Passport renewal

maggiesoop

Good morning all,

I booked flights to America departing 14 Dec 2012 with Barrhead Travel last week. At no time did the guy mention that passports had to be valid for at least 6 months when travelling to the US, it was pure coincidence that my brother mentioned it yesterday.

Now of course I'm thrown into a total panic! The passport office advises that it takes approx 4 weeks to get new passports (which would take us to the beginning of December...... ) then I have to apply to ESTA with the new passport number which takes a min of 4 days.. I dont want to take the risk of delay so will have to travel to Glasgow and use the Fast Track system which means we all have to be present. This means my son will have to travel down from Uni in Aberdeen and me from Edinburgh. I'm so annoyed at Barrhead not mentioning this I'm tempted to ask them to compensate me. What's your thoughts? And, am I panicking over nothing. Do you think there is enough time to do everything?

Thanks
Mags

bitterpill

dont know if passport office is busy just now, but when we applied for my dd passport in april it only took 13 days to come back. also we applied for ESTA's in march for me and OH and we got them straight away (went through the link on the main site)
HTH

(FYI it was glasgow passport office we used)

maggiesoop

That makes me feel a lot better, especially as we'd need to use Glasgow too. Dont you have to use the new passport numbers when applying for ESTA?

Peccary

I recently got mine back from Liverpool within a week of posting and the ESTA took a few days.

peachyprice

maggiesoop wrote: »

Good morning all,

I booked flights to America departing 14 Dec 2012 with Barrhead Travel last week. At no time did the guy mention that passports had to be valid for at least 6 months when travelling to the US, it was pure coincidence that my brother mentioned it yesterday.

They don't. Your brother is wrong.

Entry requirements


(back to top)
Entry Requirements - Passport Validity
Your passport must be valid for the proposed duration of your stay; you do not need any additional period of validity on your passport beyond this. However, it is always sensible to have a short period of extra validity on your passport in case of any unforeseen delays to your departure. You do not have to wait until your old passport expires to apply to renew it. Any time left on your old passport when you apply will be added to your new passport, up to a maximum of nine months. For passport applications in the UK, you should apply to the Identity and Passport Service.

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/north-central-america/united-states

jackieblack

peachyprice is correct

Your brother is wrong

headpin

Yep, peachyprice is correct.

Also I have applied for 4 ESTA's (first 2 were free, second 2 had to pay $14). Before someone asks, it is because had to renew passports. On all 4 occasions the approval has been instantaneous. I'm not saying that will always be the case, but I'd be surprised if it wasn't. Also been on line and updated information on where staying on subsequent visits. Again, no issues and always updated immediately with no delay.

maggiesoop

peachyprice wrote: »

They don't. Your brother is wrong.



http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/north-central-america/united-states

Yes, I did check on the Foreign Office's website after I spoke with my brother then sent an email querying it to Barrhead Tavel. I've cut & pasted his reply:

" You will need 6 months validity on your passport from the return date of travel so you will need to apply for new passports. "

So, who do I believe? Do I call the American Embassy, the Foreign Office, The Passport Office???? What a flipping hassle. I would have thought using a Travel Agent would have SAVED time not cost me it.
:mad:

Rant over....Thanks for all the replies.

pelirocco

There seems to be conflicting advice I had always been led to believe you needed 6 months , and when you google you seem to get more sites stating the 6 month rule

Caz3121

pelirocco wrote: »

There seems to be conflicting advice I had always been led to believe you needed 6 months , and when you google you seem to get more sites stating the 6 month rule

best to check official sites
http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/north-central-america/united-states

Entry Requirements - Passport Validity
Your passport must be valid for the proposed duration of your stay; you do not need any additional period of validity on your passport beyond this. However, it is always sensible to have a short period of extra validity on your passport in case of any unforeseen delays to your departure.

peachyprice

maggiesoop wrote: »

Yes, I did check on the Foreign Office's website after I spoke with my brother then sent an email querying it to Barrhead Tavel. I've cut & pasted his reply:

" You will need 6 months validity on your passport from the return date of travel so you will need to apply for new passports. "

So, who do I believe? Do I call the American Embassy, the Foreign Office, The Passport Office???? What a flipping hassle. I would have thought using a Travel Agent would have SAVED time not cost me it.
:mad:

Rant over....Thanks for all the replies.

It's common myth bandied around by travel agents, there are a few countries in the world, USA not being one of them, that requires time left on your passport, the travel agents err on the side of caution becuase they can't be bothered to check for individual bookings.

If it puts your mind at rest, renew, but it's not necessary.