Pink Butterfly

I think you are totally missing the point here. It is not common procedure at all to have six months on your passport otherwise everyone would know about it, and no one is passing the buck of responsibility. If you read the posts correctly what we are stating is that it is the TO's that are confusing the situation saying that six months are needed for certain places when there are no immigration/entry requirements, so legally the six month rules does not apply, some TO's adopt this policy other don't.

Example - my son who is going to Crete in August asked his TO about the six month rule after I read about it on here. His T.O. said he needed six months on his passport upon his return even though there are no immigration/entry requirements for Greece, hence he has had to renew his passport; yet he could have booked with a totally different T.O who would have told him that he did not need the six months.

It is the inconsistency of the T.O.'s that is the main problem. Also as I mentioned in an earlier post what about when you DIY as I have done for 23 years, there is no T.O or small print to tell you anything, unless of course you have access to a site like this how are you supposed to know these things. That is why we are saying if it was announced by the passport office when all passports are renewed that the 6 month ruling applies then everyone would know what is going on. When people are getting conflicting answers about the same subject from people who you would expect to be up to date with this kind of information; ( in this case the T.O's) then it probably does seem like rocket science to some people.

Rgds Jackie

Jackie

If you have travelled DIY for 23 years then you must have found out the information for yourself or been very astute and made sure each time you travel you have sufficient unexpired time on your passport regardless. I appreciate that it is not clear what sufficient time might or might not be, so do what you obviously must have done and renew your passport in plenty of time. If I was unclear as to what the TO/airline/local immigaration rules were then I would play safe and renew my passport. As Pink Butterfly says, you are the one standing at the check out with the passport in hand. I would not wish anyone to learn the lesson the hard way and not be able to travel.

As I posted earlier, when you return from holiday see how many months/years you have left on your passport and if it's less than 9 months renew it. Simple.

Where is 'think for yourself' in all this.

Yes, I agree that people may sometimes be confused as to what the rules are on the validity period required. But consider that there are 192 countries in the world as at Feb 6 last.

Reading the posts here on HT over time, the number of postings telling how they had to chase round and renew passports at the last minute, or even cancel holidays demonstrate a lack of care.

But then even if people are told they do not always do what they should. A few weeks ago someone near us had the house struck by lightning - wrecked it.

Insurance? It did have but the owner had not got round to renewing it.

Why does everyone blame everyone else?

People who go DIY check as they cannot afford to make a mistake.

When a TO says you want more than six months why complain? They may be wrong but they are on the right side.

fwh

Taxman

Everyone reading/contributing to this thread now knows about the six months rule; but no I have never checked that I have at least six months on my passport, until joining HT I was not even aware of it, as I am sure many people are still not. I have obviously never travelled to a Country with these immigration/entry regulations as I have never been made to look 'silly' whilst standing at immigration.As far as I was concerned my passport was valid for the duration of my trip(s) as it had not expired according to the expiry date.

The point that we are trying to make is that there are so many people unaware of this requirement. What would have happened to my son when he goes to Crete next month? It was only after reading about it on here that I suggested he phoned his T.O to check, and it was only then that they told him that their policy was to have six months remaining on passports after the date of return even though it is not an immigration/entry requirement for Greece. Why did they not tell him and his mates this when they booked the holiday?, and before someone says 'they should read the small print' how many 19/20 year olds read small print on anything? and unless the lead name (who has all the paperwork) reads it then how are the other supposed to find out. It is not a lot to ask that T.O's, when taking peoples hard earned cash simply mention the six month rule, or that the passport office put a slip of paper in with new passports advising people about it. Then all those poor unfortunate souls who are not memebers of HT will be as well informed as we all are now.

Rgds Jackie

But just how much information is a TO supposed to impart when you are booking? There are so many questions about various things on here, passports included, that I don't see why they should have the onus on them to hold the hands of anyone travelling.

