US lawful permanent resident taking cruise to Jamaica, Mexico and Cayman Islands

[Southerngirl81]

Hi all, I booked a cruise to take my parents on a 7 days cruise to Mexico, Jamaica and Cayman Islands with Carnival. They are not US citizen but are lawful permanent resident with green cards. Their home country is Vietnam and their passports expired about 8 years ago which they didn't renew. I have been reading online and I am still not quite sure what documents they will need for the trip. According to getyouhome.gov, it appears that they only need their green cards and US driver licenses; however, other governments websites mentioned about their home country passports which they don't have. I tried to call all 3 consulates but didn't get through (got to love how government operates). Anyone here is a lawful permanent resident and traveled to those countries recently by cruise ship? What documents did you bring with you and did you experience any issues? Is a green card and driver license all the need?

[Essiesmom]

http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=0c353a4107083210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=0c353a4107083210VgnVCM100000082ca60aRCRD

[Gathina]

Logically speaking I would think they would need a passport like anyone else and from their home country. My husband is a lawful permanent resident with a green card and when he travels our immigration lawyer told us he has to use his passport from his country.

 

getyouhome.gov- is that a real government website? If three government websites say the same thing and that one doesn't, seems like that's not a real gov. website.

 

 

Hi all, I booked a cruise to take my parents on a 7 days cruise to Mexico, Jamaica and Cayman Islands with Carnival. They are not US citizen but are lawful permanent resident with green cards. Their home country is Vietnam and their passports expired about 8 years ago which they didn't renew. I have been reading online and I am still not quite sure what documents they will need for the trip. According to getyouhome.gov, it appears that they only need their green cards and US driver licenses; however, other governments websites mentioned about their home country passports which they don't have. I tried to call all 3 consulates but didn't get through (got to love how government operates). Anyone here is a lawful permanent resident and traveled to those countries recently by cruise ship? What documents did you bring with you and did you experience any issues? Is a green card and driver license all the need?

[boulders]

Most of the info on the getyouhome.gov website is for US citizens travelling to Canada or Mexico by car. If you click through for the information for lawful permanent residents, you get to this page https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/1191/kw/lawful%20permanent%20residents/p/0/c/0 which states that

 

Lawful Permanent Residents of the U.S. must present a Permanent Resident Card ("Green Card", INS Form I-551), a Reentry Permit (if gone for more than 1 year), or a Returning Resident Visa (if gone for 2 years or more) to reenter the United States. U.S. LPRs do not need a passport to enter the United States as per (8 CFR 211.1(a)), however, they may need a passport to enter another country. Please contact the embassy of the foreign country you will be traveling to for their requirements. While CBP does not require the passport as noted above, the airlines may have their own requirements, please check with your airlines prior to travel. Also, travel documents for LPRs do not need to be valid for any certain amount of time. Your LPR card only needs to be valid on the day that you are entering the US.

[Philob]

Because your parents are Vietnamese citizens some countries may require them to have a visa. Most countries will allow US green card holders visa free entry if you arrive "directly" from the US. Since cruise ships rarely go to one country, they will most likely need visas.

 

MIL is a Chinese citizen and has a US green card but is required to have a visa for most Caribbean countries if she takes a cruise. Example: If she fly's directly from the US to Cayman, she does not need a Cayman visa. By cruise ship, she needs a visa.

[Southerngirl81]

Gathina- I could be wrong but from my understanding any websites that contain .gov are official government websites. If you are not a government website but your website contain .gov then it is a federal crime.

 

Thank you all for the responses and guidance. I called Carnival and was told that my parents only need their green cards to enter/exit the US; and it is our responsibilities to find out other required documents to visit the 3 countries mentioned. I called Royal and they indicated that my parents only need their green cards for the trip include visiting the countries mentioned. When leaving the ship for excursions, generally people only carry their sea pass cards & state driver license; and they usually leave other documents in their rooms as far as I remember from my previous 2 cruises with Carnival and Royal. With that, I am wondering at which point of time, the cruise passengers have to present passports to the countries we are visiting from the cruise?

[ookpik]

I am a legal, green card holder and travel with that and my Canadian passport.

[SadieN]

Gathina- I could be wrong but from my understanding any websites that contain .gov are official government websites. If you are not a government website but your website contain .gov then it is a federal crime.

 

Thank you all for the responses and guidance. I called Carnival and was told that my parents only need their green cards to enter/exit the US; and it is our responsibilities to find out other required documents to visit the 3 countries mentioned. I called Royal and they indicated that my parents only need their green cards for the trip include visiting the countries mentioned. When leaving the ship for excursions, generally people only carry their sea pass cards & state driver license; and they usually leave other documents in their rooms as far as I remember from my previous 2 cruises with Carnival and Royal. With that, I am wondering at which point of time, the cruise passengers have to present passports to the countries we are visiting from the cruise?

