Warning Issued To People Carrying UK Passports

A warning has been issued to Brits carrying UK passports. 

If you’re one of the majority still in possession of the original European Union's UK passports, you might want to check that your ID is still valid before you jet off on your summer holidays this year.

More specifically, you want to be looking out to see what validity is required on your passport depending on your destination. 

Most countries require UK citizens to have either three or six months left on their passport before it expires, with 70 countries honing in on the six-month rule, while a further 41 apply to the three-month validity rule on the document.

Among the countries requiring at least six months left on a passport before travel are Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar and the British Virgin Islands, among others.

Meanwhile, countries like Austria, Malta, Belgium, Netherlands, New Zealand, France, Portugal, Italy, Spain and more require just three months of validity.

You can check out the full list of countries with passport validity requirements for British passport holders on the Gov.uk website here.

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If your passport no longer has the required time left for the country you plan to travel to, you’ll need to renew it. 

According to Gov.uk, you should allow up to ten weeks to receive your renewed passport. However, bear in mind that there are different turnaround times if you’re planning on applying from a different country.

Holidaymakers who plan on jetting off quickly can also pay to get their new passport sooner if the non-urgent service will take too long. This means booking a passport office appointment and paying online, with appointments available up to three weeks prior. You can do that here.

If you’re travelling for compassionate reasons and need to get to another country urgently for medical treatment, if a family member or friend is seriously ill or has died, or if you’re travelling for urgent government business, you should call the Passport Adviceline.

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Elsewhere, British holidaymakers who plan on holidaying in most EU countries are set to be charged an extra fee from next year onwards.

The fee will also apply for travel to a number of countries which are in Europe but not in the EU, as the new rules will count for nations which are part of the Schengen Area.

A new system called the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (ETIAS) - to pre-screen travellers before they board a plane - will be part of security checks for those wanting to get into Schengen Area countries.

This area includes 22 EU countries, including non-EU states Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Lichtenstein. You can read more on that here.