Passport Issues! Help!

My husband and I are leaving for a cruise to Nassau and Cozumel on October 25th with Royal Caribbean. It was kind of a last minute idea and we didn't look into the details of passport requirements. Neither of us have certified copies of our birth certificates. No big deal for my husband because we live in the county at which he was born in and can easily walk in and pick one up. I on the other hand had to request to have one sent to me from my birth state of California. Estimated processing/shipping time is 10-14 business days. Current passport turn around time for expedite service is 2-3 weeks. Do the math and I am cutting it pretty darn close. I called the cruise line and because our cruise leaves and returns at the same port I can board the ship with just my birth certificate, drivers license and marriage license.

I'm curious if anyone else is facing/has faced the same issue and whether or not you relied on just the birth certificate to get onboard.

Thank you in advance for any replies.

Edit - I just saw where your copy wasn't certified. See my revised advice below!

You don't have a certified copy, but do you have the original? In the UK, you can take original birth/marriage certificates etc along to the post office and they will certify photocopies for you there and then. I'm not sure if you can do the same thing over there but I thought it worth saying just in case. Hope that you get it sorted out in time!

Why not have California send you two certified copies? Send one off with the Passport application and keep the other one to board the ship with in case your passport doesn't come in time. Worst case scenario is that you paid for your passport and won't get to use it on this cruise. They're good for 10 years, so you'll have it for your next trip.

I guess I should clarify a little.. I have a photo copy of a certified copy currently in my possession, which is not good enough to apply for a passport. But I have ordered an original certified copy one from the state of California.

Given your time frame, just go with the new certified copy, which you expect to have soon. Get back and then apply for your passport. Bring your marriage license to show the name change from the BC.

Legally the photocopy of the certified copy is acceptable to get on the ship...but do expect some questions if you do this. The clerk may try and tell you it has to be certified copy; politely tell them the WHTI only says 'copy' and that you would like to speak to the supervisor or immigration agent.

I guess I should clarify a little.. I have a photo copy of a certified copy currently in my possession, which is not good enough to apply for a passport. But I have ordered an original certified copy one from the state of California.

If you've already ordered the certified copy, just use that with your DL and you won't have any problems. Anyone traveling outside the country *should* have a passport (what if you needed an emergency flight back home for some reason), but it's not required on a cruise like you're going on.

Royal Caribbean will let you cruise with your BC, drivers license and marriage certificate, so as long as you order your BC now you'll get it in plenty of time. The only risk is that in the event of some type of personal emergency requiring to leave the cruise early you can't fly home without a passport . If you're willing to take that risk (and many, many cruisers do) you don't have to spend the money for an expedited passport. If you feel you really want to apply for a passport, as a previous poster stated, hedge your bet by ordering two BCs. If the passport doesn't come back in time you'll still be able to take the cruise with the other BC, DL and marriage certificate.

I guess I should clarify a little.. I have a photo copy of a certified copy currently in my possession, which is not good enough to apply for a passport. But I have ordered an original certified copy one from the state of California.

You do not need a passport for the cruise you are going on. The copy of the birth certificate and a drivers license will be all you need.

Even if you did apply for a passport now.....which is unnecessary......it might only take a couple weeks. My son applied (first time getting a passport) and he had it in only 2 weeks.

But you will be fine with your BC and DL.

Have a good time.

Your DL and BC are all you need...you don't even need your marriage lic...

Given your time frame, just go with the new certified copy, which you expect to have soon. Get back and then apply for your passport. Bring your marriage license to show the name change from the BC.

 

Legally the photocopy of the certified copy is acceptable to get on the ship...but do expect some questions if you do this. The clerk may try and tell you it has to be certified copy; politely tell them the WHTI only says 'copy' and that you would like to speak to the supervisor or immigration agent.

This.

Royal Caribbean will let you cruise with your BC, drivers license and marriage certificate, so as long as you order your BC now you'll get it in plenty of time. The only risk is that in the event of some type of personal emergency requiring to leave the cruise early you can't fly home without a passport . If you're willing to take that risk (and many, many cruisers do) you don't have to spend the money for an expedited passport. If you feel you really want to apply for a passport, as a previous poster stated, hedge your bet by ordering two BCs. If the passport doesn't come back in time you'll still be able to take the cruise with the other BC, DL and marriage certificate.

And this. I recently read of a traveler with Royal who forgot their passport at home. They called Royal en route and were told they wouldn't be able to board even though they had a faxed copy of their birth certificate. They continued to the port anyway and were allowed to board. So, while the original birth certificate is the best documentation to bring a copy will work, especially in a pinch (and of course some cruise lines do require a passport for all sailings but Royal isn't one of them).

I have cruised with just my drivers license and birth certificate multiple times; as long as your cruise starts and ends in the U.S. and stays in the western hemisphere, those two items will work for ID instead of a passport.

It's nice to have a passport in the event that you don't get back to the ship before it departs a foreign port and you need to fly home... but I've never been in a scenario where I was even close to missing the boat. :)

The Original Version of your BC must have the embossed raised seal to be an original one. I lucked out as my mother kept the original version she was given when I was born and still have it today. I did ask for and got a second original one to use when I got my passport, so I did not have to part with the real one.

The Original Version of your BC must have the embossed raised seal to be an original one. I lucked out as my mother kept the original version she was given when I was born and still have it today. I did ask for and got a second original one to use when I got my passport, so I did not have to part with the real one.

Not all states use an embossed raised seal on their birth certificates and the regulations do not require a raised seal (and as stated the regulations do allow copies to be used).

Not sure about new passports but renewals are pretty quick. I just got my new one in the mail today. 17 days form when I handed the priority mail envelope to the mail lady until it was in my mailbox. I didn't do expedited service just normal processing and got it that quick. (Now just waiting for the next two envelops to arrive with my old one and my passport card to arrive).