And it makes no difference the age of the traveller when it comes to reading terms and conditions. At the very least the person holding the paperwork should be clued up. If they are not then it's nobody's fault but their own - whatever their age if they are an adult.

As for the six month thing - it's something I've been aware of for as long as I can remember, and I don't even know where from.

It seems that the point I am trying to make is not getting across. I am not saying that people should not take responsibility for their 'mistakes'. Obviously if your house was struck by lightning and you had no insurance then the onus would be on you because when you take out a mortgage etc you are advised by that company to have insurance. Wether you take it out or not is your choice but at least you have been advised and can only blame yourself if you do not take that advise.What I am trying to say is if people are unaware of this ruling then who's 'job' is it to advise them when different T.O's have different rules. We are not even getting the advice in the first place. All I am saying is would it not be a better idea for all T.O's to have the same rule so that this information can be passed onto the traveller.

If people are unaware of the six month rule, as we were, and nobody tells them how in gods name are they to find out?. If their passport is valid for the duration of their trip then as far as they are concerned there is not a problem. All I am saying is if the person books DIY and has no terms and conditions to read, the T.O's don't tell people, the passport office don't tell people and they are unaware of sites like HT where travellers give advice to travellers how are they supposed to gain this information. They are not going to think to themselves 'I only have five months left on my passport when I return from holiday so I better get it renewed before I go' when their passport is valid for the duration of the trip. What is the point of having an expiry date?

Rgds Jackie

The passport office will tell you whatever they can if you ask:

http://www.passport.gov.uk/general_travel_tips.asp

It's unreasonable to expect TOs to give you every bit of information on the country you are travelling to. Passport office can't put a slip of paper in your passport alerting you to different rulings in different countries. They believe the british public will ask if they are unsure about anything. Same with a TO, as there are many other important issues that passengers don't know about but they'd be there all day if they went through everything. TOs don't notify about for example jabs required for a country - though you will find out if you ask or if you read the brochure thoroughly. Stuff like that, important as are passport issues. TOs don't even say to you 'you need a passport to travel to this country'.

If you DIY then you take more care to find things out - a TO can give advice if you ask, of course - or point you in the direction of where you can find out, but wouldn't even think to give info on various regulations and laws as they may not always be applicable to you.

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With regards TO against DIY.

Please read my previous post.

If I where to go DIY to Barbados flying Virign Atlantic (which I have done many times in the past) I could travel legally to Barbados without any exprity on my passport beyond my return date. Such a requirement does NOT exist according to both the Barbados Government and Virgin Atlantic.

Yet, if I were to book my holiday through Virgin Holidays, it appears that according to a leaflet that goes with my tickets such a requirement suddenly does exist.

So this quote:

pink_butterfly wrote:

Thats the problem with the British culture today, we will blame the dog walkers granny just to pass the buck of responsibilty. Sorry folks but standing in the check in que or at immigration you are the one that is going to look silly. Its common procedure now to have atleast 6 months left on your passport, just accept it, adhere to it and move on. Moan all you want that it is a shambles but to be honest it's hardly rocket science to understand

is rather harsh. Somebody might have gone DIY to Spain on business one week ago without any problems, suddenly finding themselves into trouble one week later because they booked their annual two week break to the Costa del Sol through a Tour Operator.

Mark

Sorry SandC,
Thats rubbish,we got 3 different replys as to the position on Cyprus which by the way is 3months from your return,now you tell me Thomson holidays take on this because try as we might we cannot get the same answer and NO reply from the Tour op.What Mark is saying is correct it seem nobody knows so the only safe way is to make sure you have a minimum of 6months end of story.

It's not rubbish, I merely stated the passport office would help if they could.

All I was trying to say is that the onus should not be on the TO.

There seems to be an argument developing here - There is a link to the passport office on which it states clearly that in some countries the six month rule applies.

If you don't know the answer then it is simple. Go to the experts who do. The people who issue them.

