At this point most travelers have figured out that passports are generally required for all foreign travel by air. (The passport card, valid to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean, is only valid for ground or sea transportation.)
On the other hand, sometimes a valid passport isn’t enough. As a traveler found out this week when he tried to fly from San Francisco to Panama City.
The gentleman in question had assured his assistant that he and his wife had valid passports. Technically, his passport was valid. But, it expires in November of this year — about six weeks from the date of his travel.
When he got to the airport, Continental Airlines noticed this, and denied him boarding. Because Panama requires that passports be valid for three months beyond the date of arrival.
As this turns out it could have been worse; he was able to get a same-day morning appointment at the passport office in San Francisco. Plus, Continental rebooked both him and his wife for a late afternoon flight to Houston and a morning flight on to Panama. Had he lived any real distance from a passport office, or had he been flying around a holiday when the flights were heavily booked, this situation would have been a different story and real travel disaster.
I generally tell people to travel with at least six months validity on their passports to avoid just this sort of issue, but apparently the message didn’t get delivered. Or, this client didn’t check the date, an easy mistake to make. The busier people get, the more it seems like time really flies. It can feel like you just renewed something, when it’s been years.
Making matters a bit more complex, rules on passport validity vary by country. Panama, as noted, wants three months validity after arrival date. However, many countries, including England want six months. Other countries can put their own twist on the rules. South Africa, for example, wants a passport to be valid 30 days after scheduled departure from the country.
Another issue is that some countries, South Africa again for example, want blank pages in a passport for their immigration officers either to stamp or in which to place a visa. (I’ve heard apochyphal evidence that this blank page rule depends upon who you get, and that officers are tighter than than others, but it’s advantageous not to have a trip dependent on someone’s loose interpretation of the rules.)
The rules can change, too.
The best advice is before going overseas, even if you think you know, double check. If you check online, be careful to find an up-to-date site. Visa services and travel agents also have current information, although, most agents will only give advice to travelers who have purchased tickets with them.
As to expiration dates, my general rule of advice is once you get down to the last year of your passport eligibility, start looking at a good window for renewal. If you plan to renew through the standard system, it will mean allowing 3-4 weeks at least for passport return. Err on the side of caution.
If you’re not quite sure when your passport expires, take a quick look right now. A few minutes now could save hours of angst and problems later.
Janice Hough is a California-based travel agent a travel blogger and a part-time comedy writer. A frequent flier herself, she’s been doing battle with airlines, hotels, and other travel companies for over three decades. Besides writing for Travelers United, Janice has a humor blog at Leftcoastsportsbabe.com (Warning, the political and sports humor therein does not represent the views of anyone but herself.)
