Jet2 passenger devastated to have 50th birthday celebrations ‘snatched away at the boarding gate’ by passport rules

Jet2 passenger devastated to have 50th birthday celebrations "snatched away at the boarding gate" by passport rules.

James Luton, from Royston in Hertfordshire, was told he could not board his flight to Portugal as his passport was issued over 10 years ago.

A Jet2 member of staff was "very apologetic" over the refusal to allow him on his flight from Stansted Airport, but admitted there was "nothing she could do as she does not make the rules", Mr Luton said.

The rules, in place since the UK left the EU, do not allow passports to be issued more than 10 years ago.

In 2024, travel expert Simon Calder said thousands of people were at risk due to the change, but added you could "easily find that there are over 100,000 people who lose their holidays as a result of these rules" each year.

Mr Luton told the BBC: "Having worked so hard to have what I thought would be the perfect 50th celebration... to have it snatched away at the boarding gate, I was gutted."

The father-of-two said he had checked the expiry date before leaving, which was October 2026, but its issue date was February 2016.

Passengers were previously able to fly nine extra months.

He had originally planned to relax by the pool on Thursday with a "nice breakfast with Buck's fizz to start with" on a "chill day".

But due to the passport rules, he was left playing a round of golf on his own.

He left it to his extended family to report back "how wonderful the villa is".

After leaving his wife to board the plane on Wednesday morning, he said his "mission" was to get a new passport and flight as soon as possible.

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He was able to get an in-person appointment at Peterborough Passport Office on Friday morning, and has a one-way flight to Faro booked that afternoon.

He said: "I have officially moved my birthday to Saturday now to celebrate with my family."

Mr Luton believes others have been caught out in a similar way, and said it is likely the number will only increase.

He added: "I don't think it is as well publicised as it should be - priority is on checking your expiry date."

In 2024, Norwich man Nathan Barnes was caught out by the same rule and was prevented from boarding his flight to France.

And that same year, Jane Opher, 61, said it was "humiliating" to be led out of the airport after not being allowed to board her flight to Barcelona.

A spokesman for Jet2 said it always reminded passengers to check the validity of their passport in line with government advice before flights.

The spokesman also pointed customers to its travel requirements section of its website, "where they can find more information on how to ensure that their passport is valid for travel".