Travelling internationally with an expired passport?

[Christi85 86]

Do you have to renew in person in Greece? What if you sent your passport and required items (new 2x2 photos?) FedEx to a family member in Greece. Let them take it in for renewal. Then FedEx it back to you here in the US.

Just trying to think out side of the box.

Unfortunately I have to apply in person because they take biometrics at the time of application (and to my bad luck, they changed the biometric requirements since the last time I had to get a passport, so they can't use the ones they already have). Otherwise I'd have done just that.

Thanks everyone again. It sounds like it is possible to leave the USA this way, but it's stretching it and risking it. I'll try to get my Consulate here to give me an emergency travel document, it's their job to help their citizens anyway (supposedly). Plus I called them a month before my passport is due to expire, and they weren't able to offer me an appointment until after the expiration date. So somehow they got to help me/advise me what to do if I have to travel.

Sunny123 - we'll be there for almost 5 weeks, and passports take just 3-4 business days to be processed (it's just through the Consulates that it takes so much longer and I don't really know why), so even with a delay it's quite unlikely that I won't have my passport in hand for my return trip. The silly thing is, even those passports that are forwarded to them from Consulates abroad still take the same amount of time to be processed, so no idea what takes a Consulate so long. Ridiculous!!

[milimelo 4,477]

Get a transportation letter from the Consulate, forget about trying to get a new passport. Transportation letter will get you to Greece and they will take it away at the Greek border entry (airport) after you are admitted to the country. Then just go get a new passport.

[jaycali 415]

All the Greek embassy for an emergency passport.

No flight entering the Schengen area is allowed to let you board without a valid passport.

Therefore, no country in the Schengen area will let you in without a valid passport. Best case, you'd be stopped at the US airport and denied getting on the flight. Worst case, you'd be held up days at your European POE while they establish your full identity.

I flew from the US to Norway one time on the same day my Norwegian passport expired, and the border police told me i was very lucky my flight wasn't delayed cause they would have detained me. Norway and Greece are both in Schengen so roughly same rules apply.

Edited March 28, 2012 by jhsm85

[jaycali 415]

All the Greek embassy for an emergency passport.

Call*

And i don't know what Greece calls it, but most countries have some form of limited entry emergency passport or travel document.

[StarGirl 13]

From my personal experience: had an expired passport back in 2008, was leaving US, called my embassy, called the UK airlines - everyone was telling me that it would be OK to travel to your home country on expired passport. I got my ticket, went to the airport, and was denied the boarding! That flight was going through LND, so I thought it might have been the reason. I tried to purchase the non-stop flight from Delta, but the person at Delta counter told me that there was no chance anyone would allow me boarding regardless of itinerary.. so.. the trip was ruined ((((

Edited March 28, 2012 by StarGirl

[Mike X Man 37]

You can't fly with an expired passport, period. My friend's mom (who was visiting her son here in the US) was denied boarding the plane (here in the US) back to Kenya because her passport was expired. BTW...I renewed my Kenyan passport through the Kenyan embassy in DC. Considering I sent my stuff to them, and they mailed my stuff to Kenya, got processed there, then returned to DC and mailed back to me, it took 28days!

[Christi85 86]

Yeah, I don't think it's worth risking to travel without a passport/travel document, even though I will have the valid national ID card from Greece. Even though they may tell you it's ok, I don't want to risk having an experience like you guys had.

So when I go in for my appointment in May(!!!) I will tell them I certainly, most definitely need to travel to Greece on the booked date, so they either have to help me get my passport before then, or give me the emergency travel document in lieu of passport. Now I've spoken to some other Greek friends who've gone through the process in other Consulates here in the US, and they were all told it would be 8 weeks like I was told, but in reality it was done in 3-4. So fingers crossed it's this way!

Anyway, worst case scenario I'll change the dates of the trip closer to the time (but I'll have to wait until a couple days before the trip if I still have no passport in hand) and that will be E-X-P-E-N-S-I-V-E. Don't even want to think about it

Edited March 28, 2012 by Christi85

[S_R 148]

Thanks for your responses guys.

