IMDonehere

My passport expires in November and we will be going to Belgium and the Netherlands in May. I have heard many times the rumors that if your passport must be valid for at least six months to visit certain countries or return to the US.

I spoke the US passport bureau today. For Belgium and The Netherlands your passport must be valid for at least 90 days from date of entry of the first country. I assume that is because they are signees of the Schengen agreement.

You can return to the US until the day of expiration.

It clarified wrong impressions that I had.

janisj

Different countries have different requirements . . .

spaarne

<i>janisj on Jan 23, 14 at 5:59pm
Different countries have different requirements . . .</i>

E.g., the UK allows us USA Colonists to stay for six months. No Schengen there and probably never will be.

IMDonehere

That is why I specifically mentioned Belgium and the Netherlands and the Schengen agreement and did not make sweeping generalizations.

Robert2533

You generally run into two issues. One is when your passport expires, in this case it shouldn't be an issue since you can only stay for 90 days. The second is the number of pages or space left to stamp your passport, but that is about it.

Schengen requirements are all the same since you only receive one stamp on entry.

John

I found MOST of the time they don't even stamp your passport anymore!

IMDonehere

I guess it is like the IDP, you do not need it, until you need it.

Robert2533

I don't know where you've arrived in the EU lately John, but yes, your passport is always stamped at passport control when you first enter the Schengen zone. It's also stamped when departing the zone and entering into another country outside of the zone, say the UK.

No, it's not like the IDP. It's your passport. Without it, about the only place you can enter, or leave, is Russia or China, that is if you have State secrets to offer.

IMDonehere

Robert, I meant carrying it around on your person as you sight see. I started visiting Spain when Franco was alive and his Guardia Civil used to trudge up the aisles of the trains with their machine guns. I know the value of a passport.

Dukey1

My old passport was full of stamps and some of those stamps <B>overlapped and almost obliterated</B> older other ones and I still had a couple of blank pages left.

IMDonehere

The lack of stamps I would imagine would make it harder to gain entry into the Traveler's Century Club where you must visit at least 100 countries, territories, and islands to qualify for admittance.

sparkchaser

You can always ask for a stamp.

spaarne

<i>Robert2533 on Jan 23, 14 at 11:12pm
I don't know where you've arrived in the EU lately John, but yes, your passport is always stamped at passport control when you first enter the Schengen zone.</i>

I came and left through CDG a few years ago and didn't get a stamp in either direction.

Gretchen

I'm with the non-stamped for the most part.
There really isn't a "misunderstanding". Different countries have different requirements--and you might be denied getting on the plane in the US, in case someone on this side didn't get the correct memo.
why not just renew.

IMDonehere

Besides not stamping a passport, if you go to to the UK first, a non-Schengen country, but then to one who is part of it, they have never stamped the passport either.

jamikins

Weird my hubby got a stamp every time entering schengen and leaving schengen heading back to the UK!

Caliban

How about when we landed in Rome and the passport guy stamped everyone with no ink. Stamped but no impression!