Today is the three year anniversary of our departure from the EU. At 11pm on 31 January, 2020, the UK ceased to be a member state of the bloc. The Brexit dividends that were promised to voters in the 2016 referendum were never focused on travel. The “yes” vote would set in motion the start of new border rules and end the right of British passport holders to live and work visa-free in EU countries.
Queues for passport stamps, costly paperwork when travelling with pets and mobile phone roaming fees are among the changes that came with the end of the Brexit transition period on 31 December, 2020. New border rules for all non-EU citizens will be introduced this year further altering travel to Europe from the UK. We explain the biggest changes.
Passport issue and expiry dates
British passport holders cannot travel to an EU or Schengen Area country with a passport that was issued more than 10 years before the date they enter that country. The passport must also have at least three months of validity after the day they plan to leave.
This rule has been a cause of confusion, with some travel providers issuing incorrect information. The two conditions above are independent of one another: for example, if your passport was issued on 30 September, 2013, but has an expiry date of 30 December, 2023, and you planned to take a week-long break to Spain on 23 September, 2023, you would meet the EU’s rules.
Passport stamps (and future checks)
Since the end of the Brexit transition period in January 2021, British passport holders can only remain in the EU or Schengen Area for 90 days within every 180 days without a visa. To ensure third-country travellers are complying with this rule, they must get a passport stamp on arrival and departure from EU or Schengen Area countries. In the peak travel period last summer, Britons reported long queues at Spanish airports for non-EU passengers.
The European Commission is set to introduce its Entry/Exit System (EES) by the end of 2023. This will replace passport stamping. Instead, biometric data will be taken from non-EU travellers. It is expected that British passport holders will have their fingerprints and photographs taken on their first visit to the EU after the system is introduced. The data could be held for up to three years under EU rules.
This year will also bring the European Travel Information and Authorisation System (Etias). All British passport holders will be required to have an approved Etias for entry to 30 countries. There will be a €7 (£6.20) charge for applicants aged 18–70. People aged under 18 or over 70 will still need to apply but will not have to pay a fee. An Etias will be valid for three years or until the passport expires, whichever comes first.
UK passport holders will not require an Etias to visit the Republic of Ireland.
Driving rules
Britons must carry their UK driving licence while driving in the EU. UK drivers do not need an international driving permit (IDP) to visit and drive in the EU, Switzerland, Iceland or Liechtenstein.
However, drivers may need an IDP to drive in some EU countries and Norway if they have a paper licence or a licence that was issued in Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey or the Isle of Man. An IDP costs £5.50.
Those with a UK driving licence do not need an IDP when visiting Ireland.
Since September 2021, the national identifier sticker for UK registered cars driving in the EU is UK, rather than GB. This may be incorporated into a number plate (along with the Union Flag) or as a separate sticker. Cars that do not have a UK identifier incorporated in their number plate require a UK sticker. GB stickers are no longer valid.
If you’re in Spain, Cyprus or Malta, you must display a UK sticker no matter what is on your number plate. UK drivers should carry their vehicle logbook (V5C) when taking their vehicle to the EU or a VE103 to show they’re allowed to use their hired or leased vehicle abroad.
Pet passports
It is now more expensive to travel to the EU with your pet. Britons must have an Animal Health Certificate (AHC) to take their pet to any country within the European Area. The certificate must have been issued no more than 10 days before travel.
The stipulated timing for obtaining an AHC means getting an appointment within the 10 days of travel to the EU. Plus, to travel to the EU, your pet must have been microchipped, vaccinated and have had up-to-date worming treatments – all of which will be detailed in the certificate.
AHCs must be issued by an official vet and will remain valid for a return journey within four months. The cost for a certificate can range from around £100–£300. A maximum of five pets can be added to a certificate, with a cost of around £50 for each extra animal.
There are also rules for returning to the UK from the EU with a pet. A vet must treat your dog for tapeworm no less than 24 hours and no more than five days before you arrive in Great Britain. They must also record the treatment in your pet’s passport or AHC. You will need to take details of each pet’s rabies vaccination and tapeworm treatment.
