Confused about birth certificate

I know we all need to bring our birth certificates (myself, DH, DS & DD), since we do not have passports and don't plan on getting them. I have read that birth certificates must show parents names. The only one of us that has a long form BC that states that information is DD. The rest of us have BC wallet sized cards. Will these be ok?

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The only one of us that has a long form BC that states that information is DD. The rest of us have BC wallet sized cards. Will these be ok?

They are the laminated wallet cards? Nope. They must be "official" birth certificates with a seal. Better think of Plan B quickly. :)

EDITED to add: I see you are going on Carnival, so I looked up the official word on the required documents. As I'd said, the little laminated ones will not work. You need the original BC or copy, and Gov't. issued photo ID if the kids are 16+. Here is the info:

http://www.carnival.com/Core/FAQ.aspx?faq=travel+documentation#q-1394828

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No they are not laminated. They are paper with a raised seal.

I was just looking for a general picture of what it looks like and I came across an application to get a copy of a BC and noticed that it says this:

So, I'm assuming that if it's not good enough to get a passport, it's won't be good enough for our cruise?? I don't remember seeing this when I got my kids BC (they are 8 & 12). Has this changed since 2006??

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If your cruise is going out of USA territory, you will need passports.

If you will be on USA territory like, Nassau, Virgin Islands.... All you need is BC, the long green form with the red seal.

If your cruise is going out of USA territory, you will need passports.

If you will be on USA territory like, Nassau, Virgin Islands.... All you need is BC, the long green form with the red seal.

If your cruise is going out of USA territory, you will need passports.

If you will be on USA territory like, Nassau, Virgin Islands.... All you need is BC, the long green form with the red seal.

The Bahamian people would be surprised to learn that Nassau is a US territory. And there are Virgin Islands that are not US territory as well.

And as smeyer says, for a closed loop cruise (one that starts at a US port, goes to a foreign port (at least one, this is the PVSA law), and returns to the same US port, providing the cruise only calls at ports within the Western Hemisphere, you do not need a passport.

And many states use different forms for birth certificates, so many are not on a green form.

I know we all need to bring our birth certificates (myself, DH, DS & DD), since we do not have passports and don't plan on getting them. I have read that birth certificates must show parents names. The only one of us that has a long form BC that states that information is DD. The rest of us have BC wallet sized cards. Will these be ok?

 

 

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If international travel is in your future, why would you not want to own a passport. It's good for a decade.

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There isn't really any good reason to not have a US Passport if you are leaving the US for any reason. If you get caught off the closed loop cruise there are many issues you will have to deal with. If you can afford to cruise, you can afford to get a passport in a timely manner.

There isn't really any good reason to not have a US Passport if you are leaving the US for any reason. If you get caught off the closed loop cruise there are many issues you will have to deal with. If you can afford to cruise, you can afford to get a passport in a timely manner.

while I have a passport and agree that they are useful, the fact is about half the people who cruise don't have one and do quite well...

The Bahamian people would be surprised to learn that Nassau is a US territory. And there are Virgin Islands that are not US territory as well.

And as smeyer says, for a closed loop cruise (one that starts at a US port, goes to a foreign port (at least one, this is the PVSA law), and returns to the same US port, providing the cruise only calls at ports within the Western Hemisphere, you do not need a passport.

 

And many states use different forms for birth certificates, so many are not on a green form.

While Uncle Sam doesn't require you to have a passport for a closed loop cruise, some cruise lines (in particular upscale and luxury lines) do. For example, both Azamara (in a relatively recent change to their requirements) and Regent Seven Seas require all passengers on all cruises to have a valid passport. If I did a little digging I suspect I'd find a few other lines that also require passports for all itineraries.