 

When returning to the ship security only requires proof that you are who you say you are. They are not checking citizenship.

 

Passengers are checked at time of embarkation for the specific countires. I've seen, in person, and read on CC several cases where improper paperwork results in no trip. No refunds are given for paperwork snafus.

 

DO NOT RELY ON THE CRUISELINE!!!

Confirm what is needed with the embassies (or consulates) of the countries you will be visiting if a visa will be required. My green-card-holding friends always travel with their home country's passport and green card.

 

Can they renew their Vietnam passports?

[sparks1093]

Logically speaking I would think they would need a passport like anyone else and from their home country. My husband is a lawful permanent resident with a green card and when he travels our immigration lawyer told us he has to use his passport from his country.

 

getyouhome.gov- is that a real government website? If three government websites say the same thing and that one doesn't, seems like that's not a real gov. website.

 

Yes, getyouhome.gov is an official government website and as boulders pointed out the information the OP needs is there with a little digging.

 

OP, if a visa is required and they don't have it then they may be denied boarding at the pier.

[BlueRiband]

...DO NOT RELY ON THE CRUISELINE!!!

Confirm what is needed with the embassies (or consulates) of the countries you will be visiting if a visa will be required. My green-card-holding friends always travel with their home country's passport and green card.

 

Can they renew their Vietnam passports?

 

OP, this cannot be emphasized enough! Cruise line reservation reps are not experts in immigration law!

 

A few months ago we had a post from a US citizen who was denied boarding because he had a German birth certificate (born to a US military family stationed in Germany) but no Consular Record of Birth Abroad. He was livid because, according to him, the cruise line told him his birth certificate would be just fine. This situation has nothing in common with your own other than to illustrate that a reservation agent cannot know the entry requirements for every country from every country.

 

Your parents will need the required travel documents for all of the countries being visited by the ship. Check the official state department or immigration web sites of those countries (which should be available in English) for entry requirements of citizens of Vietman. It makes no difference whether your parents will go ashore or not. Once a ship enters a country's territorial waters they are "in" that country.

 

You're doing the right thing by getting this information now. Without proper travel documentation your parents will be denied boarding.

[firerunner]

OP,

Your parents will need the required travel documents for all of the countries being visited by the ship. Check the official state department or immigration web sites of those countries (which should be available in English) for entry requirements of citizens of Vietman. It makes no difference whether your parents will go ashore or not. Once a ship enters a country's territorial waters they are "in" that country.

 

 

This is absolutely correct. Your green card is for the USA ONLY to prove you can LEGALLY reside here. That you can LEGALLY be allowed back into the country THAT is it.

 

Every other country will have different travel requirements based on your citizenship, you must find out what those requirements are for each country.

[boulders]

OP, this cannot be emphasized enough! Cruise line reservation reps are not experts in immigration law!

 

A few months ago we had a post from a US citizen who was denied boarding because he had a German birth certificate (born to a US military family stationed in Germany) but no Consular Record of Birth Abroad. He was livid because, according to him, the cruise line told him his birth certificate would be just fine. This situation has nothing in common with your own other than to illustrate that a reservation agent cannot know the entry requirements for every country from every country.

 

Your parents will need the required travel documents for all of the countries being visited by the ship. Check the official state department or immigration web sites of those countries (which should be available in English) for entry requirements of citizens of Vietman. It makes no difference whether your parents will go ashore or not. Once a ship enters a country's territorial waters they are "in" that country.

 

You're doing the right thing by getting this information now. Without proper travel documentation your parents will be denied boarding.

 

The person's story does have something in common with the OP's parents. Neither has claimed US citizenship to which they are currently entitled. So, while the gentleman in the story was entitled to US citizenship, he did not have yet, just like the OP's parents. After 5 years with a green card, you are entitled to claim citizenship. And it is a very good idea to do so.

 

Two reasons that I can think of - there are probably more. One is US estate law treats citizen spouses and non-citizen spouses differently. If one of the OP's parents dies and the other is not a citizen, they do not get the tax-free transfer of assets that a citizen spouse would. That means that all of the assets of the deceased spouse would be taxed on their death.

 

Secondly, countries have been known to change their citizenship rules, and not always for the better. Canada changed its citizenship rules a couple of years ago. People who were eligible to claim citizenship prior to the rule change were not eligible to claim citizenship after the rule change. These people were children born abroad to Canadian citizens who were not born in Canada. Up until then, as long as your parent was a Canadian citizen, you could claim citizenship, even if you or your parent had never visited Canada.

