** ALL ** Passport Related Questions in here! Please Read Post#1 first!

endofrainbow

Customs will have nothing to do with Passport eligibility

MagicMarker

Immigration then, whichever.

http://www.worldtravelguide.net/brazil/passport-visa

"To enter Brazil, a passport valid for at least six months from the date of entry is require"

For Argentina the same website says it should be valid for the length of stay.

coylemj wrote: »

If you're passing through a Brazil airport on an international flight and are restricted to the transit area then you won't be 'entering Brazil' so it won't matter how many months are remaining on your passport.

Yes this was my thinking too.

Fred Swanson

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Marcusm

fxotoole wrote: »

The selfie from the app will be compared with existing photos using photo matching technology.

The theory is that so long as that data you provide via the app matches what you wrote on the form when you applied for your full passport, then there will be no checks to be done, as you will already have been checked out and approved for a passport.

This seems to be silly given that it would be easier to simply produce it using the same photo. There is no sensible reason for permitting selfie style photos other than a fashion for technology. Given how backward the existing application system is - eg an inability to print off a pdf form or an ability to eliminate questionable handwritten applications by populating a form online to be printed off and submitted - this sounds like a faddish waste of resources which could lead to identity theft down the line.

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

+1.

Marcusm

MagicMarker wrote: »

I'm heading to Argentina in June, and from what I can find online my passport only needs to be valid for the time I spend there. However on the way back there's a short stopover in Brazil, and again from reading online it appears a passport requires to be valid for at least 6 months when 'entering Brazil', mine won't be valid for that long.

I'm wondering can I get away with that? Considering I'll be in the transit area, and won't actually be going through customs?

Thanks

Brazilians, for all their famed laid back culture, suffer under one of the most jobsworth bureaucracies in the world. A failure to be able to tick the appropriate box can be costly. Even if you are correct, you might find that you are denied boarding at the Argentinean departure point by a check in agent who is either unfamiliar with the rules or unfamiliar with the layout of the particular Brazilian airport you're travelling to. Given the time you have, I'd renew my passport before travelling. Not sure how much validity it has at present but if it's already under 6 months then you don't need to surrender it for renewal meaning that you can always revert to your original plan if there's a hold up in the Passpirt Office.

JohnMearsheimer

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

The taking of your own photo could just be for verification purposes, making sure the picture of the person submitting the application for the passport card and the picture of the passport holder are the same. Ideally the passport photo would be used on the passport card.

MagicMarker

I called Lufthansa and they said that for international travel a minimum of 6 months validity is required. I can't find any information about that on their website though. You'd think this kind of thing would be made absolutely crystal clear from the outset.

Looks like I'll have to renew.

Marcusm wrote: »

Brazilians, for all their famed laid back culture, suffer under one of the most jobsworth bureaucracies in the world. A failure to be able to tick the appropriate box can be costly. Even if you are correct, you might find that you are denied boarding at the Argentinean departure point by a check in agent who is either unfamiliar with the rules or unfamiliar with the layout of the particular Brazilian airport you're travelling to. Given the time you have, I'd renew my passport before travelling. Not sure how much validity it has at present but if it's already under 6 months then you don't need to surrender it for renewal meaning that you can always revert to your original plan if there's a hold up in the Passpirt Office.

I travel in 7 weeks, the passport expires 20/10, so will be within 6 months validity from tomorrow.

steve-o

MagicMarker wrote: »

I called Lufthansa and they said that for international travel a minimum of 6 months validity is required.

That's such a vague statement I suspect the person was making it up or using a standard response to cover their ass. I'd never trust someone in a call centre to give a correct answer.

If you are connecting between international flights in the same airport then you are unlikely to go near immigration (only a few oddball countries like the US and Ireland make international connecting passengers pass through immigration).

The airlines mostly use Timatic which is the definitive authority. You can check it here yourself... http://www.staralliance.com/en/services/visa-and-health/. Even if you had to enter Brazil there is no 6 month validity requirement mentioned.

MagicMarker

Yeah I have a hard time trusting call centre staff myself. I'll ring the embassies tomorrow to make sure.

I'd never heard of Timatic, it does seem to be the authority on the subject. That link is great. You can also get a free trial on the main page - http://www.timaticweb2.com, which asks for more detail. It confirms my passport is valid for the trip.

Fred Swanson

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Marcusm

MagicMarker wrote: »

Yeah I have a hard time trusting call centre staff myself. I'll ring the embassies tomorrow to make sure.

I'd never heard of Timatic, it does seem to be the authority on the subject. That link is great. You can also get a free trial on the main page - http://www.timaticweb2.com, which asks for more detail. It confirms my passport is valid for the trip.

Given the time available to get a new one, I think you're being a bit trusting. Call centre staff can give incorrect answers as can check in staff even with access to these systems - if you have ever seen it as it appears on their systems - generally old style plain text.

Personally I would not risk it in the circumstances outlined (time to get new passport, no need to surrender existing passport, bureaucratic countries) unless I was fluent in all the possible native languages (Castillian, Portuguese, German) and happy to deal with the hassle.

Marcusm

Fred Swanson wrote: »

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You're still entitled to enter provided it is valid on that day. I'd be surprised if they checked expiration dates on intra EU travel. Certainly, each time I have crossed EU passport control, they're rarely bothered even to glance at the page long enough to recognise the country.

JohnMearsheimer

MagicMarker wrote: »

I called Lufthansa and they said that for international travel a minimum of 6 months validity is required. I can't find any information about that on their website though. You'd think this kind of thing would be made absolutely crystal clear from the outset.

Looks like I'll have to renew.



I travel in 7 weeks, the passport expires 20/10, so will be within 6 months validity from tomorrow.

