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I have just checked my passport before I leave the UK to go on holiday this weekend (6 days time). I noticed there was a bit of breakfast bar stuck to the back of the bio-data page and this has caused oil to seep through onto the front page. This must have happened on my flight home from my previous holiday, as the airline were giving out cereal bars as we boarded the plane to go home. I have no idea how I haven’t noticed this until now but I’m scared my passport is considered too damaged to fly!

I have trawled through many different articles and sites and really need some advice!! I have already rang the passport office and due to strikes I can’t pay to get my passport replaced in time. Do you think the mark would count as damage and could stop me flying? The mark doesn’t cover any writing on the bio-data page.

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  • What is your nationality? (It should not make a difference but it does.)
    – Willeke ♦
    Apr 16 at 16:09
  • British! It’s a UK passport I’m referring to. Does that make a difference?
    – infrequenttravelerUK
    Apr 16 at 18:00

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Assuming you’re referring to a British passport, from https://www.postoffice.co.uk/help-support/passports:

HM Passport Office classes a passport as damaged if:

  • Details are indecipherable
  • The laminate has lifted enough to allow the possibility of photo substitution
  • There’s discolouration of the bio-data page
  • There’s chemical or ink spillage on any page
  • There are missing or detached pages
  • The chip or antenna shows through the end paper on the back cover for the new style e-passports
  • The chip has been identified as damaged after investigation

If the stain is visible on the bio page, the airline may well not accept it.

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