Should I wait until Brexit is resolved before renewing my passport?

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The Brexit impasse has caused major headaches for travellers (Getty)

Q My passport expires in May 2020. We may have a European holiday in September/October 2019. With all of the uncertainty (still) surrounding Brexit, should I go ahead and renew my passport now or wait to see what happens? If I wait, will I get another EU passport or a British passport?

Gwen H

A Given the almighty shambles over Brexit, and the implications for travellers, your confusion is entirely understandable. Millions of pounds were spent by the government communicating not-always-coherent messages about the implications of Brexit, all of which were wasted when the UK did not leave the European Union in March or April.

The new date for the UK to leave the European Union is no later than 31 October.

The status quo for passports for as long as the UK stays in the European Union is this: a British travel document is valid for travel anywhere in the EU up to and including the date of expiry.

If the UK leaves with the withdrawal agreement in place, then the basic plan initially is to pretend that we are still in the EU, with rules on passports and travel remaining the same until 31 December 2020.

But in the event of a no-deal departure, then immediately much tighter rules will come into play. The UK government says that your passport must meet two conditions: expiring no less than six months after your planned arrival in the EU, and not having been issued more than nine years and six months earlier.

So the crucial question for you and millions of other travellers is: could the UK leave the European Union without a deal before the end of October 2019? I asked the legal team at Abta, the travel association, on behalf of everyone who is currently bamboozled about passport validity.

Happily, their answer is no. There is no risk of a no-deal Brexit before 31 October. It is possible (though unlikely) that the UK could leave earlier, but were it to happen then it would be under the terms of a withdrawal agreement that preserves the status quo. So you can travel to Europe up to the end of October without any concern.

And after that? The leading contender to be the next prime minister, Boris Johnson, has promised that if he wins the Tory party nomination: “We will leave the EU on 31 October, deal or no deal.”

So long as you have no plans to travel in November 2019, I suggest you wait and see what happens. There is no point wasting validity on your current passport. And as for the style of passport you might get when you renew it – who knows? Meanwhile, enjoy your holiday.

Every day our travel correspondent Simon Calder tackles a reader’s question. Just email yours to s@hols.tv or tweet @simoncalder