Brits must abide by two passport rules to holiday in parts of Europe or face being denied entry.

If you are travelling to a country in the European Union, or Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, then you must have a passport with a ‘date of issue’ less than 10 years before the date you arrive, AND have an ‘expiry date’ of at least three months after the day you plan to leave. It means that if you renewed your passport before October 1, 2018, then it may have a date of issue that is more than 10 years ago. If your passport doesn’t meet these two rules then you will be denied entry as you don’t have a valid travel document to enter these countries.

The passport rules apply when entering 31 European countries, including popular tourist destinations like Spain, France, Italy, Portugal and Greece.

Your Europe, a website dedicated to providing help and advice on EU rights, explains: “If you are a national from a country outside the EU wishing to visit or travel within the EU, you will need a valid passport and possibly a visa. Your passport should be valid for at least three months after the date you intend to leave the EU and it must have been issued within the last 10 years.

“This means your travel document must have been issued within the previous 10 years the day you enter the EU on condition that it is valid until the end of your stay plus an additional three months.

“Children and minors must have their own passport and visa, if required. You may also have to produce other supporting documents to border officials upon arrival such as an invitation letter, proof of lodging, return or round-trip ticket.”

Brits who need to renew their passport to meet the two requirements will face increased fees from Thursday, April 10, as new charges take effect which will see adults pay £94.50 for a new passport - an increase of £6 on the current price. Standard online application fees for children are also going up, rising from £57.50 to £61.50 - an increase of £4.

If you apply for a new passport via post then the costs will be even higher, with fees for adults rising from the current rate of £100 up to £7, while for children it will cost £74, up from £69.

The One Day Premium Service, which is available if you need to get your passport renewed quickly, is rising from £207.50 to £222 for adults, while for children the fee will go up from £176.50 to £189.

Additionally, overseas applications for a UK passport will also be going up from Thursday, with standard online applications for adults rising from £101 to £108, and from £65.50 to £70 for children. Adults who apply from overseas via paper application will pay £120.50, up from £112.50, while costs for children will be £82.50, up from £77.

The new fees are subject to approval by Parliament and will be used to contribute to the cost of processing passport applications, consular support overseas, including for lost or stolen passports, and the cost of processing British citizens at UK borders, according to the Home Office.

Holidaymakers are urged to apply in good time before travelling to ensure they receive their passport in time. In 2024, where no further information was required, 99.7% of standard applications from the UK were processed within three weeks.