If you do decide to apply for a new passport do it sooner rather than later. May is the busiest month for passport applications. You can keep your passport as well. You can just scan the ID page of your current passport and send that in. You're allowed do that if your passport is within 6 months of expiring.

Fred Swanson

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MagicMarker

Marcusm wrote: »

You're still entitled to enter provided it is valid on that day. I'd be surprised if they checked expiration dates on intra EU travel. Certainly, each time I have crossed EU passport control, they're rarely bothered even to glance at the page long enough to recognise the country.

I will contact the Argentine/Brazil embassies to confirm the required passport validity upon entering the country/transit area. If they say I'm fine as is then I will contact Lufthansa again to see what the story is re the international travel.

If I get confirmation from everyone that I'm fine with the passport I have then I'll risk it. If some check in person gets it wrong then that's their problem, and I'll deal with it when/if the time comes. I shouldn't have to pay 80 quid for a new passport if the one I have is sufficient!

JohnMearsheimer wrote: »

If you do decide to apply for a new passport do it sooner rather than later. May is the busiest month for passport applications. You can keep your passport as well. You can just scan the ID page of your current passport and send that in. You're allowed do that if your passport is within 6 months of expiring.

Yeah I hear ya. I'd rather keep hold of my passport if it turns out I do need to renew it. Mine actually expires on the 28/10, not the 20th like I said earlier, so to be able to keep it I'll need to hold off on applying for a renewal until the 28th of this month. So if need be I'll get it all ready for then, and have it signed/witnessed on the 28th/29th and I'll get to the post office straight away!! I think 5 weeks should be plenty of time.

Marcusm

MagicMarker wrote: »

I will contact the Argentine/Brazil embassies to confirm the required passport validity upon entering the country/transit area. If they say I'm fine as is then I will contact Lufthansa again to see what the story is re the international travel.

If I get confirmation from everyone that I'm fine with the passport I have then I'll risk it. If some check in person gets it wrong then that's their problem, and I'll deal with it when/if the time comes. I shouldn't have to pay 80 quid for a new passport if the one I have is sufficient!.

I understand the desire to limit expenses but in the context of such a trip, it is a very small item. I'm unsure what experience you have of travel but I have to say your faith in the "rules" or view of embassy or head office staff is naive. In many locations, the staff you will encounter will be familiar only with the "rules" as they or their colleagues may interpret them. It would be a minor cost compared to that which might arise when denied boarding - even if you recover the cost later, you may find that the immediate call on your pocket to rearrange travel will be extortionate.

MagicMarker

Well, Argentine embassy said six months, so new passport it is.

Reiketsu

For future reference for others - they do not accept UK Citizencards as photographic ID. Just got a phonecall to let me know but only after following it up. My passport had been at stage 2 for three weeks and target issue date is today. I forgot to ask on the phone but when you receive the letter, can the witness be someone else rather than the person on your application?

seamus1980

Hi all,I am goin to Italy on the 27 of may for 1 week,My passport expires on the 14 of july 2015,Will i need a new passport?Any help would be great.Thanks all

Fred Swanson

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giftgrub

Hi

New to this part of Boards

The wife is heading off on the 7th of May to Rome
Passport express tracker says her application is at stage 2 of 6 and the expected date is....the 7th of May.
Should we be worried? and is there any way to speed it up?

Cheers

JohnMearsheimer

giftgrub wrote: »

Hi

New to this part of Boards

The wife is heading off on the 7th of May to Rome
Passport express tracker says her application is at stage 2 of 6 and the expected date is....the 7th of May.
Should we be worried? and is there any way to speed it up?

Cheers

Get her to send in her proof of travel.

Malee

giftgrub wrote: »

Hi

New to this part of Boards

The wife is heading off on the 7th of May to Rome
Passport express tracker says her application is at stage 2 of 6 and the expected date is....the 7th of May.
Should we be worried? and is there any way to speed it up?

Cheers

Think they are issuing 6th now, so should be OK. I'd say wait till next week, if no movement ring them and scan/e-mail/fax a copy of your tickets and they'll do what they can.

polydactyl

Trying to get photo of one year old for passport application. Trouble is the only ones where she is looking directly at the camera she is smiling with her mouth open. Is this definitely a no no for infant passports too?

JohnMearsheimer

polydactyl wrote: »

Trying to get photo of one year old for passport application. Trouble is the only ones where she is looking directly at the camera she is smiling with her mouth open. Is this definitely a no no for infant passports too?

Biometrics don't really apply for children that young. There a is a lot of leeway given for baby photos.

polydactyl

Thanks!! Will try it so

damianmcr

Hi applying for a passport soon as I lost mine in a recent home move. Is it as simple as writing this in section 6 or would they expect more?

I will send of my drivers licence for photo identification, bank statement for address confirmation but you also need something which uses your name which cant be the above two. My wage slips on show my initial and surname. Would this suffice or would they refuse on this basis?

Thanks

JohnMearsheimer

damianmcr wrote: »

Hi applying for a passport soon as I lost mine in a recent home move. Is it as simple as writing this in section 6 or would they expect more?

I will send of my drivers licence for photo identification, bank statement for address confirmation but you also need something which uses your name which cant be the above two. My wage slips on show my initial and surname. Would this suffice or would they refuse on this basis?

Thanks

Proof of name has to show the name you will have on your passport. An initial could stand for anything. You can send in stuff from revenue, social welfare, insurance docs, credit card statements etc. for proof of name. They all have to be originals, no photocopies.

damianmcr

Insurance documents! Good call. Completely forgot. Pity all three things show the same name and address!

JohnMearsheimer

damianmcr wrote: »

Insurance documents! Good call. Completely forgot. Pity all three things show the same name and address!

Forgot to say you also need your birth cert. I think as well when you lose a passport the name be appear on your new passport can't be different from the name on your last passport.