West-Europa Cruise - Stay on board in UK ports because of no UK visa

Hello,

My problem is the following, I hope some people here have done this itinerary and help me out.

There are several cruises with the MSC Preziosa leaving from Amsterdam with the following itinerary : Amsterdam - Hamburg - Le Havre - Southampton - Zeebrugge - Amsterdam

Since some of our party do not have a UK visa they want to stay onboard when we get to Southampton.

However I can not find information on this subject anywhere. They problem is that they can be denied boarding in Amsterdam or maybe have to disembark in Le Havre.

I have searched cruisecritic, tripadvisor and several other internet sites. Even called the cruise company and the immigration number mentioned on GOV.UK site and had to pay for the information but got referred back to the GOV.UK website where I can not find anything about cruiseships calling at UK ports.

So I am hoping there are people on here who have done this itinerary or any other visiting UK ports and know how this is handled by immigration.

Try asking on the Ports of Call board here for Europe. EM

On every cruise we have been on, the information has been very clear - if a passenger does not have all required visas, they are denied boarding.

This is not specific to MSC. Even if staying on the ship, all passengers are subject to immigration controls. Cruise lines are very strict in this regard because countries impose heavy fines on them for breaches of immigration rules.

Hello,

 

My problem is the following, I hope some people here have done this itinerary and help me out.

There are several cruises with the MSC Preziosa leaving from Amsterdam with the following itinerary : Amsterdam - Hamburg - Le Havre - Southampton - Zeebrugge - Amsterdam

 

Since some of our party do not have a UK visa they want to stay onboard when we get to Southampton.

However I can not find information on this subject anywhere. They problem is that they can be denied boarding in Amsterdam or maybe have to disembark in Le Havre.

 

I have searched cruisecritic, tripadvisor and several other internet sites. Even called the cruise company and the immigration number mentioned on GOV.UK site and had to pay for the information but got referred back to the GOV.UK website where I can not find anything about cruiseships calling at UK ports.

 

So I am hoping there are people on here who have done this itinerary or any other visiting UK ports and know how this is handled by immigration.

Wolitavgg,

This is the LINK for the UK brochure and it gives the rules for the UK at the top of Page 183 and is quoted below, ignore the bit about the United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) as they don't exist any more and were taken over by the UK visas and Immigration in 2013.

https://www.msccruises.co.uk/en-gb/Brochures/Our-Brochures.aspx

European Community passengers can use their own passport or a valid equivalent document. French ID cards with automatic extension are considered valid only inside the EU, in the case of cruises calling at ports outside the EU, a passport or new ID card is required, please consult our contact centre should you required further information.

Passengers from other countries are kindly required to verify with UKBA (United Kingdom Border Agency) whether they are eligible to travel in transit under the Visa Waiver Program or if they need to be provided with a UK Visa prior to embarkation. In the Absence of a visa prior to embarkation, visiting in transit of staying on board ship during a UK port of call without going ashore is not authorised and passengers must disembark at the previous port. The concession of visa upon arrival for the selected nationalities is valid only the case of transit for up to 24 hours. In the case of two or more consecutive UK ports, a visa prior to embarkation is mandatorily required.

Here is the Link for the UKBA for visa and immigration

https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-visas-and-immigration

https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa

I hope this helps you out

Wolitavgg,

 

This is the LINK for the UK brochure and it gives the rules for the UK at the top of Page 183 and is quoted below, ignore the bit about the United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) as they don't exist any more and were taken over by the UK visas and Immigration in 2013.

 

https://www.msccruises.co.uk/en-gb/Brochures/Our-Brochures.aspx

 

 

European Community passengers can use their own passport or a valid equivalent document. French ID cards with automatic extension are considered valid only inside the EU, in the case of cruises calling at ports outside the EU, a passport or new ID card is required, please consult our contact centre should you required further information.

Passengers from other countries are kindly required to verify with UKBA (United Kingdom Border Agency) whether they are eligible to travel in transit under the Visa Waiver Program or if they need to be provided with a UK Visa prior to embarkation. In the Absence of a visa prior to embarkation, visiting in transit of staying on board ship during a UK port of call without going ashore is not authorised and passengers must disembark at the previous port. The concession of visa upon arrival for the selected nationalities is valid only the case of transit for up to 24 hours. In the case of two or more consecutive UK ports, a visa prior to embarkation is mandatorily required.

 

Here is the Link for the UKBA for visa and immigration

 

https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration

 

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/uk-visas-and-immigration

 

https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa

 

 

I hope this helps you out

Hi Essiesmom, Omega1, Arachnid. Thank you for your answers.

Arachnid, I have previously read the information on the gov.uk site and followed the links you provided. Even did the "on transit" check to see if my fellow passengers can travel under the "Visa Waiver Program". And the result was that they could and did not need a visa. Then I called UK immigration to be sure but they do not give any information and referred me back to the information on the site. However they implied that a Visa Waiver should be enough but that ultimately the immigration officiers boarding the cruise ship decide what rules to apply. I guess just to be sure they will have to apply for a regular visa.

I thought maybe some of our fellow cruisers have done this itinerary and could provide information first hand.

Thanks again for the help. Funny how difficult to is to get a straight answer to this simple question from immigration.

Bureaucracy, why make it easy when difficult to impossible is also an option, hope you get it sorted.

good luck

;)

I dont see how you can expect fellow cruisers on this or a similar cruise to be of help without knowing the citizenship of your party members. What applies to one country may not apply to others.

I dont see how you can expect fellow cruisers on this or a similar cruise to be of help without knowing the citizenship of your party members. What applies to one country may not apply to others.

Fact is that you can not get an answer for any nationality outside EU. Even if you do the visa "on transit" test and it shows you are eligable for a Visa Waiver, the immigration officers coming onboard may decide otherwise.

I was hoping if someone had done this itinerary that the rules would be announced once immigration came onboard. That is all.

So you see in this case their citizenship is irrelevant and thus not mentioned.

Fact is that you can not get an answer for any nationality outside EU. Even if you do the visa "on transit" test and it shows you are eligable for a Visa Waiver, the immigration officers coming onboard may decide otherwise.

I was hoping if someone had done this itinerary that the rules would be announced once immigration came onboard. That is all.

So you see in this case their citizenship is irrelevant and thus not mentioned.

When you open the link below, click the start now button and a drop down list of nationalities comes up (In and Out of the EU), choose the one required and depending on the country a list of questions comes up or not (if from inside the EU) click Tourism and press the next step button and it will tell you if you need a Visa or not. if you do it has a link to apply for s Standard visitor visa

https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa

So you see in this case their citizenship is irrelevant and thus not mentioned.

No I dont see.

Israeli?

You won’t need a visa to come to the UK

You can stay in the UK for up to 6 months without a visa.

However, you should bring the same documents you’d need to apply for a visa, to show to officers at the UK border.

You may want to apply for a visa if you have a criminal record or you’ve previously been refused entry into the UK.

Previous answers

Start again What’s your nationality as shown on your passport or travel document? Israel Change answer to "What’s your nationality as shown on your passport or travel document?" What sort of passport do you have? Full passport Change answer to "What sort of passport do you have?" What are you coming to the UK to do? Tourism, including visiting friends or family Change