Sam Kerr grounded by Jetstar over ‘damaged’ passport
The Matildas’ star was left stunned after being refused entry to a Jetstar flight.
Matildas’ captain Sam Kerr has been refused entry to a Jetstar flight from Perth to Bali because her passport was deemed to be damaged.
The star striker who recently signed a lucrative contract with English heavyweights Chelsea tweeted a picture of her passport, with the comment “what a joke, Jetstar won’t let me travel due to a damaged passport”.
The picture revealed a tiny tear at the top of the photo page.
Airlines flying into Bali have become more vigilant about passports since Indonesian authorities began enforcing fines of more than $7000 on carriers for bringing people into the country with damaged passports.
What a joke . @JetstarAirways won’t let me travel due to a damaged passport pic.twitter.com/oeiS4Z57Qu
— Sam Kerr (@samkerr1) November 27, 2019
The hard-line stance has also seen people refused entry into Indonesia.
No actual guidelines have been issued by Indonesia on what level of damage is unacceptable so airlines have been left with no choice but to be over-cautious with passengers’ passports.
According to passport advice published by Australia’s Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, “normal wear and tear should not be a problem” for passport holders.
“More serious damage can stop you from travelling (and) it is important that there are no tears in the pages, especially the photo page; everything on the photo page is legible and clear; no pages have been removed and there is no alteration or tampering,” said the DFAT advisory.
It adds that anyone with concerns about the condition of their passport should contact DFAT on 131 232 or contact the nearest Australian diplomatic or consular mission.
“We may need to see your passport to assess it,” the advisory said.
A Jetstar spokeswoman said their crew did not like to be the bearer of bad news but they had to enforce the immigration requirements of the countries they flew to.
“Some countries are more strict than others on this and won’t let you enter the country with a damaged passport,” said the spokeswoman.
On Twitter, Jetstar has reached out to Kerr, offering to “look into it for her”.
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