Sean and his girlfriend were ready to board their flight to Bali… but Virgin Australia stopped them at the gates because of a “microscopic” passport detail.

A young couple’s tropical getaway is nearly ruined by a “microscopic” coffee stain on one of their passports.

Sean Ferres and his girlfriend Brooke were scheduled to fly from the Gold Coast to Bali on Friday.

Virgin Australia staff stopped the couple and said they could not board the plane because there was a coffee stain on Ferres’ partner’s passport.

The staff claimed the document was “illegible” but said they would take another flight at no extra cost once the issue was resolved.

Mr Ferres explained that his partner had travelled to more than 20 countries, including Indonesia, with the passport and the stain had not been a problem.

The couple was told to call customer service to reschedule their flight.

However, Mr Ferres said the phone operator told him the couple had been marked as a no-show for their scheduled flight to Bali and would therefore have to pay for another flight.

Mr Ferres said he was forced to buy “stupidly expensive” Jetstar tickets for $3,000 to get a 5.50am flight on Saturday and save his holiday.

Mr Ferres said in a Facebook post that Jetstar had no problem with the passport status, unlike Virgin.

“Interestingly, Jetstar had no issues with the passport, as did the 100+ other flights we took with it,” he wrote on Facebook.

‘I landed in Bali, went through all the electronic gates and went straight through without any problems.

“I am absolutely amazed that 25 years after the invention of the Internet, in an age where even a $500 phone has advanced facial recognition, we STILL rely on a flimsy piece of paper to get out of the country.”

Social media posts divided opinion, with some unsympathetic.

“If that’s ‘microscopic’ then I have a 12 inch one,” one wrote of the coffee stain, which measured about six by two centimeters.

“If you have money to fly to ’20+ countries including Bali TWICE’ then you have money to replace your damaged passport,” added a second.

“For someone who has travelled to over 20 countries, have you ever stopped to read the passport rules, entry rules and risk of being denied entry?” asked a third.

“Even if there is a crease in the passport, it can be declared damaged and invalid.”

Mr Ferres insisted that no one had ever questioned the passport, so he had no idea there was anything wrong with it.

“So, we’re going to completely ignore the perfectly functioning electronic chip inside and invalidate a passport based on a tiny smudge,” he asked.

“Why would we replace something we never knew was a problem?”

Bali has some of the strictest passport rules when it comes to ensuring travel documents are free of tears or water damage, as such issues can be used to hide alterations made in cases of identity fraud.

In 2019, a spokesperson for the Indonesian Consulate General in Sydney said the general rule of thumb for what constitutes a damaged passport is when the system cannot read its data.

He added that the final decision rests with immigration officials.

‘Criteria for a damaged passport include tears, ink stains and water damage, so it’s best to take good care of your passport.’

Indonesian authorities can detain travelers and fine airlines up to $4,700 for allowing anyone to fly with a damaged passport.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Virgin Australia for comment.