See gov.uk for more information.
Health insurance
UK travellers visiting the EU, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Switzerland must have either:
- A UK Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC)
- A European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)
These must be in addition to travel insurance with healthcare cover. Healthcare systems vary between countries, and you will need to pay to have treatment in some countries. A GHIC allows you to get medically necessary healthcare treatment in Europe at a reduced cost or sometimes for free. Britons with an in-date EHIC do not need to apply for a GHIC.
Both cards are valid when travelling to an EU country or, if you’re eligible, in Switzerland. You can no longer apply for a new EHIC, but applications for a GHIC are free and should be made through the NHS website.
Healthcare rules differ for visits to Spain or Ireland and if you going to live, work or study in the EU.
More on Brexit Travel
Consumer rights
The UK retained EU passenger rights after Brexit. You can claim up to £520 in compensation if your flight has been delayed more than three hours, unless the changes were caused by an extraordinary circumstance, or if your flight has been cancelled.
These rules apply for flights departing from a UK airport and flights arriving at a UK or EU airport on a UK or EU airline.
If a flight is cancelled less than 14 days before departure and the replacement flight delays a passenger’s arrival by two or more hours, they are legally entitled to compensation. The amount depends on the distance of the flight, as well as the departure and arrival times of the rescheduled flight and when the flight was cancelled.
Rules on compensation for delays and cancellations for flights to the EU are set to remain. However, there are plans to change the rules for UK domestic flights.
The proposals in the Aviation Consumer Policy Reform Consultation, for which a review ran between January 31 and March 27, would link compensation to the price of travel on UK domestic routes – and payouts could be significantly reduced.
Under the suggested changes, airline passengers could claim 25 per cent of their ticket back after an hour’s delay, 50 per cent after two hours and a full refund after three hours.
Living and working in Europe
As outlined above, British passport holders can only stay within the EU or Schengen Area for up to 90 days within any 180-day period without a visa. Rules vary for Britons who had been living in an EU country before the end of the Brexit transition period.
British passport holders who wish to move to an EU country require a work permit or another type of visa to remain in the EU for more than 90 days at a time. Some countries, such as Portugal, Spain and Greece, have or are introducing visas aimed at remote workers.
Roaming charges
UK mobile operators are no longer required to guarantee surcharge-free roaming across the European Economic Area (EEA). The end of the Brexit transition period brought this change. Further protections ended on 30 June, 2022, including the daily limit on roaming costs.
Many major mobile phone networks have reintroduced roaming charges for customers travelling in the EU. The charges are sometimes only applied to newer customers.
EE, Vodafone, Voxi, Sky Mobile, Three and Tesco Mobile are among the operators to have brought back roaming fees.
Duty-free shopping
UK residents are now eligible for tax-free shopping in the EU.
The minimum spending amount required for a VAT refund varies between EU countries. To be eligible, UK travellers must prove that they bought the goods in the EU and that they plan to consume or use them in their country of residence, which must be outside of the EU.
However, UK travellers lost the right to bring as much duty-added products as they wish back from the EU. Unlimited allowances for bringing back alcohol back from the EU ended with the Brexit transition period. Now UK residents aged 18 or over are limited to the following:
- 42 litres of beer, and
- 18 litres of still wine (24x75cl bottles), and
- 4 litres of spirits or 9 litres of sparkling wine/fortified wine or other liqueurs (12x75cl bottles); this last allowance can be split, so for example, half the amount of spirits as well as half the amount of sparkling or fortified wine
Eurostar services
Eurostar Group recently revealed that it was withholding hundreds of seats on its trains each day to avoid delays at stations.
Trains between London and Paris were carrying 30 per cent fewer passengers, it said. Gwendoline Cazenave, chief executive of Eurostar roup, suggested that post-Brexit border checks and levels of border staff after Covid had caused bottlenecks at stations.
The checks include the passport stamps that British passport holders require on entry and exit from the EU or Schengen Area.
Eurostar is running 14 services per day between London and Paris; in 2019, there were 18 services per day.