Even a mass market line...Princess...has an oddball rule requiring everyone in your party to have passports when minors are traveling with only one adult age 21 years or older : http://www.princess.com/learn/faq_answer/pre_cruise/prepare.jsp

PASSPORT REQUIREMENT WHEN MINORS TRAVEL WITH ONE ADULT ON VOYAGES GOVERNED BY THE U.S. WESTERN HEMISPHERE TRAVEL INITIATIVE (includes travel within BERMUDA, CANADA, CARIBBEAN, HAWAII, MEXICO, PANAMA CANAL, UNITED STATES) When minors are traveling with only one adult 21 years of age or older, Princess requires that all passengers must be in possession of a valid passport. We have implemented this requirement because we want to ensure that your party remains together should an emergency arise that requires one or more in your party to be disembarked in a non-U.S. port. We cannot guarantee that all members of your party will be allowed to disembark with just a WHTI-compliant document or birth certificate. Failure to present a valid passport for all passengers traveling together will result in denial of boarding without refund of the of the cruise or cruisetour fare.

Some cruise lines also require a passport book on open jaw itineraries where a passport card is permissible under the regulations.

Moral of the story: Always check your cruise line's requirements, as they may be more stringent than the government's.

while I have a passport and agree that they are useful, the fact is about half the people who cruise don't have one and do quite well...

From what I recall...and I can't find the source... (but I suspect you can't find the source for your number either ;) ), the percentage of cruise passengers traveling without passports is far less than the "about half" you're stating. I recall seeing statistics that indicated significantly less than 25% of passengers didn't have passports.

You definitely need to have a birth certificate with either a raised seal or officially notarized. Anymore, places are going away from the hand stamp notarization and into a regular stamp. So, I would definitely be getting birth certificates rushed to you, if all you have is the card. Birth certificates can be considerably cheaper and have a faster turn around time (even having to rush them) than a passport can be.

PS. This is for CCL, which I believe is what you stated you are going on and it only applies to closed loop trips.

If you can afford to cruise, you can afford to get a passport in a timely manner.

I do take offense to this one. Personally, my family has never had a passport (we never have needed it). When you think about the costs involved, of getting 6 people passports (2 adults and 4 minors under 16), you are looking at close to $800 (that is not rushing the passports out either, and standard delivery). Which to our family, is half the price of our vacation or considering it, it is the budget for when we are on our cruise. So, please don't put others down and say that if they can't afford to get a passport, they can't afford to cruise.

while I have a passport and agree that they are useful, the fact is about half the people who cruise don't have one and do quite well...

This is a very true statement. More then half of the passengers on a cruise are using a birth certificate and a drivers license.

When we were on the Ruby--- the computers were down and they were only processing people in the line that had a passport-- there were many people in front of me that I bumped because of a passport. I was truly suprised because I read these boards and it seems that majority get passports--- that is not the case.

Birth certificates must be a state issued one-- and have the seal plus both parents names listed.

Take the wallet birth certificate to a passport processing center and ask if its usable to get a passport. That will answer your question if it will get you on a cruise

I know we all need to bring our birth certificates (myself, DH, DS & DD), since we do not have passports and don't plan on getting them. I have read that birth certificates must show parents names. The only one of us that has a long form BC that states that information is DD. The rest of us have BC wallet sized cards. Will these be ok?

 

 

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Although passport applications require long form with parents' names, cruise lines do not. I don't think the wallet sized ones are acceptable.

From what I recall...and I can't find the source... (but I suspect you can't find the source for your number either ;) ), the percentage of cruise passengers traveling without passports is far less than the "about half" you're stating. I recall seeing statistics that indicated significantly less than 25% of passengers didn't have passports.

different stats different ports. In any case its a significant number.

As long as it is issued by a government entity it doesn't need a raised seal (many jurisdictions do not use them) and it need not have the parents' names on it- that is only a requirement for obtaining a passport.

As long as it is issued by a government entity it doesn't need a raised seal (many jurisdictions do not use them) and it need not have the parents' names on it- that is only a requirement for obtaining a passport.

I had a birth certificate without parents names listed. Was told when checking in last April that we need to get a new updated one as homeland security was changing their ways (once again)

I had a birth certificate without parents names listed. Was told when checking in last April that we need to get a new updated one as homeland security was changing their ways (once again)

The person that told you that was wrong- the State Department changed their requirements but DHS has not changed theirs. (It's not surprising that you were told this, many people don't/can't distinguish between the different agencies or their requirements.) (And there is nothing wrong with obtaining a birth certificate with the parents' name listed just to be on the save side.)

If your cruise is going out of USA territory, you will need passports.

