Post-Brexit Travel Rules for Brits

Travelling to Europe and beyond on your British passport

Do you know what the principles for travelling to overseas are, now that the British isles has still left the European Union? In the British isles, we are made use of to a large amount of money of travel liberty, not often necessitating a visa on moving into a place. So, what, if anything at all, has transformed for British passport holders? Solitary Moms and dads on Vacation have seemed at the new guidelines for global journey article Brexit.

Travelling to the EU on a British passport – what has altered?

Until 31 December 2020, Britons had been permitted to journey within just the EU as very long as their British/EU passport was legitimate. So, what has adjusted? If you desire to journey to an EU region (or just one of a handful of other European countries), you now have to have to assure that on the working day you journey you have at least 6 months (occasionally 3) still left on your passport AND that it your passport is considerably less than 10 decades aged. Just checking the expiry day is not enough – you also need to have to verify the begin date. It does not subject if your passport is the old burgundy EU/United kingdom passport or the new blue Uk passport.

In addition, if you are travelling to Europe in your possess auto, you will now need to have a eco-friendly card and a GB sticker. The green card can be attained from your insurer if you have taken out insurance plan for driving your car abroad. Make confident you let enough time to receive the inexperienced card. Beware that some EU nations around the world also need you to have an intercontinental driving allow.

So, do you at any time have to have a visa to vacation to Europe? Frequently not, but there are time limits now as to the length of time you can continue to be in Europe for leisure. If you are British tourist visiting an EU or Schengen state, you can keep for a highest of 90 times within just a 6-thirty day period period of time. It ought to be pointed out that being in Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, and Romania does not count towards that 90-working day restrict. If, on the other hand, you are a British citizen who is going to function, live or research in 1 of the 26 nations around the world in the European Union or Schengen zone, you will have to have to use for a Schengen visa. A Schengen visa currently fees €80 per grownup.

In which else can Brits travel with out a visa?

British citizens continue to have visa-absolutely free entry to a whole of 187 nations around the world and territories, offering them a enormous sum of travel flexibility if they are travellers. The list of nations outside the EU where by British passport holders do not have to have a visa is extended, and involves among other individuals Andorra, Norway, Montenegro, Switzerland, Morocco, a lot of the Caribbean, Israel, Thailand, Japan, South Africa, New Zealand, and most of South The usa.

How can you locate out if you will need a visa?

It is essential that you verify whether you have to have a visa well in progress of travelling overseas. Your vacation agent or tour operator will normally advise, but it is well worth examining the gov.british isles website or a visa site, this kind of as Byevisa.com to make sure you really don’t get caught out: Finally, acquiring a visa is the traveller’s own duty. Brits normally think that they do not need to have a visa to vacation overseas, but as we said previously, there are situations that need you to maintain a visa, and these also have to do with the objective of vacation and the size of time you intend to keep:

Keeping more time than 90 days in a 180-day period of time or doing the job, learning, or dwelling in a Schengen nation mean that you need to use for a Schengen visa.

There are also a selection of other countries preferred with British isles visitors that have to have you to implement for a visa possibly on arrival or in progress. International locations exactly where you only need a visa on arrival and in which this is simply a formality and possibly absolutely free or affordable are normal vacationer hotspots, these types of as the Maldives, the Seychelles, and Tonga, but also the UAE. International locations exactly where you need to apply for a visa in advance include, amongst other folks, Australia, the United States, Canada, Sri Lanka, and Cambodia.

Although vacationer visas are often clear-cut and economical e-visas, other individuals can be much more of a problem. Notoriously hard to attain are visas for Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Pakistan, to title but a several. As an illustration, travelling to China as a vacationer for extra than 72 several hours means that you need to have to utilize for a visa in the United kingdom and schedule a confront-deal with-appointment at the Chinese embassy in London, bringing a very long checklist of files, like lodge bookings, flight itinerary, and so on. The full procedure can get a number of months, so you need to start off planning properly in progress. Alternatively, you can go online and come across a firm to deal with the approach for you.

What is the ETIAS visa waiver plan?

You might have listened to of ETIAS and been pondering what this is and to what lengthen it applies to British passport holders. This is a new plan designed by the European Union and owing to be enforced from 2022. For Britons, it will imply that they will have to have to fill in a type on the net and pay a modest charge for a 3-calendar year visa that will permit them to vacation to EU and Schengen nations. The visa is built to maximize security for EU citizens and these travelling to the EU.

What about roaming?

In between 2017 and 2020, United kingdom customers were being equipped to use the minutes, texts and information included in their cellular cellular phone contracts when travelling in the EU.  However, the Brexit trade deal involving the Uk and the EU did not involve security versus roaming costs. Unsurprisingly, United kingdom operators have commenced to re-introduce prices for roaming due to the fact January 2021. Make positive that you check and acquire a contract or SIM only deal in British isles that will allow you to use roaming facts for your travels overseas.

What about travel coverage?

A level to note is that the Uk has achieved an settlement with the EU regarding the EHIC card, which will now be legitimate until finally its expiry day. The card permits citizens of EU and EEA nations, as perfectly as Switzerland, to access no cost health care abroad in the circumstance of an unexpected emergency. When your EHIC card expires, you will now need to apply for an GHIC card. Beware than not all condition health care is free in the EU and that it is normally sensible to get added vacation insurance coverage for eventualities these as therapy demanded for a extensive expression or pre-present issue or repatriation in situation you slide seriously unwell and want to or should return to the Uk.

Normally, it is even much more essential to receive journey coverage if you love ski vacations or are setting up to go to a region that does not have a reciprocal settlement with the British isles on health care. Never forget about to verify your insurance plan plan before you vacation, to make certain your getaway spot is protected and to examine the little print with regards to the actions you are setting up as some, this kind of as diving or  winter sporting activities, may well be excluded. You can commonly include these to your plan, and we normally check with our solitary mom and dad to verify that they are protected for wintertime athletics and tobogganing, when they e book a person of our solitary mum or dad ski vacations.

Journey may perhaps have been tricky, and at occasions impossible, above the final two decades. But the earth is steadily returning to standard, and most Brits are determined to go on a substantially-deserved holiday break just after months of currently being stuck indoors. So, it is excellent to know the place your British passport can get you and that it is continue to regarded as a person of the most powerful passports when it arrives to travelling the entire world.

About the Writer:

Single Parents on Holiday present absolutely-organised single father or mother holiday seasons, like beach holidays, farm vacations, exercise holiday seasons, single guardian ski holiday seasons and solo holidays for singles and solitary parent vacant nesters.