Passport vs just birth certificate?

[cruisinfanatic]

 

 

 

 

But they absolutely SHOULD. Why? Because who is to say that person IS that person, without that bridging document? If I go from Mary Smith to Mary Colucci, shouldn't I have to PROVE that I'm the same person because I married Jimmy Colucci? (not my name or husband's name) Absolutely positively YES.

 

 

As long as picture ID matches cruise documents a marriage certificate is not required. The birth certificate with correct birth date, even though married name is not on it tells the agent you are a US citizen and is fine. Lots say they've been asked for it, who knows why. If it was truly required by law, it would be asked for without question from everyone every time.

Thousands travel without it every yr. If they were not allowed to board you'd see countless threads here stating that.

[jean95404]

Jean, Is this on Princess? Are you the only adult? If you answered yes to both of those then YES, you must have passports for the G-kids. But this is a Princess contractual requirement, not a U.S. Law. Any other cruiseline, or if traveling with another adult, you are safe with just BC for the g-kids. (I know this is a RCI thread, but it has meandered a bit.)

 

Thank you for the response. I will get the passport situation started with my son and daughter-in-law.

[dcgrumpy]

As long as picture ID matches cruise documents a marriage certificate is not required. The birth certificate with correct birth date, even though married name is not on it tells the agent you are a US citizen and is fine. Lots say they've been asked for it, who knows why. If it was truly required by law, it would be asked for without question from everyone every time.

Thousands travel without it every yr. If they were not allowed to board you'd see countless threads here stating that.

 

It tells them that the person on the birth certificate is a citizen it doesn't prove that they're the same person.

 

It seems odd to me that they don't make you prove it. I went to high school with a girl with the same first name and same same birthdate. In theory if one of us wasn't a citizen we could use the other ones birth certificate and our own id together and no one would know.

Edited August 18, 2015 by dcgrumpy

[sparks1093]

It tells them that the person on the birth certificate is a citizen it doesn't prove that they're the same person.

 

It seems odd to me that they don't make you prove it. I went to high school with a girl with the same first name and same same birthdate. In theory if one of us wasn't a citizen we could use the other ones birth certificate and our own id together and no one would know.

I am sure that DHS took this into consideration when they wrote the regulations. What are the true odds that a non-citizen is going to have the same identifiers as a citizen and try to use that person's bc for a closed loop cruise? Not to mention that the social security numbers wouldn't match.

[cruisinfanatic]

I am sure that DHS took this into consideration when they wrote the regulations. What are the true odds that a non-citizen is going to have the same identifiers as a citizen and try to use that person's bc for a closed loop cruise? Not to mention that the social security numbers wouldn't match.

SS numbers are not on any document to cross reference

[m*u*g*]

My advice, get the passport, pay the rush fee, leave home with just one document. Then you can use your time on here researching your cruise :)

[sparks1093]

SS numbers are not on any document to cross reference

You would be surprised where that number shows up in government databases (i know that the dmv hss mine and if they have it Uncle Sam can get it).

[cruisinfanatic]

You would be surprised where that number shows up in government databases (i know that the dmv hss mine and if they have it Uncle Sam can get it).

yes, but can't be accessed at checkin

[rudeney]

It tells them that the person on the birth certificate is a citizen it doesn't prove that they're the same person.

 

You need two things: Proof of citizenship and proof of identity. A birth certificate issued in the USA proves citizenship. A driver's license proves identity. But a passport proves both of these in one document.

 

It seems odd to me that they don't make you prove it. I went to high school with a girl with the same first name and same same birthdate. In theory if one of us wasn't a citizen we could use the other ones birth certificate and our own id together and no one would know.

 

Remember, using a birth certificate and driver's license only works for "closed loop" cruises. As I said before, we almost did not get to board our DCL cruise back in 2006 because my wife had her birth certificate and driver's license and the surnames names did not match. We had to go through two levels of management to get approved for boarding. What finally convinced them that she was who she said claimed as that her social security card (which she happened to be carrying) has her first, middle and married surname, her birth certificate had her first middle and maiden names, and her driver's license had her first, maiden and married surname. I guess the agent figured that between all of that matching, she was who her birth certificate indicated.

[sparks1093]

yes, but can't be accessed at checkin

Passengers are vetted by cbp after checkin and during the cruise. That is when potential issues are found and they are dealt with prior to re-entry when the ship gets back.