Man misses 50th birthday trip over passport rules

A man has missed out on celebrating his 50th birthday with family in Portugal because of passport rules.

James Luton, from Royston in Hertfordshire, was told he could not board the plane at Stansted Airport as his passport was issued over 10 years ago.

He said a Jet2 member of staff was "very apologetic" but he conceded there was "nothing she could do as she does not make the rules".

A spokesperson for the airline said it always reminded passengers to check the validity of their passport in line with government advice before flights.

The rules, which have been in place since the UK left the EU, no longer allow passports to be older than 10 years.

Previously passengers would be able to travel up to nine extra months.

James said he had checked the expiry date, which was October 2026, but his passport was issued in February 2016.

He said: "Having worked so hard to have what I thought would be the perfect 50th celebration... to have it snatched away at the boarding gate, I was gutted."

He added the original plan for his birthday on Thursday "was going to be a relaxing day by the pool, nice breakfast with Buck's fizz to start with, and just a chill day".

Instead, he said he was playing a round of golf on his own while the rest of his extended family told him "how wonderful the villa is".

James said that after leaving his wife and two children to board the plane on Wednesday morning, his "mission then was to get a new passport and a new flight as quickly as possible".

He has booked an in-person appointment at Peterborough Passport Office on Friday morning and has a one-way flight to Faro booked in the afternoon.

The express passport cost him £240 and the total cost of the flight was £85.

He said: "I have officially moved my birthday to Saturday now to celebrate with my family."

He believes many people have been caught out in the same way and that the number will only increase.

"I don't think it is as well publicised as it should be - priority is on checking your expiry date," he added.

A spokesperson for Jet2 said they always pointed customers to its travel requirements section of its website, "where they can find more information on how to ensure that their passport is valid for travel".

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