Passports: what Sheffield travellers need to know if they are planning a trip abroad amidst UK passport delays

Since Brexit, the passport rules for British visitors to the European Union have been tightened up.

Many travellers don’t understand the new rules, and are finding themselves thousands of pounds out of pocket when they are banned from boarding flights at the very last minute.

Summer 2022 will see many Brits booking much-needed holidays to European destinations for the first time since the pandemic began two years ago.

So what exactly are the rules for British travellers, and how can you avoid any passport issues?

What are the post-Brexit travel rules?

Before Brexit took place, British passports would remain valid up to, and including the expiry date for travel within the EU.

But since the end of the Brexit transition, British passport holders are being treated as non-EU nationals, and are given additional travel conditions in regard to passport issue dates and expiry dates.

As well as limits on the length of time you can stay in a European country, for your holiday.

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If travelling to Europe you must meet two key requirements as outlined on the EU’s Your Europe website.

If you are a non-EU national wishing to visit or travel within the EU, you will need a passport:

- valid for at least three months after the date you intend to leave the EU country you are visiting

- which was issued within the previous 10 years

Before you intend to book a holiday, you should check your passport’s date of issue to see whether you need to renew your passport.

Even if the passport appears within the date, it still needs to have been issued in the past 10 years.

Why is there a delay on passports?

People who have booked holidays for over the summer have been warned to check if their passports need to be renewed as soon as possible, as there are fears of an extensive backlog in processing applications.

This is due to the recent claim that more than five million people didn't renew their passports in 2020 and 2021 - during the peak of the pandemic.

According to Her Majesty’s Passport Office, the processing time for new passports is 10 weeks. However, members of the government have warned that this is unreliable, and realistically processing time will take longer. MPs also claim that the issue was entirely 'foreseeable'.

Brits have been rushing to the Government's fast-track passport service, which has been showing regular error messages lately, due to the website experiencing high demand.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that the passport will be processed and back with you within the stated ‘one week’. It is a risk, as the service is almost double the price of the usual £75.50 cost.

The delay is causing chaos for many who are still yet to receive their passports for much needed holidays, despite applying for them months ago.