‘I’m heartbroken’ mum sobs on camera after being turned away from family holiday as she didn’t know the Passport rules
A MOTHER has been left distraught after she was unable to fly to France with her family.
She was told at the airport her passport was out of date so couldn’t board the plane with her husband and two children.
Hollie, aka @hollieandthevan, shared her experience on TikTok to warn others.
She said she got her latest passport in April 2014 which expired in April this year.
She went on to say that although passports last for a decade, she’d had nine months added onto its validity.
This was because Hollie renewed it nine months early in 2014 – this would’ve meant it shouldn’t have expired until January 2025.
However, because of post-Brexit rules and regulations, the nine months were no longer valid.
In the caption, she penned: “I should have been in France with my husband, children and family this weekend.
“Instead, I was turned away because my passport didn’t meet the 10-year rule, watching my husband and children head off without me.
“I had no idea about this post-Brexit travel regulation and it seems so many of you didn’t either, so I thought I would share this so that you get the heads up that I missed.”
Since the UK left the EU in 2020 after the 2016 referendum, travellers must make sure their passport is less than 10 years old (you should count this from when your latest passport was issued), and must not be due to run out within the next three months.
You can check if your passport will be valid on the government’s website.
These rules only affect countries in the EU as well as Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, and Liechtenstein.
Hollie continued by saying: “What is most frustrating about the process is that you must enter your expiry date when checking in, but you don’t have to enter your issue date, where this problem could have been flagged.
“‘It’s your problem, you should know the rules’, is what I was told at the gate when I was denied boarding. I didnt know the rules then, but I do now!”
Understanding the passport rules
If you are travelling to the EU from the UK, you will have to be careful not to be caught out by post-Brexit rules.
Your passport must be less than 10 years old, counting from the day it was issued. You also cannot travel in Europe if your passport expires in the next three months.
If you need a new one, you should apply to get it as soon as you can.
It can take a few weeks to issue a new passport, but if you need a new one, you can get a one-week fast track by booking an appointment.
You can also get one in two or three days if the need for a new one is urgent.
She concludes that if you need an emergency passport, it will take two to three days to get in your hands.
But there are a few caveats to the timing and you can read all about emergency passports here.