Brexit changes
 

The UK Passport Agency has changed to rules regarding replacing your passport.
Previously, you could renew your UK passport up to 9 months before the expiry date and still maintain the original 10-year expiry date.
This is no longer the case.
Now, when you renew your passport the new expiry date will be 10 years from the renewal date.

When the UK leaves the EU transition period, the UK will be regarded as a "third country" and those entering the Shengen area will need to have a passport with 6 months validity remaining.
This also applies to UK children,
This would be particularly important for those who travel frequently between the UK and the EU.

Similarly, EU citizens and citizens of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland will no longer be able to use their identity cards to enter the UK from 1st October 2021.
They will require an appropriate passport.
EU citizens who have settled status in the UK can continue to use their national ID card to enter the UK until at least 31 December 2025.

Post Brexit requirements for entering the UK

My understanding is that this will not apply to the Republic of Ireland with whom we share a Common Travel Area - and of course we can't have passport checks at the North-South border in Ireland.

Re: Brexit changes
 

Thanks for this.
My understanding is in the event of a no-deal exit, after the transition period we'll still probably have to change our blue passports for a red non-EU version. And my last one renewed 2 years ago didn't exactly come cheap.

Re: Brexit changes
 

https://assets.publishing.service.go..._nationals.pdf
"The colour or the wording ‘European Union’ does not affect the validity of UK passports: these will be valid until their expiry date."

I don't see why the success or failure in negotiating a trade deal, would affect individuals' passports.

Still it is a sneaky way of collecting more passport renewal fees because in effect passports will only be useable for a maximum of 9 years 6 months not 10 years.

Brexit, the gift that just keeps on taking.

Re: Brexit changes
 

Not "will" but "may".
If you don't need to travel within the last 6 months of your passport then you can wait until your expiry date before renewing.
The reason is that for some countries, the requirement is to hold a passport that has been "issued" within the 10-year period.

Re: Brexit changes
 

Just for completeness' sake, this has actually been the case for a couple of years already.

I last renewed at the end of last year, as I was in the throes of making plans for trips in the spring and my passport was due to expire at the tail end of March - I didn't want to have to be thinking about what dates to avoid or what I couldn't plan not knowing the backlog for renewals. It came back with issue date December 2019, expiry date December 2029, so I "lost" almost 4 months.

On the plus side, it is a burgundy one, though, even if it doesn't have the words "European Union" on it.

Re: Brexit changes
 

Yes indeed - the rules changed in 2018 but I posted the information because of the change affecting the requirement to have 6 months validity when entering the EU next year.
I last renewed my passport 8 years ago and I was unaware of the change in policy.
I suspect that I am not alone.
;)

Re: Brexit changes
 

Understood.

I bet there'll still be some potential in that for years to come unless booking procedures are changed to prevent the possibility of unfortunate scenes at points of departure and / or arrival...

Re: Brexit changes
 

I see today a historic post-Brexit deal has just been reached with the EU. It's good to report some good news for a change! Details of the trade deal are still filtering through this afternoon.......
https://uk.yahoo.com/finance/news/br...150016549.html

Re: Brexit changes
 

More about the deal here https://ec.europa.eu/info/european-u...ed-kingdom_en?

Re: Brexit changes
 

Sounds like in essence trade will be without tariffs. Not sure if there are any caveats, but it sounds like good news.
Happy Christmas everyone!

Re: Brexit changes
 

It will probably take months before we will fully understand the implications of this deal. I must have read somewhere that the full text is around 2000 pages long!

Re: Brexit changes
 

I think the news, as far as we know it, is excellent. Congratulations to Boris for sticking to his guns and getting Britain a very good deal.

Re: Brexit changes
 

On the face of it, I agree, it seems like good news, but with just a few days left, the pandemic still on our doorstep, the holiday season and a 2000 page document to be deciphered, it's rather a lot to throw at the door of businesses with no time to prepare.

Re: Brexit changes
 

'The devil is in the detail'. We shall see what the deal is but I, for one, am very pleased with what has been reported. I think it is the best the U.K. can get and as regards fishing; well we don't have a fleet big enough to catch all the fish at the moment anyway so the moaning by some fishermen seems rather pointless.

Slightly off subject but has anyone any information regarding crossing the frontier into Spain? I'm sure I caught on the news this morning (BFM) that an attestation is now required to cross the frontier.

Re: Brexit changes
 

This is not good news at all, it's just better than the total cluster f**** that would have been a no-deal catastrophe. It's the thinnest of thin deals. I will lose the right to live, work and study in Europe. My kids don't have the right to participate in the Erasmus scheme any more. I can't take my pet dog to Europe easily anymore. There are loads of new restrictions on trade - for example, we can't sell seed potatoes to Europe anymore. The deal doesn't address free provision of services - 80% of the UK economy, £353 billion per year, is service based. There will be loads of other problems that only come out in time.

But at least we're getting back 25% of our fishing quota next year so we can sell that same fish back into Europe.

For reference, here is what Johnson promised in 2016 (reference: https://www.boris-johnson.org.uk/new...always-will-be)

"British people will still be able to go and work in the EU; to live; to travel; to study; to buy homes and to settle down ... there will continue to be free trade, and access to the single market.... The only change – and it will not come in any great rush – is that the UK will extricate itself from the EU’s extraordinary and opaque system of legislation..."

As far as I can see, every single one of those "promises" has proven to be wholly false, apart from things not happening quickly.