Passports expired ?

[Cruisegirl6]

We are booked on the Beyond for March 19th, my husbands passport expires in August so he did his renewal online and paid expedited and they received it on December 29th.  He still is waiting, when we call they just say its not processed yet and hang up.  So, I got a copy of his birth certificate from NY and it arrived in three days.  But, my daughters passport expired last week, I do have a copy of her birth certificate and the reason why I am writing, is to ask if you think I should get an updated one or the one I have that I got in 2008 (has a raised seal) should be fine.

Has anybody used a birth certificate that was over 15 years old, just want to make sure the current one will be allowed. 

 

We just added my daugher to the cruise with my father in law who probably is going to back out on the cruise, at least if he doesn't go she get a trip out of it as its fully paid for, but she had no plans going out of the country in the next few months so didn't renew her passport yet.  Thank you.

[RichYak]

I see no reason to get a newer one.

[hrhdhd]

Someone noted in your previous thread with this question that birth certificates do not expire. My birth certificate is over <cough> 50 years old and it's still valid.

[1Virgo]

41 minutes ago, Cruisegirl6 said:

We are booked on the Beyond for March 19th, my husbands passport expires in August so he did his renewal online and paid expedited and they received it on December 29th.  He still is waiting, when we call they just say its not processed yet and hang up.  So, I got a copy of his birth certificate from NY and it arrived in three days.  But, my daughters passport expired last week, I do have a copy of her birth certificate and the reason why I am writing, is to ask if you think I should get an updated one or the one I have that I got in 2008 (has a raised seal) should be fine.

Has anybody used a birth certificate that was over 15 years old, just want to make sure the current one will be allowed. 

 

We just added my daugher to the cruise with my father in law who probably is going to back out on the cruise, at least if he doesn't go she get a trip out of it as its fully paid for, but she had no plans going out of the country in the next few months so didn't renew her passport yet.  Thank you.

I would check directly with your airlines if using, and the cruise line.   If cruise line, ask for email confirmation so you have proof).     We have our Nexus cards and have been asked for passports

[DCPIV]

An expired passport is worthless except to the extent you can renew it.  

 

I would think the old birth certificate would work just fine with the raised seal and all those goodies.

 

From what I hear, your husband's passport ought to show up soon.  They've been turning renewals around pretty quickly.  Of course, be ready in case it doesn't.

[bEwAbG]

You had several answers to this question on your other thread as well.  If you're nervous about the birth certificate you have in your possession, you can always order a new one from the state where the birth happened.  They don't typically take long to process.

 

 

[Shiba_Lover]

It looks like this cruise goes to St Maarten, which is Dutch Virgin Islands. you would likely not be able to use a birth certificate like you can if it just stops in Mexico.  You should call the cruise line or your Travel agent ASAP.

Edited February 20, 2023 by ehall
Remove comment about closed loop

[RichYak]

5 minutes ago, ehall said:

It looks like this cruise goes to St Maarten, which is Dutch Virgin Islands.  If that's the case, it is not a closed loop cruise

How does a port stop in St Maarten make this no longer a closed loop cruise?

[Shiba_Lover]

1 minute ago, RichYak said:

How does a port stop in St Maarten make this no longer a closed loop cruise?

 

2 minutes ago, RichYak said:

How does a port stop in St Maarten make this no longer a closed loop cruise?

Sorry, it's closed loop.  But I believe you need a passport for dutch St Maarten unlike most closed loop cruises.  I'll edit my comment.

[miched]

Read the cruise Edocs from Celebrity that is on their website where you do your check in . It has ll the information that is required

 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

[DCPIV]

17 minutes ago, ehall said:

It looks like this cruise goes to St Maarten, which is Dutch Virgin Islands. you would likely not be able to use a birth certificate like you can if it just stops in Mexico.  You should call the cruise line or your Travel agent ASAP.

 

While I do believe you are correct about needing a passport for St. Maarten, I also believe the worst thing that can happen is that you would not be able to get off the ship there.  I highly encourage everyone to double check that with someone who is not a non-expert.

[Ferry_Watcher]

As long as your cruise (US closed loop) qualifies to use a US gov't issued birth certificate (not a hospital issued commentative birth 'announcement'), the age or the general condition of the birth certificate doesn't matter - as long as all the vital info is readable.

 

As someone who has checked-in cruise passengers sailing to Alaska, I have had accepted BCs printed off microfiche, birth certificates that had been folded up sitting untouched in metal strong boxes for decades, practically ready to crumble, and all other sorts of conditions.  As long I can see that it is gov't issued (city, county, state), and that it has the name, date of birth of the person standing in front of me,  which matches up with the photo ID (over 16 yrs old) of the passenger - it works..

[C4HCG]

35 minutes ago, DCPIV said:

 

While I do believe you are correct about needing a passport for St. Maarten, I also believe the worst thing that can happen is that you would not be able to get off the ship there.  I highly encourage everyone to double check that with someone who is not a non-expert.

Yep - foolhardy to rely on cruise critic experts on things like this.

[Potstech]

Some countries require a passport for all passengers and will not allow a ship to disembark passengers if there are passengers without one.  You may noy find this out until you try to board the ship.  Be forewarned.

And passport CARDS do not substitute for the book in many placed.

Edited February 20, 2023 by Potstech

[Essiesmom]

1 hour ago, ehall said:

It looks like this cruise goes to St Maarten, which is Dutch Virgin Islands. you would likely not be able to use a birth certificate like you can if it just stops in Mexico.  You should call the cruise line or your Travel agent ASAP.

