Brexit creates passport woes for tourists

Source: Schengen Visa Info

A total of 254,316 holidaymakers’ valid passports do not comply with the post-Brexit rules for visiting the European Union countries, based on the figures from the HM Passport Office.

According to Co-op Insurance, a quarter-of-a-million passengers holding valid passports might be subject to difficulties this summer as a result of current EU rules, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

A report from the HM Passport Office ensured that as of May 26 this year, this is the number of passport holders with a valid expiration date of over ten years from the date of issue.

The data came as part of a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Passport Office conducted by Co-op Insurance.

All persons attempting to reach the EU’s borderless area of Schengen will not be eligible to do so if their UK passport was issued over ten years ago.

UK passports cannot be more than ten years old when used to reach the bloc’s countries since Britain officially got out of the EU.

Following the rules mentioned above, all persons planning to enter the EU with a passport issued in the UK must ensure that their passport is valid.

The majority of persons assume that an adult passport lasts for a period of ten years; still, extra months may be added to the expiry date if the previous passport was renewed before it ultimately expired.

The report from CO-op Insurance noted that a total of 77 per cent of travel policies since the beginning of this year have been for destinations located in EU countries, with a total of 32 per cent surge in travel policies sold, in comparison to the figures from the previous year.

“For many years, travellers renewing their passport before the previous one expired were able to carry over any remaining time left. Before September 2018, a maximum of nine months could be added to the replacement’s 10-year length — meaning passports could be valid for as long as ten years and nine months,” head of travel at Co-op Insurance, Graham Ward-Lush, pointed out.

He stressed that persons may look at their passport while ensuring that it does not expire until after their return, believing that all is well. However, he urged all passengers to check the date of issuance as well. Ward-Lush stressed that if the passport is more than ten years old on the day of entry, their entry will be denied.

Besides, he added that the insurance company wants to help people all over Britain to have their dream holidays this summer and make sure that they aren’t stranded at home as a result of invalid travel documentation.