Six-Month Club Countries — The US Passport Validity Exemption List

"Six-month club" is the nickname for the countries whose citizens are exempt from the US rule that a passport must be valid for six months beyond your intended stay. This page lists the current official list and explains what the exemption does and does not cover. Verified against CBP and the Foreign Affairs Manual, October 2026.

The 15-second answer

The United States normally requires visitors to hold a passport valid for six months beyond the period of their intended stay. Citizens of the countries and territories on the six-month exemption list are exempt: their passport only needs to be valid for the period of stay itself. The list is published by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) under the Carrier Liaison Program, and the operative rule is 9 FAM 403.9-3(b)(2)(f).

What the rule says

• The default: your passport must be valid for six months past the date you intend to leave the US. A passport with, say, three months left is not enough for a two-week trip.
• The exemption: if you are a citizen of a listed country, you only need a passport valid for your intended period of stay — the extra six months is not required.
• Who applies it: the rule is enforced by CBP at the border and, in practice, by airlines at check-in under the Carrier Liaison Program.

The current list — 127 countries and territories

The list below is reproduced from the current CBP exemption document (Publication 5303-1225, list dated 18 December 2025). It supersedes the 2022–2023 Carrier Information Guides and previous Carrier Liaison Program bulletins. Entries are shown as published, including territories and special regions (for example Antilles, Aruba, Bermuda, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan).

What changed: the previous version of this list (Publication 3514-1223, effective 28 January 2024, 126 entries) contained the same entries except that Gabon has since been added, bringing the total to 127.

Is your country on the list?

The larger visa-waiver and high-volume visitor countries are all included: the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Japan, South Korea, Australia, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, India, Singapore and most of the EU. If your country appears above, plan on a passport valid for your stay; if it does not, assume the six-month rule applies to you.

What the exemption does and does not cover

• It covers validity only. It says nothing about visas, ESTA, or the passport photo standards of your application.
• It is about your passport's expiry date, not the condition or number of pages in it — some visa routes still want blank pages.
• Airlines can still refuse boarding if a document does not meet their own check-in rules, even where the destination is lenient.

How this differs from the "6-month rule" people quote for other countries

This page is the US inbound list. Other countries set their own validity rules for visitors: Schengen states ask for three months beyond departure in many cases, while some countries ask for none at all. Those destination-side rules are a different subject — the 6-month passport rule guide sorts them into tiers, and the passport validity guide covers the general principle.

Keep it current

The list is periodically updated — this version replaced the 2022–2023 list. CBP publishes the latest document on its bulletin page and points to 9 FAM 403.9 at fam.state.gov as the authoritative, up-to-date source. Always confirm against the current CBP document or 9 FAM before you travel, because a country can be added or removed.

Frequently asked questions

What is the six-month club?
Informal shorthand for the countries whose citizens are exempt from the US requirement that a passport be valid for six months beyond the intended stay. For those countries the passport only needs to cover the period of stay.

Is the six-month rule the same everywhere?
No. The six-month requirement is a US inbound rule, and this exemption list belongs to it. Other countries apply their own passport-validity rules to visitors, which may be three months, six months or none.

Where is the official list?
CBP publishes it as a Carrier Liaison Program document (currently Publication 5303-1225, dated 18 December 2025). The authoritative living source is 9 FAM 403.9-3(b)(2)(f) on fam.state.gov.

Did the list change recently?
Yes. The current 127-entry list supersedes the 2022–2023 Carrier Information Guides; compared with the previous 126-entry version it adds Gabon.

Does the exemption mean I don't need a visa?
No. It concerns passport validity only. Visa or ESTA requirements are separate — check whether you need a visa, or qualify for the Visa Waiver Program / ESTA.

Does it change my passport photo?
No. Photo format is set by the document you are applying for, not by the exemption. Check the US formats on the photo size chart.

How long must my passport be valid if my country is on the list?
It must be valid for your intended period of stay. It does not need the extra six months that the default rule would require.

Honest limits: this page reproduces the list as published in the current CBP document and names 9 FAM 403.9 as the official source. It is for general guidance, not a border ruling — the list can change, and only CBP officers and the current official document are authoritative. Confirm before you travel.

US passport photo →  US visa photo →

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