Planning to go on vacation? Many UAE residents are making this simple mistake

Heading out for a vacation? Make sure everything is in order.

Not checking her 15-year-old son Sharath Ramakrishnan's passport ahead of their travel plans to India cost Sharjah-based school teacher Suvarna Ramakrishnan her annual summer vacation. Suvarna and her family were all set to travel to Kerala for the summer holidays, mainly to meet with her older daughter, a student of engineering in India.

Unfortunately, the high school teacher realised a night before her travels that her son's passport had expired and was due for renewal in May. "We only checked if the visa was valid. It didn't cross our minds to check if the passport needs renewal," Suvarna told Khaleej Times.

"I had to cancel the onward ticket, and since my husband and I had to submit our passports to renew my son's passport, we had to cancel our onward ticket. We are now considering moving the return ticket to later in the year. My daughter was very upset to learn we won't be travelling," she added.

Due to the high number of passengers being turned away from the airport due to expired passports, the Embassy of India in Abu Dhabi and the Consulate General of India in Dubai have asked families to check passport expiry dates and renew passports on time to avoid travel delays. Indian missions say they are having to deal with several cases where families could not travel due to expired passports. Consulate officials in Dubai said cancelled holidays due to expired passports are common during the holiday season.

Abu Dhabi embassy officials said the expiration of passports, running out of pages, or damage to the documents are some issues that could hinder travel plans.

Indian Embassy counsellor (consular) M Rajamurugan said individuals need to check all details related to the passport at least a month before travelling. He said travellers to India book air ticket much in advance, but forget to check the expiry date of their passport. "And when they do, it's too late. Passports of minors have a shorter validity," he said.

Most families end up having to cancel their flight bookings and then apply for 'tatkal' passport at a higher fee. Tatkal is a scheme used to booking journeys and renewing documents, such as the passport, at a short notice. "Similar cases have come during this holiday season. People can renew passports up to six months in advance," he said.

"Another aspect is the number of pages. Sometimes we don't notice but there will be no pages to stamp on the passport. Frequent travellers can opt for a jumbo passport with 60 pages. People also need to check for damage in the passport. In some cases, the immigration authorities will not allow the passenger to fly if the travel document is damaged," said Rajamurugan. The embassy said it has issued 30,824 passports in first six months till June. 

Rajamurugan said during medical emergencies, the embassy provides emergency travel certificate even during a holiday. "It is sad to realise that your passport has expired, especially so close to travel dates. There were a few recent cases where expats of near ones have passed away, and the embassy had to issue a new passport on a holiday. We treat these cases on priority and facilitated their travel." Meanwhile, BLS International, the embassy's outsourced agency for passport and visa services, said there was a rise in a number of passport renewals in past few months. "Yes, there is an increase during holiday season and months before it," a call centre executive said.

Neeraj Agarwal, acting consul-general and consul for the press, information, culture also advised travellers to check their passport much ahead of their travel to India. "We see about two to three cases every week, especially during the holiday season," he said.