Birth Certificate Problem

[duckygirl]

We leave on Saturday for Alaska and my sister-in-law just discovered that her birth certificate copy does not have a raised seal on it. She does not have a passport. Princess told her that they will not let her on the ship without the raised seal. She lives 5 hours away from the county she was born in and there is no time to have something overnighted. Any suggestions?

[Kimmarie]

Is it a copy or the original? If the original has a raised seal, then it needs to have the raised seal, but not all original birth certificates come with a raised seal. My daughters is from California and doesn't have a raised seal and I was concerned and inquired about it, the most important thing is that its the original not a photocopy. Hope this helps some what

[Baxter]

My birth certificate does not have a raised seal, and I had no problems. Some simply don't have them.

 

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[crazy4themouse]

That is correct, many if not most states no longer have raised seals. Texas doesn't. The very important, critical thing, is that they say CERTIFIED on them. Even if it is the original, it could be something like the "birth facts" certificate from the hospital, and that is no good. It HAS to say certified, from the state/county where you were born.

 

If there's no time to have it overnighted, I'm not sure what to tell you... but if it's her certified original birth certificate, she's fine. I don't know why cruise lines STILL give out the "raised seal" line... Disney does it too, and it causes no end of problems when people panic because their state doesn't even *have* raised seals on theirs.

 

Good luck, I hope it all works out!

 

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[WCAB]

Gee, it would be horrible to miss the cruise. It would be a long drive to get the certificate in person but if it meant the difference in missing the cruise, this is what I would do.

 

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[christyd]

Bring what you have - bring everything you can possibly find that proves who you are. I had the same problem once when flying to Canada. At first they (America West Airlines) told me they couldn't accept my birth certificate because the names didn't match (long story). But then I pulled out a bunch of documents that justified my name difference and they let me go. On the other hand in Canada - they didn't even bother to look at my birth certificate. They just saw it in my hand and processed me through. Good Luck!

[srphnx]

My BC is from a German hospital when my father was stationed there in the US Army, I sail all the time, no raised seal. As has been said above, if it is original or certified, no problem, if it is plain copy, problem.

 

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[riverboatgambler]

Take it to your bank and have it notarized. That way you will get a raised seal.

 

This worked for me with a copy of my birth certificate when I went to Mexico back in 88, but with 9-11, they may be more strict.

 

Also, the raised seal on my birth certificate is barely noticeable, no one really checked it that hard on my last cruise. Do not be nervous at check-in and hopefully everything will work out.

 

Good Luck

[crazy4themouse]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by riverboatgambler:

Take it to your bank and have it notarized. That way you will get a raised seal.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

 

I would definitely NOT do something like that! Having it notarized doesn't have a single thing to do with it being certified by the county you were born in. How that worked with you is beyond me, but I don't think you'd have a snowball's chance of that working now. I can't even imagine someone willing to notarize a birth certificate!

 

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[caryh]

I fortunately found out that my Original Hospital Birth Certificate was not certified when I went to get my passport. In our state (Washington) you can pick up a certified copy at any County building if you were born in the state. I guess this is another good argument why anyone that travels should just get a passport.

 

[This message was edited by caryh on 06-18-04 at 12:43 PM.]

[Brneyznfl]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by crazy4themouse:

I can't even imagine someone willing to notarize a birth certificate!<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

 

I am a notary in the State of Florida. Florida specificially states we can't notorize birth certificates. I would imagine most if not all states have this same rule.

 

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[PeabodyNVL]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by crazy4themouse:

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by riverboatgambler:

Take it to your bank and have it notarized. That way you will get a raised seal.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>I can't even imagine someone willing to notarize a birth certificate!<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>I agree. Any notary who would do so would have to be little shady or just plain not known what they are doing. By notarizing something, they are authenicating the document...there is no way a local notary can or should do that.

 

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[SeaPA]

I'd check with the local courthouse in her current hometown (assuming it is in the STATE of her birth). I know in Florida you can go to any County's Dept of Vital records to obtain a certified copy of birth from any other county in the state. No idea if it's that way in your state but I'd sure make a phone call before I made the 10 hour roundtrip drive (that would be my 2nd choice if you have to go to the birth county - I sure wouldn't try to make the trip without a certified copy).

[jhannah]

I didn't know notaries still used the raised seals. Any notary I've used the last several years have just had a stamp. At any rate, don't alter what you have in any way. That may do more harm than good.

 

Yes, this is just another good reason to get a passport.

 

'Vegas Jim

[sarasotasteve]

I know its too late to help you but it may help someone in the future. When I found I needed a birth certificate with a raised seal I was able to do it all online. I live in Florida and was born in Indiana. I couldn't believe how easy it was, in fact my wife had a harder time getting hers here in Sarasota and she was born here. sb

 

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[Pam in CA]

I'm a notary as well in MA and I have, and use, both a seal and stamp.

 

A notary does not certify the authenticity of the document itself, just that the person signing it has done so in front of them -- and they have to do it in front of the notary -- and that it's the person's signature. Since you're not signing your Birth Certificate, there's no way a notary could notarize it.

 

FYI, if your raised seal doesn't show up well, here's a trick: scribble on a piece of paper with pencil and then gently rub the paper over the seal. It'll highlight just the raised portion.

 

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[imsulin]

Many certified birth certificates now have a colored stamp instead of a raised seal, and will indicate that it's "certified". Hospital birth certificates are generally not accepted. I was reading on another board something about St. Kitts requiring a certified BC with the colored stamp on watermark paper, instead of the raised seal. This was for a land-based vacation, though. I haven't heard anything official about it, though. I'm a Passport proponant, so it's always ready when I am!

[cruiselifers]

I live in IL and you can go to Chicago to the main passport office and get a "rush" passport. They give it to you that day. I think it is more expensive and you may have to wait long at the office all day but it can be done.

 

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