Travelling to Europe and over and above on your British passport
Do you know what the procedures for travelling to abroad are, now that the United kingdom has left the European Union? In the Uk, we are used to a big quantity of vacation liberty, hardly ever necessitating a visa on moving into a state. So, what, if nearly anything, has changed for British passport holders? Single Mother and father on Holiday have appeared at the new regulations for international vacation put up Brexit.
Travelling to the EU on a British passport – what has improved?
Until eventually 31 December 2020, Britons were permitted to vacation inside of the EU as very long as their British/EU passport was valid. So, what has altered? If you desire to vacation to an EU state (or 1 of a handful of other European international locations), you now have to have to make certain that on the day you travel you have at the very least 6 months (from time to time 3) left on your passport AND that it your passport is less than 10 years previous. Just checking the expiry day is not sufficient – you also want to verify the start day. It doesn’t make a difference if your passport is the previous burgundy EU/Uk passport or the new blue Uk passport.
In addition, if you are travelling to Europe in your personal automobile, you will now need to have a green card and a GB sticker. The eco-friendly card can be obtained from your insurance company if you have taken out insurance policy for driving your car or truck abroad. Make confident you permit sufficient time to receive the green card. Beware that some EU international locations also call for you to have an global driving permit.
So, do you ever have to have a visa to vacation to Europe? Usually not, but there are time restrictions now as to the duration of time you can continue to be in Europe for leisure. If you are British tourist visiting an EU or Schengen country, you can stay for a utmost of 90 times inside a 6-month period. It need to be mentioned that staying in Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, and Romania does not depend toward that 90-day limit. If, however, you are a British citizen who is likely to operate, dwell or review in a person of the 26 international locations in the European Union or Schengen zone, you will will need to utilize for a Schengen visa. A Schengen visa now costs €80 for every grownup.
Wherever else can Brits travel without having a visa?
British citizens keep on to have visa-totally free entry to a complete of 187 countries and territories, providing them a large quantity of vacation flexibility if they are visitors. The list of countries outside the house the EU exactly where British passport holders do not require a visa is long, and features among other folks Andorra, Norway, Montenegro, Switzerland, Morocco, much of the Caribbean, Israel, Thailand, Japan, South Africa, New Zealand, and most of South The usa.
How can you locate out if you need to have a visa?
It is significant that you test whether you need a visa properly in advance of travelling overseas. Your travel agent or tour operator will normally advise, but it is really worth checking the gov.uk web site or a visa web site, this kind of as Byevisa.com to make positive you really don’t get caught out: Finally, obtaining a visa is the traveller’s individual duty. Brits usually think that they do not want a visa to travel overseas, but as we explained earlier, there are eventualities that require you to maintain a visa, and these also have to do with the goal of travel and the length of time you intend to remain:
Remaining lengthier than 90 days in a 180-day period or doing work, researching, or dwelling in a Schengen region mean that you will need to use for a Schengen visa.
There are also a quantity of other nations around the world popular with United kingdom visitors that require you to apply for a visa either on arrival or in advance. International locations wherever you only will need a visa on arrival and in which this is simply a formality and either no cost or low-cost are regular tourist hotspots, this kind of as the Maldives, the Seychelles, and Tonga, but also the UAE. Nations wherever you have to have to apply for a visa in advance include, amongst other people, Australia, the United States, Canada, Sri Lanka, and Cambodia.
Even though vacationer visas are normally straightforward and reasonably priced e-visas, others can be more of a obstacle. Notoriously complicated to receive are visas for Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Pakistan, to identify but a couple. As an case in point, travelling to China as a vacationer for a lot more than 72 hours means that you will need to utilize for a visa in the British isles and schedule a experience-experience-appointment at the Chinese embassy in London, bringing a very long checklist of paperwork, such as lodge bookings, flight itinerary, etcetera. The entire system can consider a couple of weeks, so you want to start out arranging effectively in progress. Alternatively, you can go on the net and find a company to take care of the process for you.
What is the ETIAS visa waiver scheme?
You could possibly have heard of ETIAS and been questioning what this is and to what lengthen it applies to British passport holders. This is a new scheme made by the European Union and thanks to be enforced from 2022. For Britons, it will mean that they will need to have to fill in a variety on line and pay out a compact price for a 3-year visa that will let them to vacation to EU and Schengen nations around the world. The visa is made to maximize safety for EU citizens and people travelling to the EU.
What about roaming?
Involving 2017 and 2020, United kingdom consumers have been in a position to use the minutes, texts and knowledge provided in their cellular cellphone contracts when travelling in the EU. However, the Brexit trade deal in between the Uk and the EU did not incorporate security versus roaming rates. Unsurprisingly, Uk operators have began to re-introduce rates for roaming due to the fact January 2021. Make confident that you check and get a contract or SIM only offer in Uk that allows you to use roaming info for your travels abroad.
What about vacation insurance coverage?
A issue to notice is that the United kingdom has attained an agreement with the EU about the EHIC card, which will now be legitimate until eventually its expiry date. The card lets citizens of EU and EEA nations, as properly as Switzerland, to obtain free of charge health care overseas in the case of an crisis. When your EHIC card expires, you will now need to have to apply for an GHIC card. Beware than not all point out healthcare is free of charge in the EU and that it is normally sensible to get more journey insurance plan for scenarios these types of as treatment method expected for a very long phrase or pre-current situation or repatriation in circumstance you slide seriously ill and would like to or have to return to the Uk.
Obviously, it is even a lot more critical to obtain travel coverage if you take pleasure in ski holiday seasons or are organizing to go to a country that does not have a reciprocal agreement with the British isles on healthcare. Really don’t overlook to examine your insurance plan policy just before you journey, to guarantee your vacation place is protected and to examine the small print with regards to the functions you are organizing as some, such as diving or winter sports activities, could be excluded. You can normally insert these to your coverage, and we often talk to our one mom and dad to verify that they are included for wintertime sports and tobogganing, when they book a single of our single mum or dad ski holiday seasons.
Journey may have been tough, and at instances unachievable, around the final two decades. But the planet is slowly returning to usual, and most Brits are determined to go on a a great deal-deserved holiday getaway immediately after months of getting stuck indoors. So, it is great to know the place your British passport can get you and that it is nonetheless considered a person of the most powerful passports when it comes to travelling the environment.
About the Writer:
Single Mom and dad on Holiday give thoroughly-organised solitary guardian vacations, like beach front holidays, farm holidays, action holidays, one dad or mum ski vacations and solo vacations for singles and one guardian vacant nesters.