It is the start date of the validity of the pass that matters. As long as your wife hasn't turned 28 on the first day the pass is valid, she can use a youth pass. The first day of travel is not relevant. 

You must make sure to activate the pass on or before the 28th of April with a start date no later than the 28th of April. 

Thank you so much for the quick and detailed reply @AnnaB .

I have a follow up question,

what exactly do we mean by activating the pass?

I guess that you have a mobile pass? A mobile pass must be activated, which means that you decided from which date the pass is valid. The validity of a mobile pass can start no later than 11 months after purchase. 

With a mobile pass you load the details from the e-mail into your App. At that time the pass is inactive and remains dormant until you activate it. This is done by you at any time before you travel when you nominate a start date for the pass duration you purchased. That is the first day of your month and the day your age is calculated.

You then have one month to travel the purchased number of travel days. If you activate on the second of a month your pass is valid for travel up to the first of the following month.

 

Thanks a lot for the prompt replies, @AnnaB and @Yorkie. I was pretty happy and was going to book 2 youth passes when I received the following email. 

I had raised a chatbot ticket initially which did not get any reply for a long time, hence I had come to the community. For the record (and for others future reference), here is the reply I received from Eurail (sorry for the confusion, I’m myself confused )

As long as you have proof of date of birth (e.g. passport) and the pass has been activated before her birthday the app will generate a QR code for each travel day which, together, with the passport showing DOB, will satisfy the onboard inspector that your pass is valid.

As posted earlier, the app will not allow activation of a pass on or after the 28th birthday, so invalid activation is not possible. 

I do not know whether the app would allow activation of an adult pass if the passenger is under 28 - a moot point.

@Camilo. @Mukhammad 

I think that the reply from Customer Support is wrong. The rules clearly state that it is the age on the first date of the validity of pass that is relevant for choosing a youth pass or an adult pass.  Can you please confirm this.

Thanks a lot for clarifying, @Yorkie and @AnnaB.

@Camilo.​​@Mukhammad Since the dates are getting nearer, it would be great if you could confirm so that I can plan accordingly.

Thanks!

This is the specific wording of the T&Cs

https://www.interrail.eu/content/dam/pdfs/terms-and-conditions/CoU%20SCIC-RPT_v8.pdf

Youth The category Youth is available for travellers who are younger than 28 years of age on the first day that the Pass is valid for travel.

Note it isn’t the first day of actual travel - It is the date you start the validity.

Hi all, 

As @Yorkie mentioned, you should be 27 the first day your Pass is valid for travel, this means, the day you choose to activate your Pass. Example: I am 27 and activate the Pass for today, but I start travelling tomorrow where I will turn 28, it is still fine and I can use the Pass without problems. 

The App won’t let you activate your Pass when you already turned 28 in any case. 

Have a nice day!

@Camilo. Can you please talk to your colleagues Sylwia and  Deborah who gave the answers above and let them know that it is the age on the start of the validity and not the age on the first travel day that matters. Sylwias answer was totally wrong and Deborahs answer was unclear as the first day of the validity can differ from the first day of travel.

@AnnaB @Yorkie @Camilo. This clarifies everything! Thank you so much for taking the time and effort. 

This community is awesome!

I think it would be best to change the text on the relevant pages, so it better reflects the terms and conditions.

It now says here:

You can use a Youth Pass if you’re aged 27 or younger on the date you choose to start your trip.

And here:

Children aged 4-11 on the date you choose to start your trip can get a free Child Pass.

IMO it should say something like:

…on the first day that the Pass is valid for travel.

or:

…on the first day of the validity period.

Indeed, in the Conditions of Use_V8_2023 (interrail.eu) it states: “The category Youth is available for travellers who are younger than 28 years of age on the first day that the Pass is valid for travel.”

I will pass your feedback. Thanks again!

This will be communicated internally as they are both new agents. We are all learning here…

Have a nice evening!