Passport Question

[Cgmac121]

My family is taking our first cruise ever on the Triumph leaving out of NOLA on Jan 2. My children each got to bring a friend. My youngest daughters friend (age 13) has not obtained a passport. How much trouble is it going to be to travel with a birth certificate for her if the rest of my group of 8 people in total have one? Her parents are divorced and I have already had them get a notarized letter stating it is Okay for her to travel with my husband and I. So that is covered. I am trying not to be irritated. I paid for the trip and only asked that the guests obtain a passport and now here we are less than two weeks from departure and one doesn’t have one. Will we be Okay?

[coevan]

yes

[beaucajun]

We'll be on the same cruise and my mother is traveling without one. You won't have a problem.

[The4Cruisers]

There is no problem using a BC. 3 people in my immediate family still use BC and DL's on cruises.

[sparks1093]

As long as the friend was born in the US and has a government issued birth certificate. There are issues with Puerto Rican birth certificates issued before 2010 but that probably doesn't affect you. If I were traveling with someone else's underage kids I would likely want them to have a passport also, so you have to decide whether or not to stick to your guns.

[Cgmac121]

Thank you. So we won’t have any problems in Cozumel getting off and on with it?

[sparks1093]

Thank you. So we won’t have any problems in Cozumel getting off and on with it?

 

You shouldn't need to take it ashore, just S&S for those under 16.

[mikesteg]

As long as you have the correct documentation, travelling on a BC is not a problem. Are you sure they actually have the BC? If feasible (ie. you live close to NOLA), I would ask one of them to be oncall to come pick up the daughter immediately should she be denied boarding. Honestly, I'd ask them to go plant their bum in a seat at one of the casinos down the street until you set foot on the ship and text them the 'all clear'. Lazy and inconsiderate should have it's price.

 

Note that there is a passport center in NOLA, so if they have proper documentation they can likely get an appointment and still get her a passport:

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/requirements/where-to-apply/passport-agencies/new-orleans.html

[Kamloops50]

Not required but highly recommended. If you need to fly back in an emergency , DL and BC doesn't work.

[MasonK]

I applied for my passport last week and it took 7 days to have it printed- that was on regular service, not expedited. Start to finish will be 2 weeks including USPS mail delivery.

 

If necessary, they could still get one even though it’s crunch time with your departure date but I’ll defer to the people saying a BC will still work on a closed loop.

 

Good luck with the trip! Hope that everything goes well.

[Cgmac121]

Unfortunately we live almost 7 hours away. This entire thing has me super stressed. Supposedly they are going to go to get a one day emergency passport on Tuesday after Christmas. I guess we will see. Thanks for all the input!

[DebJ14]

Just make sure it is a government issued birth certificate and not one of the hospital souvenirs. There was some talk a while back about someone being denied boarding in New Orleans because it was not a long form birth certificate. That may just have been a one off with an over zealous check in agent.

 

However, if she were to obtain a passport she would have to present the long form birth certificate to get the passport. Hillary changed the rules when she was Secretary of State.

[coevan]

Thank you. So we won’t have any problems in Cozumel getting off and on with it?

 

There is no customs in Cozumel. The only time you will need your BC is boarding

[MasonK]

There is no customs in Cozumel. The only time you will need your BC is boarding

 

Is that something that has changed in the last 10 years? My last time out of the States was a Caribbean cruise in 2005 and I went without a passport or BC to Cozumel, Jamaica, and Grand Caymen.

 

Maybe this is the change by Clinton talked about earlier.

[sunshinecruiser62]

My family is taking our first cruise ever on the Triumph leaving out of NOLA on Jan 2. My children each got to bring a friend. My youngest daughters friend (age 13) has not obtained a passport. How much trouble is it going to be to travel with a birth certificate for her if the rest of my group of 8 people in total have one? Her parents are divorced and I have already had them get a notarized letter stating it is Okay for her to travel with my husband and I. So that is covered. I am trying not to be irritated. I paid for the trip and only asked that the guests obtain a passport and now here we are less than two weeks from departure and one doesn’t have one. Will we be Okay?

Please note the BC must have the raised seal imprinted on it proving its government issued. A photocopy will not allow boarding.

[sparks1093]

Please note the BC must have the raised seal imprinted on it proving its government issued. A photocopy will not allow boarding.

 

This is incorrect- the DHS regulations state that an original or copy of a birth certificate may be used and Carnival states that a photocopy is acceptable (which is what I presented on our first time on Pride). It is best to bring the original if you can but it's good to keep in mind that a photocopy is acceptable (many a cruise has been saved by a birth certificate being faxed to the port).

 

Birth Certificate Information

 

The following are acceptable:

• An original or copy of a birth certificate issued by a government agency (state/county/city) or the Department of Health and Vital Statistics
  
• A clear, legible copy of a birth certificate that was originally issued by a government agency (state/county/city) or the Department of Health and Vital Statistics. The copy does not need to be notarized or certified.
  
