passport question

[rh71]

A few people have said to me that there is a 6 month period after you get a new / renewed passport that you aren't able to use it. This is not found anywhere in the FAQs... is this completely false?

http://travel.state.gov/passport/faq/faq_1741.html

 

[nickbits]

Yes. There is a thing about entering a country with a passport with less than 6 months to expiration but that is country specific.

 

[KidNiki1]

nm, nickbits answer is better

 

[alent1234]

i've had a government and a regular civilian passport and used them less than 6 months after issue

 

[rh71]

Yes. There is a thing about entering a country with a passport with less than 6 months to expiration but that is country specific.

ok just going into Canada... don't see any mention of this http://gocanada.about.com/od/canadatraveloverview/qt/uscitizenborder.htm

and you mentioned 6 months TO EXPIRATION, not 6 months from new... so either way we're good.

 

[nickbits]

Canada is fine for sure.

I only mentioned the expiration thing since I thought that might be what you were thinking of.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Yes. There is a thing about entering a country with a passport with less than 6 months to expiration but that is country specific.

Yeah, I think this is what the OP is thinking about.

 

[EvilYoda]

Yeah, the restrictions are if your passport is set to expire, not if it's new. I just renewed mine for a Taiwan trip and used it within...10 days?

 

[swanysto]

I have never seen a restriction of your passport, only countries that require visas.

 

[CycloWizard]

I've used a passport right up until a month before it expired. The second-to-last time through, they just reminded me that it was expiring soon and that I need to remember to renew it. I took another trip thereafter and no one said anything.

 

[Born2bwire]

It depends. Some places won't let you enter if the passport is expiring in six months or less. I had a boss that got turned away in Singapore because of this. Everybody has their own set of rules so it pays to check it out in detail though US and Canadian citizens are very lucky since they have very lax visa rules in most countries. I've known people that were turned down for tourist visas because they are leaving one country with a visa for that country that expires during the trip (but they are not returning to the country). When I travelled to Europe, we had a connecting flight for the return to the States through Canada. My girlfriend needed a transit visa even through we were not staying in Canada. She didn't know this (previous transits through other countries did not require visas so she didn't know about such a thing), the airlines and ticket agent did not notify us, so we had to buy new tickets for a direct flight to the US on the spot.

So it all depends but it can really bite you in the ass because in the end, you have to find out about this stuff on your own.

 

[alkemyst]

I have never seen a restriction of your passport, only countries that require visas.

IMHO this only applies to VISA renews. When your Visa expires you must leave and then there is sometimes a waiting period until you can return.