1. How it works

You can apply for an emergency travel document (sometimes called an ‘emergency passport’) if you’re abroad, need to travel and can’t get a passport in time.

There’s a different way to get a passport urgently if you’re in the UK.

Check if emergency travel documents are accepted in the countries you’re travelling through. Read the entry requirement section of the latest travel advice for each country.

What an emergency travel document lets you do

You can use an emergency travel document to travel to your destination through a maximum of 5 countries. You can also normally use it to return to where you are now if you live in the country you’re applying from.

Your travel plans (countries and dates) will be printed on your emergency travel document. If you change your travel plans once you have your emergency travel document, you’ll need to apply for a new one.

Your existing British passport will be cancelled in most cases.

You may need a visa to leave the country you’re in or to travel through other countries with your emergency travel document. Check with the embassy or consulate of each country.

If your final destination is the UK, border staff will keep your emergency travel document when you arrive. Border staff at a different final destination might also keep the document.