Holidays for Brits are under threat thanks to a post-Brexit complication involving passports.

The Home Office has urged hopeful holidayers to renew their passports as Brits are no longer able to travel using passports that are about to expire.

Despite this, some people have had trouble getting their hands on a new passport due to a backlog.

People delayed applying for their passports during the Covid pandemic and it means that, after the end of restrictions and warmer months ahead, there are plenty more people applying for a passport all at the same time.

It takes time for the Home Office to process passports and Immigration Minister Kevin Foster said the department normally deals with seven million passports applications in one year.

He said: "First in terms of – I go back to the fact that we issued, we dealt with, a million passport applications last month alone. To put that into context, we usually deal with seven million in a whole year.

Do I need to renew my passport?

For non-EU citizens travelling in the EU, your passports must be less than 10 years old on the day you enter a country. It should also be valid for three months after the day you leave.

If it does not meet these requirements and you are planning to travel within the area then you will need to renew your passport.

This rule does not apply to Ireland, but does also apply to the following non-EU countries:

A spokesperson told Glasgow Live: “The European Commission has explicitly advised us, including in correspondence received [on 10 November 2021], that the conditions of a passport being less than 10 years old and valid for three months post-return date are cumulative."

“We are engaging with the Commission to seek further clarification and, if this is no longer the case, will update our advice in due course.”

Foster said:"We are at the moment processing most passports well within it, but we would advise people this is a very, virtually unprecedented surge in demand, and if people are planning to travel this summer we would advise them to get their application in as soon as possible."

How much does a passport cost?

The standard cost of a passport is £75.50 for an adult and prices for children are much lower, but still cost £49,

This is less than ideal for a family looking to travel on a budget during a cost of living crisis.

Passports can be applied for online and people can apply for a new one or renewal using the normal online service.

There are also different costs for frequent travellers and an adult (considered 16 and over) applying for a 50-page frequent traveller passport instead of the standard 34-page passport will pay £85.50.

Passports for frequently travelling children are £59.

To apply through a paper form from the post office, there is an extra £9.50 expense.

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