UK passport questions, answered

An adult passport is issued for 10 years and a child passport for 5 years. A child passport covers anyone under 16. From 16, or within 3 weeks of turning 16, an adult passport applies instead.

No. If you applied to renew before September 2018, HM Passport Office added the unused months from your old passport to the new one, up to 9 months. It stopped adding them on 10 September 2018. The passport is genuine, but those extra months are the reason a passport can fail the European issue date rule while its expiry date still looks healthy.

Two sums, not one. Count forward from the date of issue to see whether the passport is under 10 years old, and count forward to the date of expiry to see how long the document itself has left. The checker does both against the rules for a chosen destination.

GOV.UK sets out two. Your passport must have a date of issue less than 10 years before the date you arrive, and an expiry date at least 3 months after the date you plan to leave the Schengen area. They are measured from different dates and a passport can fail one while passing the other. There is more detail in the article on the two rules.

After you leave. GOV.UK words it as at least 3 months after the date you plan to leave the Schengen area, so the longer your trip, the more validity you need on the day you set off.

Not for the Schengen area, where the published requirement is 3 months beyond your departure. Six months is a common requirement in other parts of the world, and some airlines apply their own stricter checks, so a bigger margin is safer even where it is not required.

Twenty-nine: 25 EU member states plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. Bulgaria and Romania joined fully on 1 January 2025. Cyprus is in the EU but not yet in Schengen, and Ireland has an opt-out.

No. Ireland is in the EU but not in the Schengen area, and GOV.UK states that Schengen rules do not apply there. British and Irish citizens travel freely under the Common Travel Area. A passport is not legally required to enter Ireland as a British national, but airlines and ferry operators set their own identification rules and some accept only a passport.

Up to 90 days in any 180 day period without a visa. Visits to Schengen countries in the 180 days before you travel count towards the total.

EES is the EU border system that registers non-EU travellers on short stays, recording name, travel document details, fingerprints, a facial image and the date and place of entry and exit. It started progressively on 12 October 2025 and became fully operational on 10 April 2026, replacing passport stamping. There is nothing to apply for and no fee. You register at the border, so allow extra time on a first crossing.

Not at the time of writing. The European Commission states that ETIAS is not in operation and that no applications are being collected, and that the EU will announce the start date several months before launch. Treat any site offering to sell you an ETIAS now with suspicion, and check the official EU page before believing a date.

HM Passport Office says you will usually get your passport within 3 weeks, and that the processing time starts when it receives your documents. It can take longer if more information is needed or an interview is required, and it says it will tell you within 3 weeks if that happens.

GOV.UK advises against it: do not book travel until you have a valid passport, because the new passport will not have the same number as the old one.

Yes. Since 10 September 2018 nothing is carried over, so the new passport runs 10 years, or 5 for a child, from its own issue date. Renewing a year early costs you that year.

Applying online, the published fees are £102 for an adult and £66.50 for a child, or £116 and £80.50 for the 54 page frequent traveller version. On a paper form it is £115.50 and £80, or £129.50 and £94 for 54 pages. Anyone born on or before 2 September 1929 pays nothing. Full detail is in the article on fees.

There are two appointment based services. The 1 day Premium service costs £239.50 and is only for renewing an adult passport. The 1 week Fast Track service costs £192 for an adult and £156.50 for a child and covers renewals, changes of personal details and replacements. Neither covers a first adult passport. See the article on urgent services.

HM Passport Office describes a damaged passport as one you cannot use as proof of identity because of its condition, and lists unreadable details, laminate lifting from the personal details page, missing or detached pages, and cuts to the front, back or details page. It treats legible details, intact binding and minor tears at the page edges as normal wear and tear. If it is damaged you must replace it, and you may not be able to travel with it.

No. Cancelling is permanent, and GOV.UK warns that you will be denied entry if you try to use a passport that has been reported lost or stolen. Apply for a replacement.

You may be able to apply for an emergency travel document, which costs £125 and is usually ready to collect 2 working days after applying. It is normally valid for one single or return journey through a maximum of 5 countries. GOV.UK notes that if you apply for one, you do not need to cancel your passport first.