Just hooked out the passports to find hers ran out last month. Going by channel tunnel – is it worth trying it or should I just kiss goodbye to 500 quid?

Last time I went by the channel tunnel they didn’t check passports on the way out, but getting back they were very thorough.

No danger are you getting through.

No refund/exchange on tickets?

Went to France a few, a good few years ago on a friend’s passport as I’d left mine at home and took a gamble. It paid off.
Maybe if you have other forms of valid ID and have accidentaly taken another passport, it might be worth the risk. Better than throwing 500 notes away.

but getting back they were very thorough.

What they going to do? Repatriate you?

Get to the passport office in the morning. They do a 4-hour (i think) renewal service. For a price.

What time are you off?

There’s some slight possibility you could head in to town and go to the passport office for a rapid renewal. Not cheap, mind you….

Then again, you could just head across the road to the pub and buy a fake one for about £100.

Try it.

legally you do not need a passport to cross the channel – you need a strong form of ID and an expired passport will do. However it relies on somone actually accepting this.

I have used the tunnel and didn’t even show passport either way

Renewal while you wait was only for stolen passports last time I went.

I have successfully gone through the Chunnel with an out of date passport .
This was about 10 years ago , from memory they just looked at the covers and that was all .
They used to do extensions , but cheeck with the passport office i guess.
Good Luck
You could do a really good impression of my late father . He took mum on a seecond honeymoon to celebrate their silver wedding anniversary . It didnt go well when he was turned around at CDG airport . He didnt know/ forgot a Mauritian passport needed a visa to enter France .
Poor Mum had to spend 48hrs in France alone and the prat did a disappearing trick upon landing back in the UK by going on a 6 hr bender , coz that’ll make it better.

Spoke to Passport Office – they said to speak to travel operator.

Called Eurotunnel, they very quickly put me through to Passport Control. The lady there said she was only interested in people entering the country, and getting back wouldn’t be a problem. Only issue is whether we are allowed into France, but experience says they are quite relaxed (rarely do detailed checks). Passport lady said odds were stacked in our favour so we’ll give it a go. Worst is they send us back!

EDIT (you posted while I was beavering away on this!): Looks like the passport office and the FCO disagree. I’d do it your way if it was me. Good luck!

Your passport must be valid:

“You must hold a valid passport to enter France“

However, if you can get to London, Liverpool, Peterborough, Glasgow, Newport, Belfast or Durham you can get a same day appointment. So you may just have to delay your departure 12 or 24 hours. It takes 4 hours to turn the passport round. Phone 03002220000. You’ll need to take a completed application form with you, so download one off their site.

Details here: Directgov passport site

tree-magnet – Member
Your passport must be valid:

You must hold a valid passport to enter France

But, that cannot be right! It simply cannot be!

See?

TandemJeremy – Member

legally you do not need a passport to cross the channel

If what you say is true, then TJ is WRONG!

WRONG? TJ?

If what you say is true, then TJ is WRONG!

When are you going to learn Flashy?
What TJ probably means is that there is no legal requirement for a passport if all you are doing is crossing the Channel. One will, however, need a passport if one wants to enter France. Subtle, yet very important, difference. Allegedly. 😕

Only issue is whether we are allowed into France, but experience says they are quite relaxed (rarely do detailed checks). Passport lady said odds were stacked in our favour so we’ll give it a go. Worst is they send us back!

IIRC – French border control is located this side of the Channel with their UK counterparts located on the French side

Used the Chunnel 20 or so times in the last few years, only been asked for passport once on leaving the UK, normally just get a Galic shrug from the French border control on the UK side

CFH – note there are a few of us on this thread who have crossed the tunnel without showing passports and I know of one chap who used an expired passport for several crossings.

I have also met many EU citizens travelling legally in the UK on ID cards.

You need to be able to prove your identity using a robust form of ID. an expired passport will do for this purpose

Oh my dear Lord above! He’s taking it seriously!

