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Travel warning for passengers – the common passport mistake that can cause you huge problems at airport security
It's a cautionary tale for those who want to look their best in their passport photos
A TIKTOK influencer has revealed a common passport mistake that can cause problems for travellers.
While most people want to look glam in their passport photo, influencer Alisha Marie has revealed why it's better to look natural when taking the snap.
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In a video posted on her TikTok that has garnered more than 20 million views, Alisha revealed she was almost not allowed to board a flight because she didn't look like her glammed up photo.
Dressed in an oversized black hoodie, a black cap and sporting a makeup free appearance through security, she said: "They almost didn't let me on my flight.
"They said that I don't look like my passport.
"This is why you should never do hot photos for your passport."
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Holding up a photo of her passport photo, she added: "I don't look like this."
She captioned the video "I've never been so humbled in my life" with a sad emoji face.
Others took to the comments to relate to her experience.
One person said: "This happened to me in Morocco."
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While another added: "They almost didn’t let me back into the US from Australia because I didn’t look like my passport photo and my drivers license had expired."
A third person relayed their experience after dying their hair, saying: This happened to me but it’s because I dyed my hair blonde and in my passport pic, I have jet black hair."
It comes as most travellers opt for comfort over style when boarding planes, particularly those on long haul flights.
Meanwhile, a travel agency owner reacted to the trend with a video as a reminder to not do "hot girl" make up when going for passport photos.
Denise Ambrusko-Maida, who owns Travel Brilliant travel agency said: "I purposely take my passport photo to look like a swamp rat.
“If you are the type of person who is going to put on full makeup for that flight, good — I love that for you.
"I’m not trying to tell you not to do that.
"Having flown around the world enough times, I know that that’s not going to be most people."
Instead she advised travellers to think about what they would look like after they had been on an overnight 15 hour flight in a middle seat when taking the photo.
UK online travel agency flagged the makeup trend earlier this summer, warning that a photo “glow up” could cause hiccups at the airport.
The company's head of product Gemma Brown said: "Most people do feel embarrassed of their ID images, however, they are a security measure to help prevent fraud, keep borders safe and ensure easy recognition of travellers identity.
"Therefore, if you overly-enhance your look when taking your photo, you can actually slow down the process of verification checks at the airport because you look too different in person from the photo at hand."
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While make up is permitted, it is advised that passport photos remain an accurate likeness of the traveller.
The rules for passports call for a neutral expression, a clear image, no filters, and a white or off-white background.
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