re not leaving it until the last minute.
Britt Jones