Losing your passport will cost you time, cost you money and could ruin your holiday. That’s the message from the network of British Consulates in Spain who between them handle more than 4,000 lost passport cases every year. For the unfortunate passport holder that usually means a journey to the nearest consulate, time spent making an application for an emergency travel document, and a fee of over 100 Euros.

So, keeping your passport safe will save you hassle and expense, and avoid you wasting precious holiday time. In order to help British passport holders, the consular network in Spain has produced a short video giving advice on how to keep your passport safe and reduce the risks of having it stolen.

Dave Thomas, British Consul General in Madrid, said “We want to help holidaymakers and prevent passports from getting lost or stolen. This new video is an innovative way of getting across some simple steps to keep your passport safe and prevent your holiday getting ruined.

“We want as many people as possible to see this video, so we’re asking members of the British community in Spain to share it as widely as possible – in Spain and back home in the UK. It doesn’t matter if you’re embedding it in your website, including it in a blog posting, or simply sharing it via Twitter or Facebook. We hope that by distributing the video through our community, we can reduce the number of Brits who suffer the stress and expense of a lost or stolen passport.”

The video can be found on YouTube using the search term ‘Lose your passport, lose your holiday - Spain’.

And just in case…

Recognising that some people may still lose their passport or have it stolen, the Consulates have produced a second video podcast that provides a step-by-step guide of what to do. This video can be found on YouTube using the search term ‘Getting an Emergency Travel Document’.

Guidance on how to embed or share the videos is given on the YouTube website.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMWS5BnW7Sw


UkinSpain

If, God forbid, you do lose your passport........

Report it to the GNR. Get a form from them confirming you have reported the loss....it will cost you about 20 euros

Take that form to the British consulate in Portimao, with the details of your lost passport, and 3 passport photos, and they will issue a temporary travel document, which will get you home so you can apply for a replacement.

If you are a long term resident, the consulate can re-new your passport at the embassy in Madrid.

The Portimao consulate is in the new office building, just opposite the Portimao dock offices on the riverfront.

How do I know this? I lost my passport last year, and had to go through the whole painful expensive procedure. Final cost....including a new "fast track" passport?? Just over £200!

The things you'll do to update your photo Bruce

Seriously, didn't you say at the time it is useful to take a photocopy of your passport and keep it safe, it makes things easier??

From what I've seen on the streets in Manchester, you don't need a passport to get into THIS country !!

My passport was stolen a few years back. I reported it, went to Portimao with my photo-copy and got a temporary one in no time . . . thanks to the photo-copy. I never go abroad without it.

Having to have your passport ( and driving licence and hire car details) with you when driving to avoid GNR fines doesn't help.....telling them that the documents are in the villa/hotel safe might not get you very far these days.
Button-down/zipped pockets seem the answer , with always one person opn the beach on guard duty!

I've never had my passport on me when stopped by the GNR and in 10+ times its not been a problem at all. Its too inconvenient to carry it... a drivers license photo card fits in a wallet okay but where are you going to put a passport if you're wearing shorts and tshirt

I've only been stopped 4 times, and only once I didn't have a passport and was warned that I could be fined for not having it on me : the other 3 times , I did, and all was OK. If you want to wear a tee shirt, then trust in your partners handbag!
Having said that, have tried to Google what the requirements actually are, and it seems that passports are only recommended, as long as you have a photo id driving licence and car details.
Can anyone clarify this? Not having to travel around with a passport will be a relief!.....perhaps someone could pop into the GNR staion to enquire?

This is not a definitive answer but I asked this question of our local security GNR officer and he said dated photographic identification was what was required. Out of interest I showed him my flight crew and PADI diving ID cards and he said he could see no reason why those should not be acceptable.

Edit - just read this again and before some clever so'n'so replies - this is in regard to general identification and yes, if driving, you would also need some proof of your legality to drive.

roy4eyes wrote: Edit - just read this again and before some clever so'n'so replies - this is in regard to general identification and yes, if driving, you would also need some proof of your legality to drive.

Whats the chances of getting stopped if you're not driving, or a passenger in a car though? I don't carry any ID at all if i'm traveling on foot...

Technically under Portuguese law you should have identification with you at all times.

Helpful if you are taken ill in a foreign country, commit or are involved in an offence etc.