Ryanair has announced a significant change to boarding passes set to be introduced in May 2025. The latest change will be crucial for passengers to remember, along with many of the airline’s additional strict rules. From hand luggage restrictions to the new boarding pass specifications, failure to follow certain rules can see passengers charged additional fees at the airport, so it’s important to be up-to-date on everything you need to know before booking your Ryanair flights.

We’ve rounded up three major Ryanair rules passengers need to be aware of before jetting off in 2025.

While Ryanair might be known for its often purse-friendly tickets, one thing it isn’t known for is its abundant hand luggage allowance. Passengers who want to take more than one small under-seat bag, either in the cabin or as a checked-in item of luggage, do have to pay.

Luckily, savvy passengers have found a way around this by sourcing some of the best bags online that also fit the airline’s small hand luggage requirements. Some of these are available for less than £20 too.

One bag that has caused quite a stir online in recent months thanks to its ability to curb Ryanair’s excess luggage fees is the Narway underseat foldable travel duffel bag, available on Amazon. Though the bag usually retails for £15.99, at the time of writing it’s been slashed by 25% to just £11.99.

Measuring 40 x 19 x 25cm, the bag fits Ryanair’s small undersea cab bag requirements of 40 x 20 x 25cm.

Another top-seller (and one of the most bought items by Express readers in 2024) is the Aerolite Ryanair Cabin Bag, also available to buy on Amazon.

According to the brand: “We specifically designed our Aerolite holdall to measure 40 x 20 x 25cm which is EXACTLY the maximum allowed size you can take for free in the cabin when flying with Ryanair. It is also accepted on virtually all major airlines worldwide; Including easyJet, British Airways, Etihad, Emirates, Delta, Flybe, Lufthansa, Norwegian, Jet2, KLM, Qatar, Wizz Air and Virgin Atlantic to name just a few!”

All Ryanair passenger fares include a small personal bag, measuring 40 x 20 x 25cm, which must fit under the seat in front of you – something the Aerolite bag promises. To top it off, the bag is currently on offer for a purse-friendly £9.34.

In a video posted to her TikTok page @mypassporttohappy, Ali explained: “This is the bag that is currently trending on TikTok. So it’s an Amazon bag and it fits perfectly on all flights, so you can use it as a carry-on so that you don’t have to buy extra luggage.”

Passengers who wish to take a second, larger piece of luggage have the option to purchase a Priority fare, which includes more luggage as well as some additional perks.

• Priority fares allow customers to take a small personal bag (40 x 20 x 25cm) and a cabin bag (55 x 40 x 20cm) weighing up to 10kg with them onboard
• Priority fare passengers also board the plane first via the Priority Queue

Priority plus two extra bags costs between £6 and £36 when done online, compared to at the check-in desk where it can cost anywhere from £20 to £38.

If priority is sold out or passengers wish to check their bag, they can purchase a 10kg check-in bag.

• When purchased online, a 10kg checked bag can cost anywhere from £11.99 to £29.99
• At the airport, passengers could end up forking out between £23.99 and £35.99

There is a major catch Ryanair passengers should be aware of. If you do show up at the boarding gate with a 10kg bag which has not been purchased in advance, you could end up being slapped with a last-minute check-in fee of £46.00 should it be rejected at the gate.

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary has confirmed that the airline will phase out the physical passes by May 2025, noting that as many as 60% of travellers currently use mobile passes.

At present, passengers are permitted to print out and show paper boarding passes or have the option of downloading a digital boarding pass using the Ryanair app on their mobile phones. They can also get a boarding pass at the airport with the airline. But, passengers are charged £55 if they forget to check in and download their boarding passes before arriving at the airport terminal.

However, from May 2025, there will be no option to check-in and print off boarding passes at the airport at all. “Our goal is to eliminate check-in desks at the airport, just like we’ve done with luggage counters”, said Mr O’Leary.

“Everything will be managed through the app, making the process fully digital and eliminating paper entirely.”

He went on: “I’m one of the last remaining people still showing up with my piece of paper It also means, once we get everybody onto the app, nobody will ever again pay for a boarding pass at an airport – the airport check-in fee will be gone. So, I think it will be a smoother, easier journey for everybody.”

Ryanair passengers should ensure they arrive at the airport with plenty of time to get through security and to their boarding gate. The airline advises passengers should arrive no later than 40 minutes before their flight is due to depart, otherwise, they could be charged a missed departure fee of £100.

Passengers will be slapped with the fee if they show up with less than 40 minutes to spare before their flight departs, meaning they will need to be moved to a new flight.

The fee also applies to those who show up “up to one hour after flight departure time”.

Ryanair’s website notes the fee is “also available to customers who arrive at the ticket desk up to an hour after their flight departure to move to the next available flight. The fee is charged per passenger per sector.”