Passport validity buffer check

Passport validity rules — common questions

What is the six-month passport rule?

Many countries require your passport to remain valid for at least six months beyond the day you enter — not just for the length of your trip. The rule is widespread across Asia (Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, China), the Middle East (UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt) and parts of Africa. Airlines enforce it at check-in because they are fined if they carry a passenger a country later refuses, so a passport that technically covers your travel dates but expires within six months of arrival can still get you turned away at the gate. Always count six months forward from your arrival date, not from your booking date.

How does the Schengen passport validity rule work?

For the 29-country Schengen area (France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece and most of continental Europe), two conditions apply under the Schengen Borders Code (Regulation (EU) 2016/399). Your passport must be valid for at least three months beyond the date you plan to leave the Schengen area, and it must have been issued within the previous ten years. The ten-year rule is the one most people miss: some older passports were issued with extra months added on, so a passport printed more than ten years ago can be rejected even if its printed expiry date is still in the future. Check both the issue date and the expiry date before you book.

My passport expires in four months — can I still travel?

It depends entirely on your destination. For a country with no buffer rule (the UK, Japan, Canada or Mexico for US passport holders), a passport valid through your travel dates is fine. For a six-month-rule destination, four months is not enough and you would be refused at check-in. For Schengen, four months of validity beyond your departure date passes the three-month test, but you should still confirm the passport was issued within the last ten years. Because the answer flips by destination, enter your real dates into the checker above rather than relying on a single rule of thumb.

Is the buffer counted from my arrival or my departure?

That varies by rule, which is why the same passport can pass one trip and fail another. The six-month rule is counted from your date of entry — the passport must be valid six months after you arrive. The Schengen three-month rule is counted from your planned departure from the Schengen area, so a longer stay pushes the required validity date further out. This checker uses the correct anchor for each destination automatically; if you don't enter a stay length for a Schengen trip, it assumes the maximum 90-day short stay to stay on the safe side.

What happens if my passport will be expired by my travel date?

If your passport expires on or before your travel date you cannot use it at all — you must renew before you go, regardless of destination. Routine renewals can take several weeks, so apply as early as possible and use an expedited service if your trip is close. A common trap is assuming an exempt destination (such as Canada or Mexico for a US citizen) lets an expired passport through; it does not — those rules only waive the extra buffer, not the requirement that the passport itself be valid. The checker flags an expired passport rather than passing it.

Where do these passport rules come from — are they reliable?

The rules in this checker are drawn from the destination governments' own published requirements: the Schengen Borders Code (Regulation (EU) 2016/399) for the European area, the US State Department's per-country information pages, and the UK FCDO foreign travel advice. We show the source and the date the dataset was verified on every result so you can check it yourself. Entry rules do change, and airlines apply their own caution, so for an imminent trip always confirm with the destination country's embassy or your airline. This tool gives an estimate based on published rules — it is not legal or immigration advice.