BRITS have been urged to renew their passports today if they don't want their holidays to be ruined this summer. People have already started jetting off on their holidays, but some could be in for a nasty shock if their passports don't meet the necessary requirements. To prevent that from happening, the Post Office has announced a 'Check Your Passport Day' today (June 13) to minimise the amount of people whose expired passports deny them a sunny break.
The initiative provides holidaymakers with a timely reminder, marking six weeks before the onset of peak summer international travel. This provides travellers with enough time to renew their documents , or factor in additional checks that may be required if applying for a first-time passport before travelling. Official government guidance is three weeks for a standard passport renewal, but this could take longer if applying for the first time.
Post Office research has revealed that more than a third of UK passport holders (36 per cent) are unaware of their passport expiry date without having to check. Meanwhile, a quarter (26 per cent) of respondents have forgotten to renew their passports before it expired at least once, while 12 per cent say they never renew their passport before the expiry date. Seven in ten (69 per cent) respondents agree that there should be more awareness or reminders when it comes to passport expiry and renewal.
That has led to the Post Office's campaign, designed to raise awareness to ensure the public .