Here on HT we can only express OUR OWN point of view. There is no guarantee that we are right.

fwh

If you don't know the answer then it is simple. Go to the experts who do. The people who issue them.

And that is where, in my opinion, the problem lies. Whilst the experts say that for Spain there is no expiry beyond the intended travel dates required, some tour operators have this rule.

The bottom line is that if you book an overseas trip with a Tour Operator it might be wise to have 6 months expiry left on your passport irrespective of local immigration/airline rules.

If you book DIY, check with these experts as well as the airline.

Mark

Mark

What do you do if you are totally unaware of the six month rule.? Sand C said she has known about it for as long as she can remember, although she does not remember where from. I on the other hand had never heard of it until I read about it on HT a couple of weeks ago, and I have been travelling abroad on a regular basis since the year dot.

I know people are saying there are links to the passport office and go to the experts, but if people have a valid passport when they travel, regardless of how long is left on it on their return, what reason have they got to go to these links or the experts if they are oblivious that the rule even exists.

People need to be given this information one way or another and that is why I suggested that T.O's inform people or the passport office when sending out new passports.

It seems that the people who know about this rule are being a bit off hand with those that don't because 'it is something everybody should know'.

I bet if a survey was done on the street hardly anyone would have a clue about it.

Regards Jackie

I fully agree with you SandC,but if the TO has different rules to the country you are visiting the onus is on them to clearly explain this in their brochure and not for us to guess their rules.The passport office doenst know TO rules.

Some tour operators must have this rule just in case - they are maybe not sure so make a blanket ruling on it.

Although I do get the OPs point of view on this, not everyone is like me and finds out as much as possible about where I'm going, read all small print over and over just for the heck of it, etc. I have done this since I was a teenager, kept my parents informed and long before we had computers, as it's all part of the holiday experience for me, whereas for a teenage lad I guess it's a different story.

I reckon what the passport office should do when sending out new passports is include relevant information on an enclosed leaflet, but all they can do is point you in the direction of where you can find all the ins and outs of a particular destination not actually provide a full listing of everything you might need to know but haven't thought to ask. You know, provide website addresses and telephone numbers for travel advice.

I just fired an email off to Virgin Holidays and asked them for the reason of this policy.

Their booking conditions clearly state that it is down to the traveller to check local immigration requirements and have the appropriate passport/visas whilst on the other hand they are saying that a passport still needs to be valid 6 months beyond the travel dates irrespective of the local immigration policy.

This is what the FAQ says (click here):

You must have a FULL and VALID passport to visit the destinations we feature on this website. It needs to be valid for 90 days from the date of departure. Also, please ensure that the names and initials on your flight tickets are the same as your passport.

This is what their T&C's say (click here):

All passport, visa, travel insurance and health certificate requirements are your responsibility and Virgin Holidays accept no responsibility for any delay or expense incurred through any irregularity in your documents. You are advised to contct us for exact details. In the event we are asked to re-issue tickets that have been lost, destroyed or stolen and we agree to do so, any charges incurred as a result of this will be payable by you.

Why their T&C's don't say a minimum 6 months validity beats me.

Mark

Passports & Visas

Passports

If you wish to travel abroad you must hold a full ten-year passport, even for a day trip. Apply in good time. In the UK, you can get advice from the UK Passport Service website or call them on 0870 521 0410 (lines are open 24 hours a day and calls are charged at the national rate).

Some countries have an immigration requirement for a passport to remain valid for a minimum period (usually at least six months) beyond the date of entry to the country. Therefore, ensure your passport is in good condition and valid for at least 6 months at the date of your return. This is a requirement of the country concerned, not the UK Passport Service. Any questions should be addressed to their Consulate or Embassy.

Outside the UK, you should get advice from the nearest British Embassy, High Commission or Consulate. Our staff can issue standard replacement passports in most places. However all missions are able to issue emergency passports if more appropriate.

So passport office advises you have at least 6 months left on your passport so you are covered in that respect.