If you will be on USA territory like, Nassau, Virgin Islands.... All you need is BC, the long green form with the red seal.

1) Nassau is not USA territory

2) While your birth certificate might be on a long green form with a red seal, other people's birth certificates will be on formats, and in colors, used by the issuing jurisdictions - they are all pretty much different.

If you do not want to get a passport, check out the passport card which costs just $30 (or $55 the first time).

In that case a family of 6 would cost $330 for ten years of having a great identification device.

If you do not want to get a passport, check out the passport card which costs just $30 (or $55 the first time).

 

In that case a family of 6 would cost $330 for ten years of having a great identification device.

However, it's not valid for air travel to/from foreign countries. There's really no advantage to getting the passport card over just using birth certificates. And it costs you money.

Check out the conversation about passports in the "west coast departures" section of the "home ports" folder under "browse.

The passport cards are meant for commuters going north or south from the US to Canada or Mexico respectively. don't trust all the "experts" on CC.

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Check out the conversation about passports in the "west coast departures" section of the "home ports" folder under "browse.

The passport cards are meant for commuters going north or south from the US to Canada or Mexico respectively. don't trust all the "experts" on CC.

 

 

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Passport cards are not just for land crossings between the US and Canada and the US and Mexico. They are also good for sea ports of entry, including travel from the Caribbean and Bermuda. Here's the correct information from the State Department:

http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/passports/information/card.html

The U.S. Passport Card can be used to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda at land border crossings or sea ports-of-entry and is more convenient and less expensive than a passport book. The passport card cannot be used for international travel by air.

Passport cards are not just for land crossings between the US and Canada and the US and Mexico. They are also good for sea ports of entry, including travel from the Caribbean and Bermuda. Here's the correct information from the State Department:

 

http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/passports/information/card.html

 

The U.S. Passport Card can be used to enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda at land border crossings or sea ports-of-entry and is more convenient and less expensive than a passport book. The passport card cannot be used for international travel by air.

What the US or any other government says (this year or this week) is not the issue. Somewhat like TWICs for personnel, passport cards were catalyzed by the need to accommodate workers. Mea Culpa in that I left out the word "primarily" for commuters.

Nonetheless, passports guard against most changes in, or misinterpretations of regulations by agencies one may encounter or, perhaps more stringent ID requirements by non-air transporters (including any cruise lines choosing to require it - today, tomorrow, next week or next year..

And if you don't think that the rules can change quickly, please know that in the latter part of the last decade, within 24 hours of the US requiring that all foreign merchant seamen now needed visas, the PRC enacted that very same requirement. In one case, that meant a US maritime academy ship headed to China with more than 350 aboard encountered a monumental disembarkation snafu.

Of course, a cruise ship is a different set of circumstances. But, if I was relying on any entity other than myself to get me across a border,, I'm taking the other kind of "trip insurance," a US passport.

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What the US or any other government says (this year or this week) is not the issue. Somewhat like TWICs for personnel, passport cards were catalyzed by the need to accommodate workers. Mea Culpa in that I left out the word "primarily" for commuters.

 

Nonetheless, passports guard against most changes in, or misinterpretations of regulations by agencies one may encounter or, perhaps more stringent ID requirements by non-air transporters (including any cruise lines choosing to require it - today, tomorrow, next week or next year..

And if you don't think that the rules can change quickly, please know that in the latter part of the last decade, within 24 hours of the US requiring that all foreign merchant seamen now needed visas, the PRC enacted that very same requirement. In one case, that meant a US maritime academy ship headed to China with more than 350 aboard encountered a monumental disembarkation snafu.

Of course, a cruise ship is a different set of circumstances. But, if I was relying on any entity other than myself to get me across a border,, I'm taking the other kind of "trip insurance," a US passport.

 

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Yes, the US Government changed the passport requirements in, what, 3 years?;) Cruise lines may impose stricter requirements but that's relatively easy to ascertain and misinterpretations are more likely to occur by the port personnel checking you in, not the government employee clearing you at the end of the cruise (and the person checking you in does have a supervisor). A passport is the end all and be all travel document, but it is not required for all travel and each traveler may assess their available options and choose the one that works best for their situation.