Tom Ewart Smith
BRITS planning a holiday to Spain this summer are being urged to double-check their passport validity to avoid being turned away at the border.
Since the UK officially left the European Union, British passport holders are now considered ‘third-country nationals’ under EU and Schengen rules.
This means stricter requirements apply, especially for those travelling to popular destinations such as Mallorca or the Costa del Sol.
To enter Spain or any other EU or Schengen country, your passport must have been issued within the last 10 years from your date of departure, and be valid for at least three months beyond your planned return date.
This is particularly important for anyone still using the older burgundy passports.
Before 2018, the UK passport office sometimes added up to nine extra months from a previous passport onto the new one – meaning some documents technically valid for over 10 years could still fail to meet EU entry requirements.
While these passports may be fine for travel elsewhere, they are not accepted in the EU if they breach either of the two rules above.
Anyone needing a new passport is also advised to apply well in advance.
Those who leave it too late risk paying an extra £12.50 for an urgent application to ensure they can travel.
And once you’ve cleared border control, new security requirements await on the ground.
When booking accommodation or hiring a car in Spain, British travellers must now provide more personal information than in previous years.
This includes gender, nationality, date of birth, home address, phone numbers, payment details, and even the relationship to any children under 14 in their group.
