UK holidaymakers with red passport could be blocked from entering 120 countries

Posted on : 07/14/2023
UK holidaymakers with red passport could be blocked from entering 120 countries
Travel 

Holidaymakers in Britain who still have the old red passport should double check their documents before travelling. Some older passports that still appear valid are being rejected at border control, reports Daily Record.

Dozens of nations require Brits to have at least six months left on their passport’s validity period. These include Singapore, Israel, Indonesia and Bali, Laos and Thailand.

If you have less than six months left, even if your passport is not expired, you will be refused entry when trying to enter the country. Many have similar rules except the validity period is slightly shorter at between 45 days and three months.

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Many EU nations including Italy, Spain, Greece, France and New Zealand require at least three months validity upon arrival. Plus, your passport cannot be older than 10 years – which is a problem for some Brits with red passports who had additional months added onto their documents.

According to VisaGuide.World, there is a total of 70 countries who stick to this six month passport rule, with 41 countries requiring three months of validity – and others expect at least 45 days on your travel document. The total amount of countries with validity rules on passports adds up to 120, all of which have different parameters on time and length of stay.

For most European countries – including Greece, Spain and France – HM Passport Office recommends that the passport expiry date is at least three months on from the intended day of departure for the EU. If you do not have the correct amount of time left on your passport then your airline could refuse to let you travel at check-in.

The majority of red passports – which are no longer being issued after Britain left the EU – are approaching their expiry date within the next year or two.

41 countries that have a three-month passport rule:

Albania, Lithuania, Austria, Luxembourg, Azerbaijan, Malta, Belarus, Moldova, Belgium, Monaco, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Czechia, Nauru, Estonia, Netherlands, Finland, New Zealand, France, North Macedonia, Georgia, Norway, Germany, Panama, Greece, Poland, Honduras, Portugal, Iceland, Senegal, Italy, Slovakia, Jordan, Slovenia, Kuwait, Spain, Latvia, Sweden, Lebanon, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein.

70 countries with a six month passport rule:

Afghanistan, Indonesia, Samoa, Algeria, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Anguilla, Iraq, Singapore, Bahrain, Israel, Solomon Islands, Bhutan, Jordan, Somalia, Botswana, Kenya, Somaliland, British Virgin Islands, Kiribati, Sri Lanka, Brunei, Laos, Sudan, Cambodia, Madagascar, Suriname, Cameroon, Malaysia, Taiwan, Cayman Islands, Marshall Islands, Tanzania, Central African Republic, Micronesia, Thailand, Chad, Myanmar, Timor-Leste, Comoros, Namibia, Tokelau, Côte D’Ivoire, Nicaragua, Tonga, Curacao, Nigeria, Tuvalu, Ecuador, Oman, Uganda, Egypt, Palau, United Arab Emirates, El Salvador, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Equatorial Guinea, Philippines, Venezuela, Fiji, Qatar, Vietnam, Gabon, Rwanda, Yemen, Guinea Bissau, Saint Lucia, Zimbabwe, and Guyana.

Countries with other validity rules:

Bermuda- 45 days upon entry, Eritrea- three months on arrival, Hong Kong- three months on arrival, Lebanon- three months on arrival, Macau- three months on arrival, Micronesia- four months on arrival, South Africa- three months on arrival, The Maldives- three months on arrival, and Zambia- four months on arrival.

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