ThreeJulietTango

I have never seen AA deny boarding to a passenger because the passport wasn't valid for 6+ months when the destination country didn't require it.

Agents go by Timatic. So does the kiosk, and it'll let you check in without issue as long as you meet the passport validity requirements of the destination country.

In this case it just means swiping the US passport. I wouldn't deny boarding for anything not in Timatic.

I wasn't referring to LUS agents in particular. JFK and MIA are going to have more knowledgable agents in general because they see a greater variety of international documentation.

Swiping the residency cards may be a byproduct of an enhanced document verification system that was rolled out in March. I've seen agents ask holders of Bermuda passports for visas to go to Bermuda because it swipes as a British passport.

richarddd

I would hope AA would follow Timatic as you write. However, the written policy on aa.com is 6 months. As I and others wrote above, absent a written policy by AA, it seems safer just to renew early than to worry that something could go wrong. Is there something one could point to for AA policy?

I do wonder why one poster wrote that he brought printouts and had to argue with supervisors, given what you wrote and that AA has Timatic.

RogerD408

The other issue is GAs have only read enough of Timatic to be able to say no and stop at that point. If your situation is further down (TWOV) then they may stop before getting to that point and then you have to argue with them that you have done your research and are allowed according to the country's website and the US State Department. Had this happen on a trip to PEK and even the travel Czar in Dallas was unfamiliar with the rules and only allowed us to board if we agreed to pay any penalties should be get denied entry. No one even looked at us twice when we got there.

I really don't see it being difficult for AA to build a decision tree the GAs could use to quickly see what is and isn't allowed. Sifting through the rules for the entire country when they only fly to a few of the airports puts too much info out there to be misinterpreted. That with the push to get the flight out on time is way too much responsibility for many GAs, IME.

AANYC1981

I've had family members denied boarding to BCN on DL because the passport was not valid for 3 months or more despite our trip being only 4 days.

RogerD408

Was the 3-month requirement DL's rules or Spain's? That's the crux here is if AA can enforce more stringent, unpublished rules (public access) to deny boarding and not be liable for IDB? If it's going to cost AA bucks, they will be much more diligent in following the right rules.

richarddd

Spain requires "Being in possession of a valid passport or travel document
The document must be valid for the entirety of the projected stay." http://www.exteriores.gob.es/portal/...deentrada.aspx

The US state dept writes "Passport should be valid for at least six months beyond your stay." http://travel.state.gov/content/pass...try/spain.html

Timatic: "Passports and other documents accepted for entry must be
valid for a minimum of 3 months beyond the period of
intended stay."
https://www.timaticweb.com/cgi-bin/t...&subuser=NZB2C

One might think Spain itself would be the definitive authority.

unhappyflyer

we had this very thing happen this week, my daughter was denied boarding to Italy for less than 3 months. As I understand it, all (Schengen ?) participants require 3 months but countries like GB not part of the treaty have their own or no requirements (I was told GB is length of stay). we were able to get a sameday passport the next day.

MSPeconomist

The USA State Department is authoritative ONLY for matters of admission INTO the USA. For other countries, not only does USA not determine their policy but the website is simply wrong in some cases that I know, such as China's 72 hour TWOV rules.

Often1

1. The AA published 6-month policy protects AA and that is likely why it is there. AA, as a private carrier, is of course free to impose whatever conditions it wishes on travel so long as those conditions are not otherwise illegal. This is likely cribbed from the European LCC's which do exactly the same by requiring passports for travel which does not require a passport. Why? Makes it easier for the agent.

2. As a backdrop. IDB rules in the US only apply to oversales. Even a wrongful denial of boarding would not trigger an IDB violation unless it could be demonstrated that the passenger was at the gate with a valid BP by T-30 and there were no seats and then the pax was denied boarding for an invalid reason (which this is not).

Maybe the real problem here is AA's erratic enforcement of its own rules. A bold warning on the e-ticket receipt and on any confirmations, and so on would move passengers to 6-month renewal if that is where AA wants them to be. On the other hand, given that its competitors do not impose such a requirement, there is a chunk of business to be lost. Whether AA cares is another question.

RogerD408

I realize USA State Department does not make rules for other countries, but at least they do try to educate people on what the rules are. This is a lot more than AA does by only saying you must have valid passports/visas but they do not provide information about what authority they will use to determine this. Yes, posts here specify Timatic as being the source, but no where did I see that mentioned on AA's website when we were going to China.

The web is full of useless, out-dated information. Sitting on that plane all the way to PEK dreading what could have happened was not all that pleasant. Being in J and drinking did help! Fortunately it was a non-event once we arrived and a very pleasant trip.

blahter

IIRC you need to be traveling within 2 weeks and appointments are mandatory. So OP could wait until 2 weeks in but I don't know how easy it is to get an appointment at the Stamford location.

richarddd

It's also wrong about admission to the Schengen countries. I link above to info on Spain (http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/25970449-post66.html), but it's the same for others.

Often1

I'm not sure why Stamford is so important. There is a large passport agency in NYC which routinely processes passports for same day travel. While you need to have travel booked for that day and the website states that you must have an appointment, the reality is that you can show up at a passport office in one of the major cities with all of your paperwork and photos and proof of travel and you will be helped.

Needless to say, it's inadviseable to do it this way and there are other ways to expedite processing which are less of a crisis, but it's all doable.

unhappyflyer

We were told appointments were mandatory in Chicago and kept calling every 30 minutes in hopes of a cancellation which did eventually come. While in Chicago they did take walk ups however without an appt, but not guaranteed.

ThreeJulietTango

Miami is technically by appointment only, but unofficially they take the first 50 walk-ins who are traveling immediately (that day or the next). People start lining up at 4 or 5 AM.

It's possible that either Timatic or the website itself haven't been updated. Most likely it's the website. Every agent I know goes by Timatic and will not grant an exception based on a website when it's their job on the line.