Passports

DJ253147

This might seem like an obvious one with a fan base that travels a lot but I had this sudden thought recently to make sure these documents are in order especially post COVID where many haven't travelled internationally for some time.

curmudgeoness

Reminder again, people: If you have a US passport and are heading to Europe this summer, MAKE SURE that your passport is valid for AT LEAST six months after your stated/ intended return date, otherwise you will be put on the next flight back to the US; we learned this the hard way.

DJ253147

WOW I was not aware of that though unfortunately I’m not headed in that direction.

We’re in Canada and though we’re not planning on going to the US or Europe at least not as yet.

ceska

It seems stupid that a "valid" passport isn't always actually valid for travel. But the six-month rule is in effect in case a traveler has an emergency and/or is stranded, and their passport expires while out of the country. It's got to be very complicated to renew a passport while in another country and you don't have any other documentation with you. In that case, I don't know why they don't put that info on the actual passport. Just have the actual passport say "Expires 12 December 2024; must renew for travel before 12 June 2024." So that people are not caught off-guard.

https://thepointsguy.com/guide/complete-guide-to-the-six-month-passport-validity-rule/

curmudgeoness

ceska said:

It seems stupid that a "valid" passport isn't always actually valid for travel. But the six-month rule is in effect in case a traveler has an emergency and/or is stranded, and their passport expires while out of the country. It's got to be very complicated to renew a passport while in another country and you don't have any other documentation with you. In that case, I don't know why they don't put that info on the actual passport. Just have the actual passport say "Expires 12 December 2024; must renew for travel before 12 June 2024." So that people are not caught off-guard.

https://thepointsguy.com/guide/complete-guide-to-the-six-month-passport-validity-rule/

The nice German border guards told me that the policy was in place as retaliation against a similar US policy affecting residents of the Schengen region. I have no idea if this is true or not. The options presented to us were: I could go on alone; I could leave my husband in a holding cell and go to the US consulate and get an emergency passport for him -- but that would not be honored by the Scandinavian countries we also planned to visit; or we could get on the next flight back to the US. We went with that last option, and I cried most of the way back to Newark.

I also know that there were a number of people who should have noticed and stopped us before we boarded the flight to Europe (travel agency, every airline employee who checked our passports). But I'd really recommend checking your own passport before heading to the airport.

RatherStarved

DJ253147 said:

WOW I was not aware of that though unfortunately I’m not headed in that direction.

We’re in Canada and though we’re not planning on going to the US or Europe at least not as yet.

Pretty sure it’s the same for Canadians going to Europe.