A mother was left in tears at Gatwick Airport after being prevented from boarding a £2,500 Jet2 flight to Greece due to a little-known post-Brexit passport regulation.
The Incident
Jansen Porter, a property maintenance apprentice from Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, was set to fly to Kefalonia with her partner and daughter Lulu Smith on May 11. As her luggage was being checked in, Jet2 staff informed her that her passport fell outside the European Union's 10-year limit.
Her passport does not expire until December 2026, but since it was issued in March 2016—over 10 years ago—the EU recognizes the expiry date as March 2026. Jet2 explained that passports no longer carry a nine-month carryover, making her ineligible to board.
Heartbreaking Consequences
The trip was planned to celebrate her daughter's fourth birthday, and Jansen had been saving since Christmas. She said: "I was absolutely devastated and heartbroken. This was our first holiday. I booked Kefalonia because my mum took me there for my first holiday."
She added: "My daughter was really looking forward to it. It ruined it for us. How is that legal? You pay for a passport, it gives you an expiry date, why does nothing tell you? Clearly the expiry date doesn't count for anything, it's all about the issue date."
Online Check-In No Help
Jansen encountered no problems during online check-in, only discovering the issue at the airport. She recalled staff saying: "Yours is not within the EU 10 years." She replied: "It's not expired," and they said: "But the EU doesn't care."
She questioned: "We had Brexit. Why has this not been sorted? It should have been an automatic thing sent to everyone."
Additional Costs and Warning
Jansen broke down in tears at the airport. She managed to rebook the holiday at an extra cost of £800. She urges travelers: "Make sure your issue date is 10 years. Expiry means expiry. Nobody looks at an expiry date and thinks to change it earlier."
Jet2 has been approached for comment.
