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What to do if your passport expires while abroad?

If your passport expires while you are abroad, contact the embassy or consulate of your country and apply for an emergency travel document.



If your passport expires while you are in a foreign country in 2026, you must immediately contact the nearest embassy or consulate of your home nation. You cannot travel internationally (including returning home) on an expired passport. Most embassies provide an "Emergency Travel Document" or a "Temporary Passport," which is usually a one-way, limited-validity document that allows you to fly back to your home country. To get this, you will need to provide proof of citizenship (like a birth certificate or a digital scan of your old passport), a police report (if it was lost/stolen), new passport photos, and pay an expedited fee. In 2026, many countries have moved to digital appointment systems, so you should book an "Emergency Appointment" online as soon as you realize the expiration. Do not attempt to go to the airport; the airline will deny you boarding at the check-in desk. Once you return home, you will then need to apply for a standard 10-year replacement passport through your national passport office, as the emergency document is usually surrendered to immigration officials upon your arrival at your home border.

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Anyone traveling with an expired passport should contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate to apply for a new passport. If you're flying overseas, don't bother showing up at the airport without a legitimate passport. If you can't renew in time, rearrange your flight.

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Can you book an international flight with an expired passport if you're waiting for a new passport? You can book it, but you'd better have a current passport when it comes time to board, otherwise you'll be refused boarding.

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In place of a passport, you can use WHTI-compliant documents like passport cards, trusted traveler's cards, and NEXUS cards. While these allow you to travel to these regions by sea and road, they are not acceptable for international flights.

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Boarding domestic flights is possible if you have a state-issued ID. But can you fly without a passport outside the U.S. and its territories? The answer is no. International air travel standards require all flight passengers to have valid passports regardless of age.

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In Asia, nations like China, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand enforce this rule. South American countries like Brazil, Venezuela and Bolivia also need a passport that's good for six months.

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