Anyone with holidays booked urged to check passport page or risk being 'denied'

Passports are vital when heading overseas , but not checking your passport still complies with two important travel rules could see holidays put on hold at the airport. Travellers can easily be "caught out" by failing to check whether certain details comply with these rules, particularly if their passport has been gathering dust since last summer. Travel specialist Kate Donnelly (@Thedonnellyedit) warns that people must be aware of passport rules and regulations, or they could be denied boarding for the flight they've paid for. She said: "Don't be denied boarding this summer because you have failed to check two things within your passport." Kate maintains that anyone holding a passport issued before a specific date in 2018 could find themselves in hot water if their document goes above a certain threshold. When renewing before Brexit , any leftover months or years were 'rolled over' to new passports - and depending on how far in advance you renewed, your passport could be carrying too much validity. She said: "We [as Brits] are treated as third-party nationals, meaning that in order to enter the EU, we must have less than 10 years' validity on our passports on the date that we are travelling, and this is what's catching people out. You don't need to look at your expiry date, you need to look at your date of issue and make sure it is no more than 10 years [old], or you will be denied entry if you are trying to go to the EU." The old rules allowed up to nine months to transfer from old to new passports, meaning any last-minute renewals in September 2018 with the maximum carry-over would technically be valid until June 2029. However, because the passport is more than 10 years old, it violates the EU requirement that it be "issued less than 10 years before your departure date". If your passport was issued after September 2018, travellers do not need to worry about the 10-year rule. Any passports issued from that point onwards automatically comply with the non-EU regulations, and all documents forfeit any unused time from the previous passport, reports the Express . Although the Republic of Ireland is in the EU, it is not part of the Schengen area, so these rules do not apply. The Foreign Office confirmed: "British nationals are not legally required to show a passport to enter Ireland, but it may be useful to carry in case you need to prove your identity." Brits are far more likely to fall foul of a second passport 'rule' demanding that documents have enough valid months on them before you leave the country. In the majority of holiday hotspots - including Spain, France, Italy and other EU countries - passports must have at least three months' validity left on the date you are due to leave the EU and return home. Certain countries, such as Thailand and Egypt, require at least six months' validity before tourists can head home. It's best to check the specific requirements for the country you're visiting on the GOV.UK foreign travel advice pages here . Passports need to be valid for at least three months beyond your intended return date, ensuring travellers can legally remain in the country should their trip be prolonged unexpectedly - whether due to illness or travel disruptions. This rule stops people from finding themselves stuck abroad without up-to-date documents. Those whose passports are approaching expiry should get them renewed straight away to avoid the risk of being refused at the airport. Standard turnaround time at the Passport Office is typically around three weeks, though it can become considerably longer if left until the busy summer period.