{"id":17501,"date":"2021-09-30T15:01:42","date_gmt":"2021-09-30T15:01:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/factcheckni.org\/?p=17501"},"modified":"2022-02-26T00:01:08","modified_gmt":"2022-02-26T00:01:08","slug":"are-extra-months-on-pre-brexit-uk-passports-no-longer-valid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/factcheckni.org\/topics\/europe\/are-extra-months-on-pre-brexit-uk-passports-no-longer-valid\/","title":{"rendered":"Are ‘extra months’ on pre-Brexit UK passports no longer valid?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

British passports used to visit the European Union or the Schengen Area following the end of the Brexit transition period must be less than 10 years old on the day the traveller leaves. However, this rule only applies for travel to the European Union or the Schengen Area; the rules for travel to the rest of the world are unchanged, and the new rules do not apply for travel to Ireland.<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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An Instagram post<\/a> claimed that if a UK passport issued before the UK left the EU had additional months for its validity, then those extra months are no longer valid. The post included an example of a passport issued on 21 June 2012, with an expiry date of 21 December 2012; the revised expiry date is 21 June 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Extra months<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

If a British passport holder renews their passport before the current passport expires, extra months may be added to the expiry date of the new passport<\/a> (so it expires 10 years after the expiry of the old passport, but is issued and valid before the old passport expires). This means that a standard 10-year passport may have more than 10 years between the issue date and the expiry date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Post-Brexit retrospective changes<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before the United Kingdom left the European Union on 31 January 2020, and during the transition period that ended on 31 December 2020, British passports were accepted for travel to all other countries in the European Union regardless of the duration of the passport or the amount of time remaining before the expiry of the passport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, following the end of the Brexit transition period, UK passport holders are now treated as third country nationals<\/a>, and therefore the rules for British passport holders have changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Title II, Chapter I, Article 6 of the Schengen Borders Code<\/a>, third party nationals may only be admitted to the Schengen Area if the validity of the passport has been \u201cissued within the previous 10 years\u201d, and the passport validity extends at least three months after the intended date of departure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In effect, this means that a passport cannot be used for travel to the European Union or Schengen Area if more than ten years has elapsed since the passport was issued. However, this rule does not apply for travel to Ireland<\/a>. The rules for travel to the rest of the world using British passports have not changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Post-Brexit UK passports<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n

British government advice for travel to Europe states<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We recommend that on the day you travel you have at least 6 months left on your passport. This allows for:<\/i><\/p>\n\n\n\n