Passport and entry requirements
Passport validity and visas are easy to overlook when you book a family holiday, and either one can stop a trip before it starts. How much validity you need, and whether you need a visa, an ESTA or something else, depends on where you're going.
On this page
What a UK family needs, wherever you're going
How much passport validity you need, and whether you need a visa or an online authorisation, changes from one country to the next.
Most of Europe wants a passport issued within the last ten years and valid for at least three months after you leave. The United States only needs it valid for the length of your stay. Much of the Middle East and Asia wants a clear six months. The finder below has the rule for each country, and the rest of this page explains the general picture behind those rules.
How much passport validity you need depends on the country
How much time a passport needs left on it changes from one country to the next.
Most of Europe asks that your passport was issued less than ten years before you arrive and has at least three months left after you leave. The United States only needs it valid for the length of your stay. Thailand and much of the Middle East want a clear six months. There's no single rule, so the only safe move is to check the country you're actually going to, which is what the finder above is for.
The two-part passport rule for Europe
Since Brexit, a UK passport has to pass two separate checks for most of Europe.
Most of Europe is in the Schengen area, and since Brexit a UK family visits it without a visa but under two passport rules. The passport has to have been issued less than ten years before the day you arrive, and it needs at least three months left on it after the day you plan to leave. Both have to be true, and the ten-year one trips up older passports that were renewed early, because the extra months added on at renewal don't count towards it. You can stay up to 90 days in any 180 across the whole area, not per country.
Europe is also bringing in two new systems. The entry/exit system, EES, is now running. Instead of stamping the passport, the border takes a photo and fingerprints on arrival and keeps a digital record for three years, though children aged eleven and under aren't fingerprinted. A second scheme, ETIAS, will be a paid online authorisation you buy before you travel, but it isn't required yet and has no confirmed start date, so there's nothing to arrange for it now.
Visas, ESTAs and e-visas
An ESTA, an eTA and an e-visa are variations on the same thing, arranged online before you fly and tied to your passport.
The United States calls its version an ESTA, an online travel authorisation you apply and pay for in advance instead of visiting an embassy. Canada and a few others use an eTA, the same idea under another name. Some countries, India and Vietnam among them, use an e-visa. Others issue a visa when you land, and a growing number, including Thailand and Singapore, now ask every arrival to fill in a free digital arrival card in the days before you fly.
Each destination's page says which one applies and links you straight to the official site to do it. Only ever use the official government site. Copycat sites charge extra for the same thing, and some aren't official at all.
Every child needs their own passport, and their own visa
There's no family passport, and a child can't travel on a parent's authorisation.
Every traveller needs their own passport, children of any age included, and where a country wants an ESTA, an e-visa or an eTA, each child needs their own of those too. A child can't travel on a parent's ESTA or share a passport. Children's passports also run down sooner than you'd expect, and a short-dated one can fail a validity rule even when the child is tiny, so check every passport in the family early. If a child is travelling with only one parent, or with someone who isn't a parent, some countries expect a consent letter from the parents who aren't going.
Does every child need their own passport?
Yes, at any age. A child can't be added to a parent's passport, so every child needs one in their own name, right down to a newborn who needs one from birth before you fly.
How do we know whether our passports have enough time left?
It depends entirely on where you're going. Some countries want six months left, some want three, and some only need the passport valid for the length of your stay. Check your destination's page for the rule that applies, and if you're close to the line, renew before you book.
What's the difference between a visa and an ESTA?
A visa is permission to enter a country, sometimes arranged at an embassy, sometimes online, sometimes issued when you land. An ESTA is the United States' version of an online travel authorisation under its visa waiver scheme: you apply and are approved in advance, linked to your passport, without going to an embassy. Canada and others run a similar online approval called an eTA.
When should we check all this?
Before you book. Passport validity rules can rule a trip out before you've paid a deposit, and a passport renewal can take weeks, more over the summer. A visa, ESTA or e-visa is quicker to sort than a passport renewal, but it's one less thing on your mind if it's done early.
Official sources
- GOV.UK foreign travel advice: the official entry requirements for every country, kept current.
- GOV.UK passports: how to renew a UK passport and how long it takes.
Last updated 11 August 2026. Passport and entry rules change, so always confirm on GOV.UK before you book or travel.
