--- title: "Passport validity checker: the 6-month rule" description: "Enter the passport’s expiry date and the trip dates to check the 6-month and 3-month validity rules and the Schengen 10-year rule before booking." url: "https://viaondo.com/tools/passport-validity-checker" language: "en" updated: "2026-10-15" --- # Passport validity checker Many countries refuse boarding if the passport expires less than six months after arrival or after the trip. Enter the expiry date and the trip dates to check the common rules before you book. [Passport validity checker](https://viaondo.com/tools/passport-validity-checker) ## The common passport rules ### Six months of validity Many countries in Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America ask for six months of validity, counted from arrival or from the end of the stay. Airlines check it before boarding. ### Schengen area: 3 months and 10 years For short stays, the passport must be valid for at least three months after leaving the Schengen area and have been issued in the last ten years. ### When in doubt, renew Renewing takes weeks in many countries. If the passport fails any rule for the destination, advise the client to renew before booking. ## A worked example: a passport that expires in June A client’s passport was issued on 21 June 2017 and expires on 20 June 2027. They want to travel from 15 December 2026 to 5 January 2027. Six months from arrival is 15 June 2027, before the expiry date: it passes. Three months after leaving the Schengen area is 5 April 2027: it passes. Issued in the last ten years: on arrival the passport is nine and a half years old, so it passes. Six months after the trip is 5 July 2027, after the expiry date: it **fails**. So for a client from outside the EU the passport works for a Christmas trip to Vienna or Rome, but not for a destination that counts six months from the end of the stay. When the trip ends, the passport has 5 months and 15 days left; to keep six months after the trip, the trip would have to end by 20 December 2026. For those destinations, the client should renew before you book. ## Where the rules come from **Schengen area.** For a short stay, a passport from outside the EU must be valid for at least three months after the planned departure from the Schengen area, and it must have been issued within the previous ten years. Both conditions are in Article 6(1)(a) of the Schengen Borders Code, Regulation (EU) 2016/399. **Six months.** Many destinations ask for six months of validity beyond the trip, and the U.S. State Department warns that airlines can refuse boarding when the requirement isn’t met. Some countries count from arrival and others from the end of the stay, which is why the checker tests both. **What airlines check.** Airlines and travel agents check documents against Timatic, IATA’s database of travel document requirements. The checker doesn’t hold country rules: it tests your dates against the common rules, and the destination’s official page has the last word. ## Sources - [Regulation (EU) 2016/399 (Schengen Borders Code), Article 6, EUR-Lex](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32016R0399) (accessed 14 October 2026) - [U.S. Department of State: passport FAQ (six months validity, airline boarding)](https://travel.state.gov/en/passports/contact-support/faq.html) (accessed 14 October 2026) - [IATA: Timatic, travel document requirements](https://www.iata.org/en/services/compliance/timatic/) (accessed 14 October 2026) ## For travel agencies A passport problem found at check-in ends the trip before it starts. Check validity when you quote, not when you send the tickets, and put the result in the trip’s notes next to the entry rules. For trips to Europe, the Entry/Exit System now records each entry and exit of travelers from outside the EU, so the dates you plan are the dates that count. - [Passport validity rules for travel: what agencies should check before booking](https://viaondo.com/blog/passport-validity-rules-travel-agents): The 6-month, 3-month and 10-year rules, and when in the booking to check them. - [EU Entry/Exit System (EES): what travel agencies should tell clients before they fly](https://viaondo.com/blog/entry-exit-system-what-travel-agents-tell-clients): What the Entry/Exit System records at the border, and what to tell clients before they fly. - [Traveler app](https://viaondo.com/product/traveler-app): Passports, visas and tickets in the client’s trip app, available offline at the border. [Or try Viaondo free for 14 days](https://viaondo.com/signup?lang=en) ## Questions about passport validity ### Which countries require six months of validity? Many, including Thailand, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt and Brazil, although some count from arrival and others from departure. Rules change and depend on nationality, so always confirm with the official source. ### Does the United States require six months? Not for citizens of the many countries in the “Six-Month Club” agreement, whose passport only has to be valid for the length of the stay. Other nationalities still need six months. ### What about the Schengen 90/180 rule? That rule limits the length of stays in the Schengen area and has nothing to do with passport validity. Check it with the [Schengen calculator](https://viaondo.com/tools/schengen-calculator), and [our EES guide](https://viaondo.com/blog/entry-exit-system-what-travel-agents-tell-clients) explains how those days are now recorded at the border. ### Where do I find the expiry date on a passport? On the data page, the one with the photo: look for the date of expiry. Enter it with the trip dates. The date of issue is printed next to it. It is optional, but the checker needs it for the Schengen 10-year rule. ## More free tools - [Itinerary template](https://viaondo.com/tools/itinerary-template) - [Packing checklist](https://viaondo.com/tools/packing-checklist) - [Arrival time calculator](https://viaondo.com/tools/arrival-time-calculator) - [Flight duration calculator](https://viaondo.com/tools/flight-duration-calculator) - [Trip countdown](https://viaondo.com/tools/trip-countdown) - [Trip cost calculator](https://viaondo.com/tools/trip-cost-calculator) - [Schengen calculator](https://viaondo.com/tools/schengen-calculator) - [Jet lag calculator](https://viaondo.com/tools/jet-lag-calculator) ## Documents checked, trip on the client’s phone With Viaondo, your client has passports, visas and tickets in the trip app, available offline at the border. [Send documents in a trip app](https://viaondo.com/signup?lang=en) · [See the example app](https://viaondo.com/demo?lang=en) *Before departure, the app’s Getting ready list includes the passport check, next to the documents.*