Holidaymakers are being urged to test what number of pages are left of their passport this vacation season, else threat being turned away at the airport.
Post-Brexit, operating out of area in a passport is an actual risk for eager travellers and people heading overseas for work who want entry and exit stamps of their passport when travelling by way of the EU.
All passport holders will need to have at least two clean passport pages once they journey, in any other case the doc might be seen as invalid. The little-known passport rule is important to guarantee no likelihood of being held up or turned away at the airport this summer.
Standard passports have 34 pages, however jumbo passports have extra space for eager holidaymakers and those that journey for work, with 54 pages. It can also be vital to notice, that some nations would require travellers to have two extra visa pages of their passport.
Travellers and holidaymakers must also bear in mind to test the expiry date on their passport. While many nations require passports simply to be legitimate for the size of a traveller’s keep, different nations similar to China, Thailand and Turkey want at least six months longer.
HM Passport Office recommends that for many European nations, the passport expiry date needs to be at least three months after the meant day of departure from the EU. However, these heading overseas are all the time suggested to test the particular entry necessities of their vacation spot and certainly their airline, to avoid any hiccups.
Greg Wilson, CEO and journey insurance coverage professional from Quotezone.co.uk mentioned: “Filling up the pages in your passport might have felt like an unlikely job years in the past, however since Brexit, many are discovering their passport pages turning into fuller as new guidelines imply UK passport holders will need to have their passport stamped every time they enter and depart the EU.
“If you do run out of pages in your passport, you should have to renew your passport ahead of its expiry date, so ensure to preserve a eager eye on the remaining empty pages.
“If you might be shopping for a brand new passport this summer, ensure to use trusted sources solely. Don’t be tempted by web sites providing categorical delivery or cheaper costs as you possibly can be caught out and find yourself spending much more to get your fingers on a compliant UK passport.
“Being turned away at the airport for a non-compliant passport could be devastating, which is why we’re urging everybody heading off this summer to concentrate on how the guidelines may have an effect on them.
“You may be refused entry to your vacation spot nation in case your passport is due to expire. This is one thing travellers typically overlook, as many will solely use their passports a few instances a 12 months. It’s additionally value checking the necessities to your specific airline as some can range on their passport specs.
“Many nations require time allowance on passports so as to allow you to in, together with fashionable journey locations Turkey and Thailand which truly require your passport to be legitimate for up to six months after your journey.
“Make positive to all the time test the entry necessities to your chosen vacation spot, and plan ahead with jumbo passports in case you are an avid traveller or somebody required to go abroad typically for work.
“If you’re denied access to your flight for issues such as an invalid passport, your travel insurance is unlikely to protect you.”
The European Union is about to launch an entry-exit system (EES) due to begin in November 2024 that may substitute bodily stamping with biometric fingerprint and facial scanning but it surely’s wise for travellers to guarantee their passport has loads of clean pages till these plans are firmly in place.