Travel with a passport that is about to expire?

[peachdragon]

My family is going to St Maarten this December, returning in mid-January of 2013. My husband's and my passport is set to expire at the end of October, 2013. Everything I've read said that it is recommended that your passport be valid for at least 6 months after your return date from the foreign country, but I'm wondering if anyone has ever "cut it this close"? We will have just over 9 months left of validity...

[atouchofklasse]

You will be fine.

[peachdragon]

Jun 26, 2012 10:08:54 GMT -5 atouchofklasse said:

You will be fine.

:Y: I love this answer. It made me laugh

[frlcb]

9 months =/= 6 months. Why would you be concerned if you have 9 months left and the cutoff is 6 months?

To answer your question yes I have traveled with even less time than 9 months and it was fine.

[peachdragon]

Jun 26, 2012 10:57:41 GMT -5 frlcb said:

9 months =/= 6 months. Why would you be concerned if you have 9 months left and the cutoff is 6 months?

To answer your question yes I have traveled with even less time than 9 months and it was fine.

I just want to hear anecdotes on it working for people. Border patrol agents are all different, just like TSA people are all different (I've heard that some things don't make it through the checkpoints even if the TSA website say their ok). It's not something we want to mess with while in another country, if there's a possibility of it being a problem.

My husband will be more nervous than I am about it. I just want to assure him it's ok.

[emilyinchile]

Some countries require 6 months of validity, but it's not all countries. So depending on St. Maarten's requirements, you might be going with 9 months more than they require.

Ditto frlcb. Even if the rule is 6 months, that does not mean the rule is 9 months. Agents might be different in their enforcement of rules, but that doesn't mean they can make up completely different new rules. If you're worried about it, find St Maarten's requirements, and print them out to have with you in case anyone gives you trouble (which they won't because 3 months is a huge amount of time).

[frlcb]

Yeah, I just don't understand being anxious about it. Even if they have a 6 month rule (which I don't know, since it isn't every country that does) there is a big difference between 6 months and 9 months. You will be fine.

[Susie]

Jun 26, 2012 10:57:41 GMT -5 frlcb said:

9 months =/= 6 months. Why would you be concerned if you have 9 months left and the cutoff is 6 months?

Ditto. You're overthinking. If you will have 150% as much time remaining on your passport as is required, you're not "cutting it close," and your passport is not "about to expire." This is pretty black & white. There's nothing to get anxious about.

Besides, going to St. Maarten (or Aruba, or Barbados, or any other ex-US typical-Caribbean-vacation-island) is totally different from flying to Europe, or Asia. Most people who fly into there are tourists who are only there briefly. The passport check is, IME, to some extent perfunctory. It's not the same level of scrutiny as you get when you fly into a European or Asian (etc.) country.

[peachdragon]

OK thanks everyone! My mind is at ease. We'll just have to renew when we get back at some point!

[tricolore]

Only needs to be valid for 3mos . travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_5527.html

Or, if you want the Cliff Notes: The Netherlands is a party to the Schengen Agreement. As such, U.S. citizens may enter the Netherlands for up to 90 days for tourist or business purposes without a visa. If you are traveling for any other purpose, you may need to obtain a visa. Your passport should be valid for at least three months beyond the period of stay. The 90-day period begins when you enter any of the Schengen group of countries. For further details about travel into and within Schengen countries, please see our fact sheet. Anyone intending to stay longer than 90 days must obtain the appropriate visa from the Dutch Embassy or a Dutch consulate in the United States.

[CloudBee]

You're fine.