Passports & visas
Get the lowdown on the bureaucracy of borders with our guide to the essential travel documents
It’s arguably the most important possession of any traveller – and also the most cherished souvenir for most dedicated globetrotters. The passport is what enables you to cross borders, check onto flights, prove your age to draconian bar staff and remind yourself (and your long-suffering friends and family) of all the amazing places you’ve travelled, thanks to the visas and entry stamps decorating the pages.
The passport’s more troublesome cousin is the visa – the sticker or stamp in your passport that says a destination will let you in, also defining how long you can stay, what you can do while you’re there and, in more rigidly controlled countries, where you can enter, depart and explore that destination.
Passports
Getting a passport is, in most Western countries, straightforward, if time-consuming and increasingly expensive. At the time of writing (2010), standard 32-page biometric UK passports cost £77.50, jumbo 48-page passports £90.50; processing takes two to three weeks, though Fast Track one-week and Premium one-day services are available for standard renewals of adult passports (Fast Track £112.50/£120.50, Premium £129.50/£138.50 for standard/48-page passports). Minimum supporting documentation is your birth certificate, though other documents may be required.
Visas
Visas are another matter. Permission to enter any destination is given entirely on the whims of that land’s government; your visa application may be refused – indeed, you can be turned away at the border or airport even with a visa – without reason. Requirements for obtaining a visa, including fees and duration, vary enormously depending on your nationality and the relationship between your country and your destination.
For example, UK nationals can enter many countries without a visa, including all countries in the European Economic Area (EU plus Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Switzerland). Visas are either not required or available on arrival in many countries, including (at the time of writing) Thailand, Indonesia, New Zealand, Kenya and Nepal; however, fees for visas on arrival can be high, and bureaucracy can be time-consuming, so in many cases it’s easier to obtain a visa in advance.
For some destinations, you’ll either need to pre-register before departure (for the USA) or obtain an electronic permit (as in Australia’s eVisitor system) – no stamps in the passport, but prior organisation is essential. Note that applying for the US ESTA or Australian eVisitor is free – any website charging for submitting for the application is not official and should be avoided.
Visas come in many forms – tourist, transit, student, business or even working holiday – and may last for varying periods of time, permitting one or more entries into the destination, and have other regulations attached to them. Some are valid strictly from the date of issue (ie you have to leave the destination within a set period from issue), while for others you need to entry within a specified period, but can then stay for a set number of weeks or months from date of entry.
Some countries may deny entry if your passport contains a stamp from another proscribed nation. A common requirement is that your passport is valid for at least six months after application or entry, and has at least one blank page remaining.
Visa requirements change often and significantly – the information in this article may be out of date by the time you read this – and may also depend on your personal circumstances. For these reasons, and more, the main rule of thumb is: do your research well in advance, at least a month before planned departure.
General advice
Useful information on entry requirements for many destinations can be found on the website of the UK Foreign & Commonwealth Office. You can also get information and arrange visas through CIBT.