Being admitted into my HOME COUNTRY on an expired passport is not a problem, I know for a fact that my country of citizenship allows that since it's a passport issued by them and I'm a citizen. Plus like I said, I have my valid national ID card which they accept in the same way as they do a passport, so I don't even have to show them the passport. I just show them the ID card. Lots of people do that in Greece. ID card and passport have the same validity as ID documents there, and if I was traveling within the EU I could be traveling passport-free, just with the ID card.

My main problem is getting on the plane from the US, since I'll then be able to renew my passport in Greece and travel back with a valid one. Of course I don't intend to hide or try to conceal the fact that my passport is expired (how could I do that?), I'm just asking if a green card would suffice. If it came to that I'd probably explain the situation and offer any extra info they required to identify that it's really me and not a terrorist or something.

I asked because of:

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/acceptable_documents.shtm

and

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/1191/kw/permanent%20resident/sno/1

Plus the US Airways rep on the phone said they're more laxed on people leaving the States than to those entering and that I shouldn't have a problem when leaving, but then again their website said otherwise (= you need a passport for international travel). Whatever.

I'll see what I'll do. Changing the dates is an option but not a cheap one ($500 to change both tickets + the difference in price since we bought non-flexible tickets over a month ago not anticipating this hiccup), so it'll be very hard if it comes to that.

Another option is to see if my Embassy will provide me with a temporary travel document (valid just for one trip to Greece), which is some sort of a temporary passport until I get the regular one, like Gosia & Tito has said. I know they do that for lost/stolen passports and for expired ones at their discretion. These are valid just for one trip and under the condition that you'll be getting a proper one as soon as you are at your destination country. By the time of the appointment in mid-May my current passport will be expired already (it expires in late April).

Definitely a worry that wasn't necessary, especially since I'm trying to sort things out 4 months in advance of the trip - wish I knew it would be so long, so that I could have started earlier.

NigeriaorBust: indeed, they do. Well, I can try checking with other Consulates, but the added difficulty is that they want you to make the application in person and then again pick up the passport in person or send an authorized representative to pick up. So I have to go through LA, since I'd have to fly to go to any of the others, possibly twice.

I have a friend who left the U.S with an expired passport and renewed once he arrived back on home soil. He just got back 2weeks ago with no issues.

[Chicagoguy 2 27]

I am wondering if Embassy in Washington has an expedited service - maybe for a little more money ?

[Laure&Colin 558]

You'll always find people to tell you that you could get through with an expired passport, but the truth is that the date is the 1st thing they look at in the airport and you will most likely be denied boarding. I wouldn't even try!

If you know your appointment date, and how long it will take from then, why don't you change your plane tickets now? It might be cheaper than waiting for the last minute.

[Gosia & Tito 199]

Sunny123 - we'll be there for almost 5 weeks, and passports take just 3-4 business days to be processed (it's just through the Consulates that it takes so much longer and I don't really know why), so even with a delay it's quite unlikely that I won't have my passport in hand for my return trip. The silly thing is, even those passports that are forwarded to them from Consulates abroad still take the same amount of time to be processed, so no idea what takes a Consulate so long. Ridiculous!!

The reason is likely to be that there is only 1/month diplomatic pouch with documents to process country side; your passport would not necessarily make it in the first delivery, because some processing needs to happen at the Consulate; same on the way back, there is a potential 4 months right there on a very bad case scenario; then it would probably take a few days actually been processed, rest of the time it will be sitting at some desk waiting. Total time 4-5 months on a bad case; Consulate is just covering their bases. It might be faster but it would require that you hit the 'right' dates. They already probably know that your appointment date will be after the pouch going out that month, thus, 1 month at least waiting at the consulate for the next pouch, and they have no control over what happens in Greece. Given the recent events in Greece, maybe the 3 days has turned into 3 weeks.

[sunshinenate 8]

If your National Card for Greece is vaild you can fly with it and reenter into the USA with the Green Card. You ARE NOT required to have a passport to travel internationally. The airline only requires that you have a valid document that the country you are arriving to allows you to use to enter. TSA is the same. So..lots of people speaking here about things they don't know. The airline has the final say, just follow up with the info on the web site and you will be fine.

[newlyweds2010 208]

A few thoughts:

1. The Greek immigration officer will probably not think that you aren't Greek any more. However, more than likely he will not let you in with an expired passport.

