Iregeo -- whether you are let in to a country is up to that country. It's up to France, whether they want your passport to be valid for a certain amount of time before they let you in the country. Or the UK or Germany or whereever. They are allowed to make and enforce whatever rules or regulations they want to without the US approving them.

As far as I know, the US doesn't care for how long your passport is valid when you travel as long as it is still valid when you return to the US. I do suspect you may have trouble upon return if your passport has expired.

I wholeheartedly agree with the other posters who suggested you really should just renew it....and would add that you should have done so before you get ready to leave. Even if I'm not planning to travel, I feel more comfortable keeping it up to date. Even if you planned to return prior to expiration, things happen. People have accidents or something else could happen to keep one out of the country longer than planned.

From what I have read, the country you are entering is concerned that if you are delayed in exiting their country, your passport will still be valid.

I would renew it too because of heightened security you never know, better to be safe than sorry.

(oiesz) 0

Thank you all. the issue arose because I decided on a last minute trip. I will definately renew on an expedited basis.

Iregeo, you've just validated why I always keep mine up to date.....you never know when you'll get an unplanned opportunity.

I even convinced my brother to get a passport a few years ago and he keeps it updated. He's never been out of the country and may never go.....but you just never know and it would be terrible to miss an opportunity because your passport wasn't ready to go when you were. :)

Expert advice is...you will be fine so long as your passport is valid for your stay. I should know I'm one of the people who lets you in!!

Lisa_B, presumably you are one of the people who lets passengers into the US - which may or may not be applicable to someone going to France.

Almost "Catch 22"! One site simply notes that a passport is required to enter UK. Visa information site says 'ample validity required'. I also seem to remember that it is possible to get a new passport at the US Embassy. Surprizingly there is no simple statement about passport validity requirement.

That might be because of the underlying general principle of the immigration rules that they have to be satisfied that you don't intend to settle, or to put it another way, there are no absolute rules guaranteeing entry or preventing refusal. Mind, it probably helps to look rich...

I remember reading a "Time Out New York" article on apartment swapping that a reporter for the magazine for the feature article got into London with an *expired* passport -- apparently the immigration officer didn't even bother checking if the passport is still valid.

I wouldn't recommend it, of course.

I would be with Willtravel on this one. Even if an official in a consulate tells you everything will be fine, it won't prevent the guy at the airport to tell you "he was wrong. You're going back to where you came on the next plane". So, I would definitely follow the official rules and have my passport renewed if necessary, advices to the contrary not withstanding.

My husband and I always renew our passports a minimum of 6 months PRIOR to expiration. Within 6 months, there are too many countries that won't allow you to enter (or obtain a visa) and you never know when you may need to travel on short notice.

Marion,
I understand your dilemma...my husband and I travel alot and he completely overlooked that fact that his passport (US) would expire within two months of our trip to Prague, England and Venice over the holidays.

At first I was so mad because he realized it at the last minute but he said he was sure it would be no problem despite the fact that the embassy websites said otherwise.

Others may say supercilously that they always renew their passports and I have always done so too...but it's a mistake that's easier to make than some assume.

Anyway, we went to Prague, London and Venice all by air and nobody batted an eyelash. Of course this doesn't mean that someone else wouldn't have a problem, or that it's a great idea, but in our case there was no difficulty entering any of the countries involved.

Hope that helps!

After reading all these opinions, I called the French Consulate in Miami where we live and the British Embassy in Washington. My husband's passport will expire 4 months after we return from London and Paris and I did not want a problem. We are leaving in two weeks so we needed to do something quick if we had to. Well, FYI the person from the French Consulate said absolutely there needs to be 6 months left on his passport to enter France. The British Embassy said as long as the passport is not expired for the lenghth of our trip, it will be fine. So, long story short, we fed exed overnight the passport application renewal with a return over night fed ex enclosed, and we should have it next week. Maybe this will help the next person. We have traveled all over the world and had never known of this policy of 6 months until expiration. The Fodors Message Board is indeed a valuable tool to avoid problems such as this. Thanks all who posted.

A friend of mine was detained enroute to Prague by British Airways. Her passport was going to expire in less than 3 months. They finally let her get on the plane to Prague, but they had taken her luggage off the plane, because of the detainment. Long story short - she was without luggage for 10 days, and BA was very rude & unapologetic. Better safe than sorry......

Don't assume that if no 6 month expire rule exist for one country it exists for another. The information is available, don't just take someones word.

I guess you are back now from your trip to London.
I presume everything was fine.

To WillTravel-Don't assume everyone here is from the US i am a Brit and as such that qualifies me to comment on her entry to the U.K only, not anyone elses postings, that may have tagged on

To lisa_b--It sounds like you work for UK customs. I will be travelling to the UK with 6 1/2 months left on my passport. I'm glad to know it will be OK for the UK, but do you know the requirements for Switzerland and France? Thanks.