Any US Passengers Have Visa Issues with MSC in Brazil?

[3DogDay]

I'm a US citizen booked on the Seaview sailing out of Rio on Feb. 29, 2024. As this was not my first time on an international cruise, I checked the State Department and consulate websites for their visa requirements. Argentina and Uruguay only required one if the stay would be longer than 90 days and Brazil would not begin requiring them until Apr. 10, 2024. Since none of these parameters fit I figured I was good. Then I saw a document on the MSC website saying that a visa is required as of Jan 10, 2024. I called MSC's service line and spoke to a breathtakingly unhelpful woman named Tracy who literally did nothing more than read to me what was on the website, which was something that I had already done. I looked at the MSC document again and noticed that it was dated Oct. 2023. After some additional research, it turns out that the Jan. 10 date was correct as of October but was later postponed to April as of the beginning of Jan. 2024. I called back and spoke to a man named Enoch and I just asked him why all of the official government documentation was giving one date while theirs was giving another. I explained that I had confirmed with my airline that there shouldn't be an issue upon entering the country at the airport. so why would I be denied boarding because of something the government was not requiring?  He did some additional research and agreed that there shouldn't be an issue as the immigration process at the airport should be the same as at the port. He did say to print out the information just in case there were any questions.

 

Now my only concern is what if some woefully uninformed boarding agent decides that I can't board because this person has stale information and does the same as Tracy. So I wanted to put this out there to see if there is anyone who has recently sailed with MSC out of Brazil and if they were able to do so with no visa as is the current policy in effect. I'm pretty sure that everything will be fine and I have all the information to back this up, but a relief (or maybe not) to hear what others have experienced.

[brucevr6]

Hi@3DogDay. 
I too will be interested to read replies to your question, as well as your experience when you board the ship. As a US citizen sailing on the same ship March 28th, I have been following this issue closely. I even made a second trip to the Brazilian Embassy last week to confirm that everything was in order. The last time I was there was in early December and at that time they were expecting the visa to be required by January 10th. Good luck, and please update your experience when you board. 

[Essiesmom]

If you were initially entering Brazil by cruise ship, it would be reasonable for the checkin agents at your departure to deny you boarding without the visa.   But if you don’t need a visa to enter the country by air, and therefore already IN the country when you check in to the ship, why would they even ask for a visa to enter a country you are already in???  Now, would there be complications if you were to visit multiple ports in Brazil, some overlapping the new activation date?  Muddy waters?  EM

[3DogDay]

When reading MSC's document it says the following:

"Please note that the information provided is subject to change by the official authorities without notice."  This is true and it WAS changed as per the government website of Brazil - https://www.gov.br/mre/pt-br/consulado-mumbai/news/necessidade-de-visto-para-portadores-de-passaportes-americanos-apos-10-de-abril-de-2024 and as the same is also stated on the U.S. Embassy in Brazil's website - https://br.usembassy.gov/message-for-u-s-citizens-new-visa-requirement-for-u-s-citizens/

 

It also says "It is every Guest responsibility to verify the requirements and restrictions before booking the cruise and before the cruise departure" I have indeed done that and I have proof of my due diligence, which I will make sure to have with me on embarkation. Also, this statement is saying that if the official requirements change but are not detailed in this document, then it is my responsibility to know that. So let's say the date had been moved back to Dec. 10, 2023, but the document was not updated to reflect that, then I would be accountable for not knowing this. So if that is true, then it should be the same if the date has been moved up. And finally, if there was some arbitrary reason that MSC had decided to require a visa for reasons outside of the government regulations, then THEY should have made THEIR requirements clear, which they haven't.

 

I feel pretty confident now that I am in the clear and am fully prepared to use their own document against them if there are any issues. Also, if I am denied boarding, I am fairly certain that I have something actionable against them as I did exactly what their document said. So, we'll see,

 

 

 

[B_A_H]

I'm going on the Poesia April 5 from Santos.  I'll be entering Brazil on April 4.  The visa requirement starts on April 10, the day before I leave the country. 

 

My question was more about what happens when you enter pre-visa but depart afterward. 

 

This answer from the Brazilian government website covers us both.

 

 

[3DogDay]

@B_A_H Yeah I think we’re both good. What had me unhinged was Tracy’s response (or lack there of) and made me think that maybe all MSC employees were not in the know. Still printing out this information just in case, but I’m way more confident than I was on Saturday.

 

Have a great trip!

[3DogDay]

So I guess my fears were all for naught. Embarkation was completed with no questions asked. I still think MSC could have been a little more forward thinking when it came to updating their website and informing their customer service representatives with a “Hey, you might get calls about this.”  But that’s all water under the bridge now. 

[Mark_T]

Glad it all went well for you.

 

The situation you faced was in some ways similar to the ESTA issue that visitors to the US face when on round-trip sailings out of US ports, the boarding processing has no concern with how you got to the country in the first place, they are concerned about bringing you back into the country at the end of the cruise.

 

So that leaves people traveling to the US to board a ship having to provide proof of their ESTA approval when boarding even though it is never actually needed by CBP as they have the electronic record.

[JT1962]

2 hours ago, 3DogDay said:

So I guess my fears were all for naught. Embarkation was completed with no questions asked. I still think MSC could have been a little more forward thinking when it came to updating their website and informing their customer service representatives with a “Hey, you might get calls about this.”  But that’s all water under the bridge now. 

I’m glad you had no issues. It’s frustrating when the cruise website conflicts with the official government website. The customer service reps are rarely any help and a check-in agent with bad / outdated information can deny boarding.