Responding to Joanne Yee’s question re: her U.S. visa on an expired passport dated Sept. 18, 09 (if it’s not too late). A valid U.S. visa on an expire passport can still be used to enter to the U.S. so long as the page to which the visa is affixed is not invalidated or mutilated. When entering the U.S., you will need to present both the old passport with the valid U.S. visa and your new valid passport. However, I am not sure what the practice is with Malaysian passport and immigration department, whether they return an old passport to you. A simple justification to them why you need your old passport and why that specific page cannot be tempered should be OK.

It’s important to note that each country has different immigration policies, a valid Schengen visa, for example, will not be acceptable on an expired passport.

@ Moly: a country generally allows its citizen freedom of movement, i.e. that a person can enter and leave his/her country freely, even if the passport is expired. In most cases you will need to be able to establish the relationship between you and your country (that being the proof of citizenship). You may have more problem remaining in Canada with a soon to expire passport.

Where I used to work I dealt with a lot of people from mostly different Asian nationalities traveling to various places. Most countries would require the passport be valid for at least three to six months at the time of entry. Some countries even require that the passport has at least X number of blank pages in the passport before they entertain the idea of letting you in.

A lot of airlines’ websites has open up a program they use to decide whether a passenger is allowed to go on board, you can find out more at: http://www.delta.com/planning_reservations/plan_flight/international_travel_information/visa_passport_information/index.jsp

As a general rule, always, always check with the foreign representative you are traveling to on the latest visa requirements, as they may change from time to time, and make sure that your passport is not expiring anytime soon. Just get a new one for the peace of mind if it is expiring in 6 months, especially if it can be done in a matter of a few hours!

I discovered all this last month when I was about to leave for Jakarta and realised I only had 5 months validity on my passport. Unfortunately, I realised it at the Air Asia counter when the clerk refused to check me in. Luckily, as a previous resident of Indonesia, I had old visa stickers to prove that I was not just a tourist and in fact had to visit my sick father-in-law. The Air Asia guy was kind enough to let me go, especially when I told him that I would get someone to meet me in Soekarno Hatta airport.

When I passed through Malaysian immigration, the machine gate rejected me and I had to talk to an Immigration officer. What he said was, “We have no problem with you leaving, but you may get into trouble there. If you are sure you wont have a problem, you may go.” I assured him that I would be okay and not cause problems for him. Actually, I wasnt sure but really needed to get back there and didnt want to waste my ticket!

Finally, when I got there, there was a small problem with the Indonesian immigration. When they established I was married to a local and had a family emergency, the allowed me to enter.

Still, what I have learned is, always, always, always have a valid passport!

I’m not sure. Technically it’s less than 6 months. Try showing them your return ticket, maybe, just maybe they’ll let you pass if they are fussy about the date.