Passport expiry after travel to Ireland

Spitfiresteve

My wife and I are going to Ireland in June and will be travelling back on 18th June. Our passports expire on 27th June and although we don’t currently need a passport for entering Ireland I’ve heard the airlines might need a passport as ID and may not accept ones that expire shortly after travel. Can anyone advise or help.

MattMattMattUK

Spitfiresteve said:

My wife and I are going to Ireland in June and will be travelling back on 18th June. Our passports expire on 27th June and although we don’t currently need a passport for entering Ireland I’ve heard the airlines might need a passport as ID and may not accept ones that expire shortly after travel. Can anyone advise or help.

Airlines publish their own rules that can and often do exceed the legal requirements to enter the country, so it would depend on which airline you are flying with. Why not just renew before and not take any risks? 

SiliconChip

You have 3 options:

1. Renew the passports in enough time to receive them before departure
2. Travel with the current passports and hope that there are no issues at check in
3. Find out from the airline what alternative ID to passports they accept and if you have something suitable travel with that - I'm unclear how coming back into the UK from Ireland with a passport due to expire shortly works

I'd go for option 1 myself.

Veteransaver

Returning from Ireland you definitely don't go through passport control on UK side.
You should check with airline though. 

Caz3121

Ryanair insist on passport between UK and Ireland (no exceptions) other airlines may accept other id 

Barkin

Renew now.

I've travelled with airlines that insist on 6 months validity in order to fly. You may not have plans to travel elsewhere right now, but within the next few months... 

You'd be sacrificing <6 months of your current passport's validity, so ~4 quids worth.

For peace of mind, I know what I'd do. 

Voyager2002

Have you already bought your air tickets? If so, visit the website of your airline or even telephone them. Otherwise:
1. Consider travelling by ferry (perhaps with connecting bus or train) so that if you are British or Irish you would not need passports;
2. Visit the websites of each of the airlines that you might use to see what ID they require. 

I am reasonably confident that valid passports are all that you need, but it is up to you to check.

bagand96

I would not be in a rush to renew the passport unless you absolutely need to. As you say a passport is not even required for British and Irish citizens travelling between the two countries under the Common Travel Area. Both Governments say they may need to check ID/nationality so carrying photo ID is advised.

As rightly pointed out above the airline will also have their own requirements - all airlines will need to see photo ID.  Ryanair are very specific that they only accept valid passports or National ID cards:

What travel documents are valid and can be used for travel on Ryanair flights?

When travelling with Ryanair, we generally accept 2 forms of ID:

• A valid passport;
• A valid National Identity Card.

We do not accept a driver's license or birth certificate for travel to any location. It is each passenger’s responsibility to carry Photo ID which meets our requirements and the requirements of the relevant Immigration Authority.

There are different rules for different destinations, so please be sure to check these before you travel.

Aer Lingus on the other hand are a bit more flexible

Travel to and from Britain

Before leaving home for your trip between Britain and Ireland or within Ireland, make sure you’ve got the right identification. Find out what you need to bring right here.

Acceptable Identification

If you’re a citizen of Ireland and/or Britain, you need to carry some form of official photo identification in order to be able to fly with us.

Note: To travel between Ireland and Britain with photo identification other than a passport, you must be a citizen of either country.

The following forms of photo identification are acceptable once they are in date:

• Valid passport or Irish passport card
• Driver’s licence with photo
• International student card
• Government issued photo ID cards
• Health insurance cards with photo/social security cards with photo
• Bus pass with photo
• Work ID with photo.

Citizens of Ireland and Britain under the age of 16 don’t need a photo ID if travelling with their parent/guardian.

Citizens of countries other than Ireland and Britain must produce a valid passport and visa where applicable for travel between Ireland and Britain.

Trying to think of any other airlines operating between UK-Eire, must have missed one or two.

Even Ryanair who are the strictest only require a valid passport. And yours will be valid.

eDicky

Spitfiresteve said:

 may not accept ones that expire shortly after travel. Can anyone advise or help.

Disregard such a possibility, your  passports will be valid at the time of your flight and there's no chance of remaining on board until after they expire.

Spitfiresteve

Thanks everyone, we may not be holidaying abroad after the visit to Ireland so don’t want to spend around £160 for two renewals if I don’t need to. Probably flying Aer Lingus so will check with them.