Why you should renew your passport right now – or risk ruining your hols
IF you're planning your next holiday already, you may want to think about renewing your passport already.
A number of people have already been caught out by confusing new rules, as well as long wait times.
The current rules no longer allow Brits to have more than 10 years on their passport.
Previous rules allowed anyone with up to 10 months left on their old documents to roll them over - meaning they had 10 years and 10 months on them.
Those additional months are no longer valid, and a number of holidaymakers have been caught out by this.
For example, if your passport has a start date of November 2013 but an expiry date of May 2023, it may not be valid depending on where you are travelling to.
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Not only that, but destinations in Europe require at least three months to be left on the passport, while others outside of the EU can require up to six months.
And with Christmas and New Year a popular holiday time, this could mean your passport takes longer to get back.
The UK passport office has previously warned that "during busy times, including the run-up to Christmas and school holidays, waiting times can be longer".
Therefore Brits who need a new passport are advised to apply now, to avoid this long wait.
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With the busiest time being months such as January for the early year, May-August for the summer holidays, and December for Christmas holidays, the autumn is seen as the best time.
This means October to November can be the ideal time for the shortest time to get a new passport.
Earlier this year, families were waiting as long as 10 weeks to get their passports back, with some even waiting months.
The Sun Travel team recently tried out the passport renewal system - and received their new ones back within two weeks.
Passport renewals cost £82.50 online, although cost £93 if you apply by paper form.
Kid's passports cost £53.50 and £64 by post.
If you need a new passport urgently, you can apply for a Fast Track Renewal.
This costs £155 for an adult passport or £126 for a child passport.
Some people are also opting for larger passports, with the current rules requiring any European destination to issue a stamp, although bigger passports also cost more.
