Tracy-Ann Oberman refused Spain flight

EastEnders star Tracy-Ann Oberman has revealed she was unable to board a flight to Spain after an EU passport rule left her grounded, despite her passport showing an expiry date in 2027.

Celebrity airport shock over passport issue

Former EastEnders actor Tracy-Ann Oberman says Ryanair airline staff refused to let her travel after deciding her passport did not meet European Union entry requirements, even though it appeared to have almost two years left before it expired.

Sharing her experience on social media, Oberman explained she had assumed her passport remained valid because of the printed expiry date. Checks before boarding revealed that its issue date, rather than the expiry date alone, meant it no longer qualified for travel to Spain under current EU rules.

Oberman’s experience shows how a passport can appear valid while failing to meet the entry requirements for many European destinations.

Why the 10-year passport rule catches travellers out

Current regulations require most UK passports used for travel to countries in the Schengen Area to have been issued less than 10 years before the date of arrival. Passports must also have at least three months’ validity remaining beyond the planned departure date.

Confusion often stems from older British passports that included extra months carried over from a previous document. Although those months still appear in the printed expiry date, they are not counted when calculating the passport’s age for entry into most EU countries.

Oberman’s experience is not an isolated case. Earlier this summer, a British mother was unable to board a flight to Greece after checks found her passport fell outside the EU’s validity rules despite its printed expiry date appearing to be valid. Both incidents show how confusion often centres on a passport’s issue date rather than the expiry date.

Check your passport before you fly

Holidaymakers travelling to Spain, France, Italy, Portugal or Greece should check both the passport’s issue date and expiry date well before leaving for the airport.

Taking a few minutes to confirm that a passport meets the EU’s entry requirements could help avoid expensive disruption, missed flights and the disappointment of seeing a long-planned holiday come to an unexpected end.