Competitions Discussion Thread Part 3

isualive

I don't have a passport of any kind but if I win I could always fast track the application. To win a trip abroad would be great!

ginjim

you mabe dont need a pasport to travel in the EU but you do need one to get back to the UK.
i think they mayve just assume you have a UK pasport but most competiton are for UK residents

MeNikki

Hi afm,

good to know I'm not the only one :-)

For travel within Europe you will need a valid photo ID, seeing as UK doesn't have ID cards yet, that means for most people a passport. I believe that certain airline companies won't accept driver's license with photo anymore.

I'd love to get an ID card, but as I live 'abroad', I cannot apply for one :-(

MeNikki

Ginjim,

I believe that it is everyone's right to travel back to their country of 'nationality' without a valid travel document. So in my case I could always travel back to Germany.

and yes isualive, I would love to win a travel comp

meerustar

I travelled to Dublin with my drivers licence as my passport is still in my maiden name and I'm not renewing it until [STRIKE]I win a posh holiday [/STRIKE] I need to

LizB62

Unfortunately, it looks like we're going to need to use our passports to go to Ireland at some point - see here

It's really handy that we don't need to use passports at the moment - came in useful the other weekend when my Mum used her driving licence to go to Dublin, and luckily remembered to pick up her passport which she left behind on an airport coach on her previous trip

MeNikki - quick question: if it's our right to travel back to our country of nationality without a valid travel document, how do we prove what our country of nationality is to be allowed back in? Does that only really work with countries which have ID card? :beer:

MeNikki

HiLizB62

I am not too sure, but I think it involves a trip to for instance the British Embassy who will give you a piece of paper saying that your passport was stolen and that you are a UK citizen travelling back home.
You will usually have some form of document that can prove where you are from, eg credit card, travel insurance, etc

You cannot just show up at the check in desk saying you want to go home :-)

In the worst case scenario (passport gets lost/stolen on the way to the airport) airports usually have a police department that investigates and if enough proof can be given they can issue you with a document that will allow you to travel on your flight home. (happened to someone once sitting next to me in a plane back to the UK). However, as security tightens who knows what 'old' rules still apply....

I was once told at the airport when I travelled a day before the expiry date on my passport that after my passport expired, the only country I would be allowed to fly to would be Germany (even with an out of date passport). So they advised me to get in touch with a German Embassy to arrange for a replacement or a temporary passport in case I needed to fly soon again to anywhere other than Germany. In my case I was planning a prolonged stay so this wasn't an issue.

I think I would also be allowed to fly back to the UK if my passport were stolen if I can prove that I live here, but am not 100% about that....it luckily has never happened yet (touching wood).

However, as so many things changed during recent times, rules have become stricter.

I miss having an ID card though, they are handy.

In Spain for instance you cannot pay with a credit card without showing an ID card or passport. So you always need to carry proof of ID with you. I would often much rather leave my passport in a safe place and take an ID card with me.

Anyway I believe the rule was put in place so that people wouldn't be stuck in a foreign country if anything happened to their passports.

webitha

ive only just started posting comps
and not very puter literate so if i make a few gaffs on the way, please forgive and bare with me

chickaroonee

welcome to the forum!

We all get things a bit muddled now and again, but it all adds to the fun!

I did have a little chuckle though at baring with you! :rotfl:

ginjim

i thought it was a comp to a nudist camp