 

Here's a third - if for any reason your parents could run afoul of the law - they could be deported.

 

And a fourth - it would be much much easier to get that passport from where they live and to travel if the OP's parents had US citizenship.

 

Off my soapbox now.

[cherylandtk]

...Neither has claimed US citizenship to which they are currently entitled. So, while the gentleman in the story was entitled to US citizenship, he did not have yet, just like the OP's parents. After 5 years with a green card, you are entitled to claim citizenship.

Not exactly. The man born in Germany was a citizen at the moment of birth. There was nothing to 'claim'. He was a citizen by law; his was simply a matter of having the correct paperwork in hand. IIRC, he (or his mother) did have the Consulate Record, just not in hand at the pier and he had not realized it was his proof of citizenship. Having citizenship and having proof of it are two separate things. A Green Card holder may apply for citizenship after five years, but it is not automatically conferred and then 'claimed'. There are a few other steps involved before citizenship is granted.

 

In the OP's situation, it would be best to have valid Vietnamese passports for the parents. Barring that, they need to know the immigration law of each port for cruise ship visitors of Vietnamese citizenship. Or, change their citizenship (which likely will take a year, not months,to achieve).

[Southerngirl81]

It sounds like I need to find a way to cancel the cruise :-( My dad refused to renew his passport with Vietnam. He left the country for a reason. Actually it wasn't a pleasant conversion when I brought home the paperwork for my dad to renew his Vietnam passport...lol. Based on Getyouhome.gov and under Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative; I was thinking that my parents could travel with just their green card and valid state driver license. The website clearly states that if you travel within those countries define under WHTI then you only need your green card. It is a law and agreement among the countries so I would think Mexico would honor it. However based on your feedbacks, I am nervous. Has anyone been on a cruise lately with just your green card and state driver license?

[cherylandtk]

Southern girl,

There are three factors to consider here:

1) Their green card is enough to get them Backinto the US from a foreign country without a passport.

2) It may or may NOT be enough to get them into the three countries on your itinerary. I quickly checked visa requirements and it appears that Jamaica and Mexico (did not check Caymans) both have visa requirements for Vietnamese citizens in addition to a valid passport. Don't know if there are any exceptions for cruise passengers, or for LPRs. You would have to find out from the embassies.

3) Even if it should turn out their green card is sufficient for their destination countries, the Cruiseline has the right to demand a passport, and some do, so it matters which line you are booked on, too.

[DRS/NC]

Any time an LPR (Lawful Permanent Resident, i.e.; green card holder) leaves the US, they are subject to possible refusal on re-entry to the US, plus other hassles of travel. LPRs are required to get a Travel Document from USCIS/Homeland Security to leave/re-enter the US.

 

Have the elders considered applying for US citizenship? It's not cheap (currently $680, including fingerprints) and takes about 3-6 mos. in most states. Depending on their age, # of years as an LPR, and English skills, they will be required to take the history/civics/language test. After naturalization, they can get a US passport & cruise w/relative ease.

 

You should be able to get correct info from USCIS.gov

 

[Yes, I work in this field.]

[BlueRiband]

Southerngirl81, according to the Foreign Ministry site for Mexico citizens of Vietnam require visas to enter as tourists. Your parents would need current Vietman passports to even apply for visas. I didn't check the requirements for Jamaica and the Cayman Islands but if they don't have the required travel documents for even one country they will be denied boarding. Since your father is unwilling to get a new passport there is no way he can go on any trip which requires one.

 

I'm sorry we were the bearers of bad news but we are only the messengers. You will have to cancel the booking for your parents because, based on the information you have provided, they won't be allowed to board.

[BlueRiband]

Jamaica also requires a visa for citizens of Vietnam prior to arrival.

[lady_cruiser]

It sounds like I need to find a way to cancel the cruise :-

 

Since you want to take your parents on a cruise, is it possible to do a Hawaiian cruise?

[Southerngirl81]

Thank you all for the guidances and advices. I am overwhelming with all the informative information and guidances that I have received from friends like you all on this site. Thank you for taking time to read my posts and provide feedbacks. Greatly appreciated!!!!

[BlueRiband]

You are quite welcome Southerngirl81. It is always appreciated when somebody who starts a thread comes back to tell us how things went. Unfortunately there is no quick fix for your parents' travel situation. I hope you have enough lead time to cancel and get a refund or partial refund. Anyone denied boarding for lack of proper travel documentation loses 100% of their fare.