2. If you come from outside of the Schengen area or another non-Schengen country that allows international travel with national IDs (the US is not), the only document you will be allowed to use is a passport. an ID would be ok if you were entering Greece from - say - England, Germany, France, Italy, Switzerland, etc., but you would still have the problem of entering such country from the US.

3. Since you have a domestic flight first (why East coast to West coast, btw?), if you have no other valid ID (not sure you can use a green card to board a domestic US flight, but I have never tried), the airline will not let you board at all. Also, since you will be checking in directly to Greece, the airline will definitely not let you board.

4. A green card by itself is not an international travel document. It simply allows permanent residence in the US. Even if you went by car or sea to Canada or Mexico, a green card and a state ID would not be enough. Any country other than the US will not give a damn about the green card, which is certainly not recognized abroad.

5. I believe that not all consulates in the US will have jurisdiction: you need to prove that you are a resident of a state on which that specific consulate has jurisdiction, unless you are seeking emergency help (check this though).

6. Isn't there an expedite procedure to apply for a passport at your consulate? You may have to pay more, but you should be able to get it faster.

[newlyweds2010 208]

Ok, here is the CBP link: https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/1191

a permanent resident is not required to have a passport to enter the US, however, the airline may have different rules (i.e. they may want to see a valid passport). Also, the CBP does not give any advice on whether you can enter a foreign country without a passport (of course, it's not their job to know what Greece requires).

In sum: per US immigration, you're good (not a problem anyway, you will not be checked at the time of leaving the country), the airline may not let you board, at which point you're screwed; even if they let you board, it really depends on what Greece decides to do when you show up with an expired passport: let you in without any problems, scold you, or kick you in jail.

[GoranM 0]

Hi folks,

I'm wondering about what I'm asking in the title.

I'm a US permanent resident with a valid green card, and a Greek national (although I went through immigration in the UK where we were living previously). Long story short, we have booked a 5-week vacation to Greece in July-August (which will be 14 months after I last visited) and my Greek passport expires in late April. I contacted my country's local Consulate for a passport renewal, and it turns out I may not have enough time before my trip to renew the passport through them, since they weren't able to offer me an appointment to submit my paperwork until mid-May and processing takes up to 8 weeks thereafter under normal circumstances, so we may be cutting it very tight with the trip, just days before we're due to depart, and that's not counting unforseen delays. I had no idea it could take this long through the Consulate - see, if you renew in Greece, it's done in just 3 business days.

So I was wondering what people's experiences are for leaving the US without a valid passport (I'll still have my current passport with me but it will be expired) but with a valid green card. I'll also have a valid Greek national ID card with me and my California driver's license, though I don't think they'll care. There should be no problem being admitted in Greece since I'm a national and I can present my ID card instead of passport at the POE. Then the plan is to renew the passport there as soon as we arrive (like I said, it takes just 3 business days) and so I'll be able to return to the States with a valid passport + my green card.

I'm quite confused as I spent the whole day trying to figure out if that would be a problem. TSA and the Department of State make it sound as if I should be ok as long as I have the green card (that's on their websites). I called US Airways, our airline, and they said "whatever TSA requires, we have no additional requirements, you should be fine" but the guy couldn't give a definite answer, but then their website explicitly says you need a valid passport to be allowed to board any international flight - go figure! So I'm really confused.

If anyone has any experience of traveling from the US to your home country with an expired passport but a valid green card, and whether that caused any problems boarding the flight from the USA or not, please share and advise. I'm at a loss.

Thank you!

I got a question. Were you able to leave the US and enter greece? I have the same problem, my daughters Romanian Passport is expired and we are trying to go to romania. She has a green card. We were ablr to do that 2 years ago on accident. We didnt know her passport was expired and we made it to romania without a problem, but when we tried to leave romania they didnt let us until she renewed her passport. Whe made an emergency passport thats only good for one year. Now its expired and we want to go back this summer and visit and make her a new passport there because here it cost $600 and there its only like $50.We made it without a problem last time, but people are telling me it was by mistake because no one noticed it, but I dont believe that because they see its expired when they scan it. I dont think America cares when you leave, I think they care when you return. SO were you able to leave with your expired greek passport?