Martin Lewis warns holiday makers check for these 3 words on your passport | Personal Finance | Finance
He shared the key rules to know when it comes to your passport on his BBC podcast. He warned: “Check that you have a valid passport because it is a nightmare.”
The financial expert said he has heard horror stories of people being turned away at the airport in the UK, or being refused entry at their destination. One family had a child whose passport was not valid, meaning all of them had to return home, with their holiday ruined.
‘Check now’
Mr Lewis told people to take action ahead of their trip. He said: “I want you to get your passport out and check now that on the day you enter the country, your passport has at least six months left on it, or three months if you’re going to the EU.”
He added another word of caution about the timings to note if you’re going somewhere in Europe: “And even so, if you’re going to the EU, even if it has three months left on it, that your passport is under 10 years old. Now, that might sound confusing because passports tend to last 10 years.
“The reason is, you can’t do it anymore but you used to be able to, say you were renewing your passport after three years and three months, so it had nine months left on it, you would be able to add the nine months left onto your 10-year passport, so your new passport would last 10 years and three months, and therefore, it is possible for your passport to have more than three months left on it, but be over 10 years old. In the EU, that is prohibited.”
You can work this out by looking at the personal details page of your passport. Look for the expiry date for the document, which may be featured under ‘date of expiry’, and compare this with your date of travel.
Strong suggestion
Speaking of the key timeframes, Mr Lewis urged: “So, if any of those things are sounding close, then I would strongly suggest you go and look up what the passport requirements are for the specific country you’re going to.
“If you got a couple of years left on your passport and your passport is well under 10 years, you’re fine. Don’t worry. But if you’re getting close to those barriers that I’ve just mentioned—the six months or three months in the EU left on the passport, or that your passport is going to be over 10 years old—then just do a check now of what your specific country’s passport requirements are.”
He also suggested writing a delayed email to yourself at around a year before your passport is due to expire, to remind yourself to get a new one in time for your holidays. Leading by example, Mr Lewis said he himself has some 50 to 60 delayed emails in his inbox ready to go to remind him of what he needs to do.