• Birth Certificate Card
  
• A Consular report of Birth Abroad
  
• Internationally adopted children (under the age of 18): If the adoptive parent was not issued a birth certificate, we will accept as proof of citizenship, a Certificate of Citizenship by the U.S. and adoption paperwork. A Certificate of Citizenship is issued by the U.S. once the adoption is finalized.
  

[TNcruising02]

Unfortunately we live almost 7 hours away. This entire thing has me super stressed. Supposedly they are going to go to get a one day emergency passport on Tuesday after Christmas. I guess we will see. Thanks for all the input!

 

My adult son was able to get a passport right before traveling when the one he ordered through the mail had not arrived. He made an appointment and had to bring his travel documents. He got the passport the same day, so it is definitely possible they will be able to get this done.

[coevan]

Is that something that has changed in the last 10 years? My last time out of the States was a Caribbean cruise in 2005 and I went without a passport or BC to Cozumel, Jamaica, and Grand Caymen.

 

Maybe this is the change by Clinton talked about earlier.

 

 

What ID did you use to board? BC or passport are required to cruise, I think even 12 years ago

[grumpyjr88]

Is that something that has changed in the last 10 years? My last time out of the States was a Caribbean cruise in 2005 and I went without a passport or BC to Cozumel, Jamaica, and Grand Caymen.

 

Maybe this is the change by Clinton talked about earlier.

My first cruise in 1995 required either a passport or drivers license and birth certificate so it's not a new rule.

[firemanbobswife]

Is that something that has changed in the last 10 years? My last time out of the States was a Caribbean cruise in 2005 and I went without a passport or BC to Cozumel, Jamaica, and Grand Caymen.

 

Maybe this is the change by Clinton talked about earlier.

Nope. First cruise in 2003 and we needed a BC and DL. That was before we had Passports.

[Moviela]

I do not understand people who leave the country without a passport. Terrorism has changed the way we travel. Past allowances accepting birth certificates and driver's licenses are evaporating. Yeah, a passport costs money, and is a pain in the posterior to get, but it is so worth it if you need to come home quickly, or need any consular services.

 

The original poster will be fine on the cruise without one unless there is a sudden need for air transportation, even for something as silly as missing the boat in a foreign port.

[rprice11]

You’ll be fine. Passports aren’t required. Last year we were headed to the port of Miami and I realized I didn’t have my birth certificate and there was no turning back to get. When we got there they took me to a room that had quite a few people in the same situation. I had my mother who was staying at my house text me a picture of it which I then emailed to an email a carnival agent gave me. She printed it off and gave it to me which I then used to check in for our cruise. Cost us about an hour of time.

[sparks1093]

I do not understand people who leave the country without a passport. Terrorism has changed the way we travel. Past allowances accepting birth certificates and driver's licenses are evaporating. Yeah, a passport costs money, and is a pain in the posterior to get, but it is so worth it if you need to come home quickly, or need any consular services.

 

The original poster will be fine on the cruise without one unless there is a sudden need for air transportation, even for something as silly as missing the boat in a foreign port.

 

The OP wanted the friend's to have passport and for one reason or another it didn't get done, so this isn't really a post about someone wanting to cruise without a passport. That said travel to the Caribbean really hasn't changed and for many people the small risk of something happening is acceptable. One doesn't need a passport to obtain consular services, they are available to any US citizen. As for needing it to get home quickly that too is a judgment call and there are provisions in the regulations for waiving the passport requirement for an emergency or for humanitarian reasons. Some people don't travel often enough to warrant the cost of a passport given their modes of travel and alternatives exist.

[smileyone]

I understand your frustration with the other parents. We let our daughter take a friend each year but require they get a passport. The first time we did this, they had over a year to get it. I had to threaten to cancel the child from the cruise in order to get them to do it (3 months out). The next year I did cancel the child (a different one than the year before) because it just wasn't going to happen even though we had already paid half. Last year was another kid that we had to threaten to cancel to get some action.

 

But here is my take on the birth certificate.. I would require them to bring the birth certificate to you now so you can decide if it looks right. Someone that won't follow thru with a commitment to get a passport may not care whether they are providing the official certificate that customs will accept. I told them if no passport, no go. I don't want to chance getting to port with someone else's child and find out something about their birth certificate isn't acceptable then I can't cruise because I'm stuck with getting this kid back home.

 

 

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[coevan]

" I don't want to chance getting to port with someone else's child and find out something about their birth certificate isn't acceptable"

 

 

 

 

This is not even possible, it's a closed end tour. The only people who care about your ID is Carnival. You will never need ID to get off a ship unless it's Cuba.