If I can get a US emergency passport in the UK, can I use it to travel to Poland and Spain?
I'm in London, would like to travel on to Poland and Spain, however my passport expires in slightly less than 3 months, which is a problem. I think I may be able to get something called an 'emergency passport' (emergency travel document?) from the US Embassy, but don't know if that will allow me to travel on into Poland and Spain. Any advice is appreciated, thanks.
Best Answer
Update: I received an emergency passport from the US Embassy in London - the process was very efficient and took slightly more than an hour. Passport control entering Poland took maybe 5 extra minutes scrutinizing my passport and asked why it was different, but then let me enter the country with no problems. Also no problems traveling on to Spain. Coming home to the states the automated passport scanner at the global entry kiosk in PHL wouldn't scan a passport without a chip, but it allowed me to manually enter the data.
Pictures about "If I can get a US emergency passport in the UK, can I use it to travel to Poland and Spain?"
Can you travel to other countries with an emergency passport?
You can use an emergency travel document to travel to your destination through a maximum of 5 countries. You can also normally use it to return to the country you're applying from if you live there. Your travel plans (countries and dates) will be printed on your emergency travel document.Is an emergency passport a valid passport?
If you, or your child were issued an emergency, limited validity passport because you had urgent travel, you should apply to renew it for a full validity passport as soon as possible.How long is an emergency U.S. passport valid for?
See our guide on U.S. passport application for details. At the appointment, if your need for an emergency passport is approved, you will be issued a limited-validity emergency passport the same day, valid generally for one year. The fee is the same as a regular passport.Can I travel in Schengen with residence permit without passport?
Generally speaking there are no border checks or restrictions within the Schengen zone, but you do need to be able to present both your passport and your residence permit to any border or police units you might encounter along the way.Applying for a UK Emergency Travel Document (ETD)
More answers regarding if I can get a US emergency passport in the UK, can I use it to travel to Poland and Spain?
Answer 2
Many countries do not allow emergency passports for entry, however it appears that both Poland and Spain do.
According to Timatic (the system most airlines use to verify visa/passport requirements), both countries do allow the use of emergency passports :
Passport : Passport required.
Passport Exemptions: Nationals of USA with an emergency passport.
From a validity perspective, all documents must have a validity of 3 months beyond your period of stay.
Passports and other documents accepted for entry must be valid for a minimum of 3 months beyond the period of intended stay.
Keep in mind that if you intend to enter the Schengen region via another country then you will also need to check their requirements as they could potentially be different (although in general most of the Schengen countries have very similar requirements)
Answer 3
Poland and Spain both require passport validities of 3 months beyond the period of stay.
Emergency passports are issued for varying validity periods, usually up to six months and occasionally more.
If you get an emergency passport with validity three or more months beyond your planned stay then you are fine.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Rachel Claire, George Becker, Leah Kelley, Anete Lusina