How do I know if my passport is valid?

This blog contains information on travelling to Europe. For more information on travelling to Europe and for European Travel Insurance, click here.

The rules around passport validity dates have changed since Brexit, and it’s caused some confusion among travellers, with many believing their passports are valid only to find they do not meet the new criteria meaning they cannot travel.

Step-by-Step Guide to Checking Your Passport’s Validity

We’ve cut through the noise to explain the changes and help ensure you have everything in place for your journey to go as smoothly as possible.

Firstly, the length of time required on your passport now depends on the country you are visiting.

So, the first step will be to check the FCDO travel advice website and look for ‘passport requirements’, which can be found under the ‘entry requirements’ section.

We take a look at Spain to explain the changes.

Let’s say you are going to Spain from 1st – 15th May 2024.

The FCDO website states (at time of writing) that your passport must be:

• issued less than 10 years before the date you enter the country (check the ‘date of issue’)
• valid for at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave (check the ‘expiry date’)

Using the passport expiry date checker, you’ll find that any passports that were issued before 1st October 2018 were eligible for extra months to be carried over. For example, if you renewed your passport and had three months left, the three months would have been added to your new passport – meaning it was then valid for ten years and three months. You could carry up to a maximum of nine months.

Cutting through the confusion

This is where the confusion arises, as any additional months added are no longer valid for travel to certain EU countries. To travel on 1st May 2024 your passport needs to have been issued after the 16th August 2014, to comply with the 10-year issue rule set by the EU.

• This means your passport is issued less than ten years before the date you enter the country
• Is valid for at least three months after the day you plan to leave and excludes any additional months carried over from a previous passport renewal.

In addition to the 10-year issue rule, ensure that your passport is valid for at least three months after your planned departure date from the EU. The UK government, however, recommends having six months of validity on your passport for entry into the Schengen area as a precaution to avoid any travel difficulties. If you do not have enough time left on your passport, you will need to renew this before travel.

Special Considerations for the Schengen Area and Non-EU Countries

These rules are applicable to all EU countries, with the exception of Ireland, and extend to non-EU countries in the Schengen area, including Switzerland, Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein. It’s also important to remember that the maximum duration for UK citizens to stay in the Schengen area is 90 days within any 180-day period.

You can find current passport processing times here.

European Countries that the new rules apply to:

(click on the country to be taken straight to the FCDO entry requirements page)

• Andorra
• Austria
• Belgium
• Bulgaria
• Croatia
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hungary
• Iceland
• Italy
• Latvia
• Liechtenstein
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Malta
• Monaco
• Netherlands
• Norway
• Poland
• Portugal
• Romania
• San Marino
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• Vatican City

What happens if I lose my passport on holiday?

Don’t forget to arrange your Travel Insurance before you travel and remember, your policy provides cover should you lose your passport while abroad, meaning you may be able to recover the costs of obtaining a new one to enable your return home.

How can I check my passport’s validity online for travel to the EU?

To check your passport’s validity online for an EU trip, visit the official FCDO website or use a trusted passport expiry checker tool to confirm that your passport adheres to the 10-year issuance and 3-month post-departure validity rules.

This page was last updated in accordance with FCDO advice on 27/11/23