Six-month validity requirement for passports does not apply when travelling to home country?
I read in one of the answers on this site that people who are travelling to their country of citizenship do not need to have their passports valid for more than six months. Can someone point me to an official reference for this, please? I cannot find any on the Internet. In case it matters, the place to which I am travelling is Hong Kong.
More context: a couple of weeks after buying my air tickets, the airline e-mailed me a reminder of my flight with the previously unseen condition "ensure that your passport has at least a six months [sic] validity" without any conditional clause. So I am worried that the airline may not let me board the plane.
Best Answer
If you are a full citizen of country A, and are on a non-stop flight to country A, then your passport can expire on the day of landing and you will be fine. As a citizen you have a general right of entry, and your passport becomes unnecessary the moment you cross the border so wether it is valid tomorrow is a non-issue. I have entered my own country of citizenship several times with a passport that was expired for several years with zero problems - the only comment was "are you going to renew it this trip?".
Citizen entry to some countries, for example the USA, do not even require a passport. The problem then is getting on the plane without documents. This corner case depends on the country's constitution/ declaration of rights (if any) and legal history.
If your route changes planes in country B, then you need to examine the entry requirements for B. There may be different rules for entry vs. transit, and "transit" may have limitations like same day and same airport. Or even same terminal - Heathrow terminal 5 is one that comes to mind, they built it specifically so that transit passengers don't need to interact with UK immigration at all.
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Can I travel to my home country with less than 6 months?
Most countries will not permit a traveler to enter their country unless the passport is set to expire at least six months after the final day of travel. That means if your passport has less than six months remaining until the expiration date, you should renew it right away.Can you travel with less than 6 months validity on passport?
In general, many countries that require a visa to enter will require at least six months validity on your passport when entering the country, so make sure you find out whether your passport has long enough before it expires before you travel.Which countries require 6 months of passport validity?
In Asia, nations like China, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand enforce this rule. South American countries like Brazil, Venezuela and Bolivia also need a passport that's good for six months. While it may seem like a hassle now, this a six- or three-month validity rule helps in case of emergency.6 Month Passport Validity Rule | Can I travel with less than 6 months left on my passport?
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
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