Does Travel Insurance Cover a Delayed Passport?
Key Takeaways
- Travel insurance usually will not cover Trip Cancellation if your passport doesn’t arrive on time.
- Some travel insurance plans may cover other passport issues, like stolen passports, or losing your passports on your trip.
- Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) coverage may reimburse you if you cancel due to a passport delay, but you have to purchase coverage soon after you book your trip and cancel at least 2 days before departure.
- Use our quote filter to find travel insurance plans with baggage insurance policies that cover passport issues.
Passport Issues That Travel Insurance Won’t Cover
Standard travel insurance typically won’t cover delays for processing your passport, even if the delay is outside your control. You are responsible for keeping track of your travel documents and making sure they’re in your possession, valid and up-to-date.
Travel insurance generally won’t cover:
- Losing your passport before your trip
- Applying for your passport too late
- A delay in processing your passport, even though if it’s beyond your control
- Passports that are about to expire or have expired
Tip: Many countries won’t issue a visa or allow you to enter if your passport is within 6 months of its expiration date, so be sure to check the date on your passport when planning your trip.
>> Read: 15 Travel Tips for First-Time Fliers
Passports Issues That Travel Insurance May Cover
While travel insurance generally won’t cover delayed or lost passports ahead of the trip, it may cover other passport-related problems.
Depending on the policy, travel insurance may cover:
- Passports stolen before or during your trip: If your passports are stolen and you can provide proof of the theft via a police report, travel insurance may reimburse you for cancelling or interrupting your trip.
- Passports lost during your trip: Travel insurance may reimburse the costs of delaying or ending your trip due to losing your passports on your trip.
- Replacing lost or stolen passports during your trip: Some baggage insurance policies may cover fees for replacing passports.
Can Cancel For Any Reason Insurance (CFAR) Cover Passport Delays?
CFAR insurance can reimburse a portion of your prepaid, non-refundable trip costs if you need cancel your trip due to missing passports, but there are caveats:
- You usually have to purchase CFAR within 14-21 days of your initial trip deposit. If you booked your trip well in advance and discovered close to your travel date that your passports won’t arrive on time, it may be too late to purchase CFAR.
- You typically have to cancel 2 days ahead of your departure date to qualify for reimbursement. If you’ve realized at the very last minute that your passports are missing, you are out of luck.
Given these restrictions, CFAR is likely not a viable option for travelers dealing with last-minute passport delays.
What Can You Do if Your Passport Is Delayed?
Though travel insurance may not help, you have other options for getting your passport faster. You may be able to schedule a same-day passport appointment, pay for expedited processing, or use priority shipping. If you have an emergency, like a sick or dying family member overseas, you may even qualify for an emergency passport.
>> Learn more: How to Get Your Passport Faster
FAQs: Travel Insurance & Passport Delays
Generally, you need a physical copy of your passport to apply for a visa. Even for an online e-Visa, most countries require your passport number, issue date, expiration date, and a high-quality photo of your passport.
However, you may be able to save a draft of your e-Visa application, then quickly submit it once your passport arrives. E-Visas often have a quick turnaround time, so you may be able to submit it a few days before your departure and still qualify for entry, depending on your destination.
No, travel insurance generally won’t reimburse your trip costs if your visa doesn’t arrive on time. Like your passport, you are responsible for allowing enough time for processing your visa. However, if you are still within 14-21 days of your initial trip deposit, you may be able to purchase CFAR insurance to cover a potential visa delay.
No, unless you added CFAR to your travel insurance policy, your travel insurance policy likely won’t reimburse you for losing your passport ahead of your trip. However, CFAR coverage may allow you to cancel due to a lost passport, provided you purchase coverage soon enough to qualify for CFAR.
No, travel insurance doesn’t cover an expired passport or a passport that is about to expire. You should check the dates on your passports while you are making travel arrangements to ensure that you don’t need to replace them. The expiration date should be at least 6 months beyond the start date for your trip.
To claim travel insurance on a stolen passport, you should file a police report immediately after it is stolen (usually within 24 hours). You should provide a copy of this report along with receipts and other supporting documents to your provider. You should also report your stolen passport to the U.S. Department of State. Check your policy’s specific requirements and deadlines for submitting a claim for a stolen passport.