I think you are confusing St. Maarten with Martinique.  For the latter, as well as Guadeloupe you do need a passport.  Not for St Maarten.  EM

[CruisersTimesThree]

Wasn’t this asked and answered already in the OP post on Saturday? 
Not understanding the need to keep making new posts to ask the same questions.

[Shiba_Lover]

1 hour ago, Essiesmom said:

I think you are confusing St. Maarten with Martinique.  For the latter, as well as Guadeloupe you do need a passport.  Not for St Maarten.  EM

I'm not actually confusing them - St Maarten is Dutch while the others are part of France. But I'm also not the one traveling there in a month so again - as I've already stated in my post - if I were the person traveling - I would contact the cruise line to see if I can sail.  It might just be that they cannot disembark in St Maarten, or it might indeed be - just bring a birth certificate.  All I said was that I believed they likely needed a passport.   Would be interested in the outcome and also where to find info that says St Maarten lets US in with a birth certificate - it appears to be very common knowledge.  I know Mexico does, and that is easy to verify - but does not appear to be easy to verify for St. Maarten.  Maybe this info should be pinned somewhere on cruise critic in general as this is a pretty common question here.

[Ferry_Watcher]

Ge

30 minutes ago, ehall said:

It might just be that they cannot disembark in St Maarten, or it might indeed be - just bring a birth certificate.  All I said was that I believed they likely needed a passport. 

 

Cruise lines will not let an individual board unless they have the required travel documents for each and every port-of-call of the planned itinerary. If a passenger shows up at check-in without the required visa, or passport they are denied boarding.  Just staying on the ship at the port-of-call in question is not an option.  We run into this situation every cruise day in Seattle where all the cruise ships have a stop in Canada.  Some foreign passport holders need a Canadian visa - if they arrive at embark in Seattle without the required Canadian visa - they are denied boarding, and there is zero options for them.

 

I hope your friend does their due diligence about what documents are needed on this particular cruise.

[Mark_K]

4 hours ago, DCPIV said:

An expired passport is worthless except to the extent you can renew it.  

 

I would think the old birth certificate would work just fine with the raised seal and all those goodies.

 

From what I hear, your husband's passport ought to show up soon.  They've been turning renewals around pretty quickly.  Of course, be ready in case it doesn't.

Unless something has changed recently, an expired passport is as good as a raised seal birth certificate for use as evidence of citizenship.  
 

What it’s no longer good for is evidence of identity,

[PelicanLvr]

Suggest you contact a passport/visa service company and get all passports resolved before departure.  Cost will be high,....but some things are worth it.

[DCPIV]

1 hour ago, Mark_K said:

What it’s no longer good for is evidence of identity,

 

And when trying to enter a foreign country that requires a valid passport.  

[LMHSRN]

3 hours ago, ehall said:

I'm not actually confusing them - St Maarten is Dutch while the others are part of France. But I'm also not the one traveling there in a month so again - as I've already stated in my post - if I were the person traveling - I would contact the cruise line to see if I can sail.  It might just be that they cannot disembark in St Maarten, or it might indeed be - just bring a birth certificate.  All I said was that I believed they likely needed a passport.   Would be interested in the outcome and also where to find info that says St Maarten lets US in with a birth certificate - it appears to be very common knowledge.  I know Mexico does, and that is easy to verify - but does not appear to be

3 hours ago, ehall said:

I'm not actually confusing them - St Maarten is Dutch while the others are part of France. But I'm also not the one traveling there in a month so again - as I've already stated in my post - if I were the person traveling - I would contact the cruise line to see if I can sail.  It might just be that they cannot disembark in St Maarten, or it might indeed be - just bring a birth certificate.  All I said was that I believed they likely needed a passport.   Would be interested in the outcome and also where to find info that says St Maarten lets US in with a birth certificate - it appears to be very common knowledge.  I know Mexico does, and that is easy to verify - but does not appear to be easy to verify for St. Maarten.  Maybe this info should be pinned somewhere on cruise critic in general as this is a pretty common question here.

easy to verify for St. Maarten.  Maybe this info should be pinned somewhere on cruise critic in general as this is a pretty common question here.

What part of closed loop are you not understanding?  Unless your reservation says passport needed (as Costa Rica for example) you are good to go on a closed loop cruise US to US

[kenb]

6 hours ago, DCPIV said:

An expired passport is worthless except to the extent you can renew it.  

 

I would think the old birth certificate would work just fine with the raised seal and all those goodies.

 

From what I hear, your husband's passport ought to show up soon.  They've been turning renewals around pretty quickly.  Of course, be ready in case it doesn't.

I fell on the floor when my wife's and mine took 2 weeks without expediting.  Definitely not normal!!

[kenb]

6 hours ago, ehall said:

 

Sorry, it's closed loop.  But I believe you need a passport for dutch St Maarten unlike most closed loop cruises.  I'll edit my comment.

ST. MAARTEN/ST. MARTIN

Entry Requirements &amp; Customs in St. Maarten/St. Martin

Passports

U.S. and Canadian citizens must have a passport or a combination of a birth certificate and photo ID, plus a return or ongoing ticket, to enter St. Maarten/St. Martin. Citizens of the United Kingdom, Commonwealth countries of the Caribbean, the Republic of Ireland, and E.U. countries must also have a current passport.

Edited February 20, 2023 by kenb

[Shiba_Lover]

2 hours ago, LMHSRN said:

What part of closed loop are you not understanding?  Unless your reservation says passport needed (as Costa Rica for example) you are good to go on a closed loop cruise US to US

OK - I am wrong.  you all are correct.  Orignal poster - Please ignore all of my posts.