How long does it take to renew a passport? British woman turned away at Heathrow gate

Early in November, Laura Savage was about to board a British Airways flight from London to Oslo but was turned away at the departure gate.

Her passport was valid for outbound travel to Norway and anywhere else in the Schengen area until October 12, 2024. However, the airline company’s ground staff at Heathrow's Terminal 5 prevented the 35-year-old from going any further at the departure gate, saying UK passports could no longer be used after nine years. The staff refused to let her board and BA kept her fare, according to a report by the Independent.

The customer services department said: “As you weren’t having a valid passport, our staff didn’t allow you to board the flight” after Savage contacted British Airways to complain. 

Ms Savage later told the Independent: “It has been beyond frustrating trying to complain and get compensation from them. The only way to make a complaint is via email, and they are just not responding to me.”

Savage’s case is highly unusual and has led to other questions being raised such as when passports need to be renewed.

The government website says: “If your passport is burgundy or has ‘European Union’ on the cover, you can continue to use it until it expires.”

However, the EU’s Your Europe website says that your passport must meet the following requirements:

Read the government’s travel advice for the country you intend to visit, and be sure to check the entry requirements.

If you are visiting a country in the EU or the Schengen area, your passport will need to meet the two requirements listed above.

The Government said it is awaiting clarification from the European Commission on the 10-year rule, but did say: “For some Schengen countries, your passport may need to be less than 10 years old during your whole visit, and the three months at the end of your visit may need to be within 10 years of your passport’s issue date.”

It advises that people check the issue and expiry dates on their passports.

If you renewed your passport early, the extra months added to the expiry date could affect the requirement for the passport to be less than 10 years old.

The Home Office advises that travellers give the process up to 10 weeks. Information is available here.

However, if you’re running out of time before your holiday, you can apply to renew your passport urgently.

You can apply to renew your passport faster if you’re in the UK and need to renew or replace your passport, or obtain a first child passport.

There are two ways to apply for an urgent passport; through the Online Premium service or the 1 Week Fast Track process.

For the Online Premium service, you need to apply, pay and book a 30-minute appointment via the government website.

You will need your old passport, a device that takes digital photos, and a digital photograph of yourself to complete the process.

This urgent service is more expensive – it costs £193.50 or £204.50 for a 50-page passport. It is available for people whose passports were issued after December 31, 2001.

Alternatively, you can also use the 1 Week Fast Track service. This service requires you to get a paper application form from a post office, book an appointment and pay online.

You should take your application form, required documents and two identical printed passport photos to the appointment. The service costs £155 for an adult and £126 for a child.

To speak to someone at the Passport Office for more advice, call 0300 222 0000 from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday, and from 9am to 5.30pm at the weekend and on public holidays.