:facepalm:

I have also met many EU citizens travelling legally in the UK on ID cards.

I think the problem is that the only form of ID that is robust enough is a national ID card, and since we don’t have one in the UK, then it might be a problem. I’ve also met Europeans travelling on ID cards. I do think in theory you don’t need a passport to travel within the EU, although I wouldn’t like to try it. Maybe an expired one is acceptable, within reason.

Unless you daughter answers to the name of “Madeline” you should just risk blagging it.

(IIRC, any UK citizen has the right to re-enter the UK without a passport).

(IIRC, any UK citizen has the right to re-enter the UK without a passport).

Wouldn’t count on things like that to much. I am Belgian and was refused entry back into Belgium with an expired ID card It expired one or two days prior. Immigrationthought it was reasonable to send me back to some african country I had left to months prior.

any UK citizen has the right to re-enter the UK without a passport

The tricky thing is proving you’re a UK citizen when you haven’t got a passport.

Couple of years ago, we arrived in Kent before realising we didn’t have a passport for our 4 month old (third child). Didn’t try to go obviously, but did go last summer and they didn’t do more than glance in the vehicle and at the passport covers – so reckon we could have got through easily. ‘She who gets stressed’ would have been unbearable however.

Traveled to tour of flanders the other weekend, one of the group realised his passport was a month out of date en route. OB no problems, passport not particualy checked by eurotunnel staff and French controls not bothered. On way back passport checked at UK controls in Coquelles and told him to get it renewed. It’s one of those things where if you’re obviously returning home you’ll probably be fine.

Having seen The Terminal with Tom Hanks I wouldn’t risk it 😉

I’ve never been asked to show any ID entering France on the Eurotunnel. I think this is because nobody in their right mind would escape Britain to live in France. British border control on the way back will give you a hard time but just pretend you didn’t realize, it will be ok.

Just hide her in the boot of the car.

Not the Chunnel but went via Dover to France last month and they were VERY thorough – even making us wake our two sleeping 2.5 yr olds so they could see them properly.

Just saying like.

The tricky thing is proving you’re a UK citizen when you haven’t got a passport.

I should think in that case an expired passport is perfectly sufficient.

Never had a problem with the chunnel, 5 passports and 5 people in the car that was last time we travelled. They didn’t even check them out.

Ferry port checked everything including under the bonnet!!!

Leave her Home Alone. She’ll have amazing adventures getting the better of crims trying to steal your bikes.

Seriously though, that’s an unfortunate situation – hope it all works out! I would most certainly be in the ‘chance it’ camp.

“All but two EU member states—Ireland and the United Kingdom—are required to implement Schengen”

How’s her swimming?

Unless you daughter answers to the name of “Madeline” you should just risk blagging it.

🙂

One of our freinds managed to fly her son to Poland using her husbands passport. He has a beard in his passport photo and their son is 7.

Her husband wasn’t so lucky when he tried to fly out to join them on Christmas Eve a week later and unwittingly produced his sons passport at the check-in desk.

The atmosphere on the phone Christmas Day was somewhat icey, I’m told.

😆 😆 😆 😆

I’ve had good and bad luck.

4 blokes from work at check in for a flight to Germany:
Check in “Which one of you is Anne?”
Anne’s Husband “Balls. Taxi!”

I once lost my passport on the way to France. Got through the chunnel without even realising, no problems. Got a full cross examination on the way home – finally managed to get immigration to release me and got back using my rail card as photo/address ID!

Well got here ok, waved a handful of passports at French customs and shot through. Hope we get home ok again!

if they complain on the way back just say they can keep her and that you and your partner will just have to make another one…

Her husband wasn’t so lucky when he tried to fly out to join them on Christmas Eve a week later and unwittingly produced his sons passport at the check-in desk

Bet he had a great Christmas!!

glitch? [edit] hmm; weird – it showed on the front page again as if it was new; but the newest post was 2 weeks old (before I got my filthy hands on it)