Passport to painless hols

Summer holidays are around the corner so it’s essential to check your passports are valid.

If you’re going to Europe, also ensure you have a valid European Health Insurance Card (EHIC), which gives access to state medical care in the country you are visiting – and remember to take out travel insurance.

If you need to renew or apply for a new health card, get a Global Health Insurance Card, which replaced the EHIC when the UK left the EU, at gov.uk/globalhealth-insurance-card.

Other changes to be aware of include possible charges when using your mobile phone abroad and new documentation when travelling with pets.

Here’s the travel association ABTA (abta.com) stress-free guide to checking and renewing your passport…

■ Your passport cannot be more than 10 years old when entering an EU country, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland – so check when your passport was issued and when it is due to expire.

■ Most places in Europe will require you to have at least three months left on your passport on the date of departure from your destination. You can check the government travel advice for the passport rules for your destination at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice.

■ If you need to renew, do it now. The Passport Office has warned about weeks of processing time.

■ Remember, passports for under 16s are only valid for five years, so check when they are up for renewal.

■ It is cheaper to renew online than via the post.

■ Check Passport Office guidance to make sure your digital photo meets the required standard.

■ Make sure you have all your documents to hand. You’ll need to send your old passport back and look at the counter signatory criteria to see if you need to confirm your identity.

■ You can get help applying for your passport at some Post Office branches, either through the Digital Check and Send service or the Paper Check and Send service.

■ There is also a fast-track passport application service available – gov.uk/get-a-passporturgently/1-week-fast-track-service

■ More info and applications at gov.uk/apply-renew-passport