Passport Needed?

[sobern2003]

Hello. My Mom,my sister and brother-in-law and I will be departing from Miami on the Carnival Imagination in November. We are stopping in Key West and Cozumel Mexico,and returning to Miami. My question is,do we need passports for this,or wil our drivers licences and birth certificates be enough. If need be,we can get the passport cards for this trip.

thanks in advance

Becky

[smeyer418]

Hello. My Mom,my sister and brother-in-law and I will be departing from Miami on the Carnival Imagination in November. We are stopping in Key West and Cozumel Mexico,and returning to Miami. My question is,do we need passports for this,or wil our drivers licences and birth certificates be enough. If need be,we can get the passport cards for this trip.

thanks in advance

Becky

 

roundtrip cruises to Mexico only require an original birth certificate-or other proof of US citizenship(for everyone) and government issued photo id( for people 16 and over). Passport cards are useless unless you intend to go back to the US through a land crossing. Flying from Mexico requires a full passport.

[pms4104]

If you experience any type of emergency that requires you to fly home from Mexico, a passport will be required. Birth certificate and/or passport card will not be sufficient. While you may be able to work thru getting a passport while iin Mexico, it will delay your repatriation significantly.

[cb at sea]

I thought starting June 09 you would need your passport, even for sea-travel.???

[smeyer418]

I thought starting June 09 you would need your passport, even for sea-travel.???

no round trips on a cruise ship don't require it as long as you are going to WHTI country even after June 09....

[4merlurker]

so, just to be clear: I live in NJ. In October I am cruising from bayonne NJ to eastern carib and back to bayonne. I DO NOT need a passport. Correct?

 

~Connie

[smeyer418]

so, just to be clear: I live in NJ. In October I am cruising from bayonne NJ to eastern carib and back to bayonne. I DO NOT need a passport. Correct?

 

~Connie

correct-

[fann1sh]

so, just to be clear: I live in NJ. In October I am cruising from bayonne NJ to eastern carib and back to bayonne. I DO NOT need a passport. Correct?

 

~Connie

 

correct-

 

99.9 % chance of "yes"...but do check each of the ports individually to make sure they qualify under WHTI

[ddonalds]

Why not just get your passport? You're not in a rush - and if you ever have an emergency from any of these places (Mexico, Caribbean, etc) - you're going to need a passport. They're good for 10 years - go straight for the passport, and not the cards (which really do have restricted use, and should you decide to go anywhere else, you'd have to pay again to get a passport)....:cool:

[smeyer418]

99.9 % chance of "yes"...but do check each of the ports individually to make sure they qualify under WHTI

all of the Eastern Caribbean qualifies. Its only some central America countries that don't. I answered the question based on the itinerary. its 100%

[Arwenmark]

so, just to be clear: I live in NJ. In October I am cruising from bayonne NJ to eastern carib and back to bayonne. I DO NOT need a passport. Correct?

 

~Connie

 

Correct AS LONG AS no Your are first a U.S. citizen and second that you do not have any emergency that requires you to fly home, because you will NOT be able to.

and the Card is for people making crossings by land into Canada or Mexico. It is worthless for other travel.

[fann1sh]

Thank you Arwenmark - your answer was much better than mine :o

 

Because I'm NOT a U.S. citizen, and these "no passport required" rules DON'T apply to me, I forget to mention they don't apply to people LIKE me...which is doubly embarrassing! :o:o

[Aunty Pat]

You will need a passport after June 9 unless you have another approved document.

 

From the State Department website

U.S citizens can use any of the following documents to travel to Mexico:

Acceptable Documents: one of the following documents should be presented to prove both identity and citizenship.

· U.S. Passport Book

· U.S. Passport Card

· SENTRI card (For U.S-MEXICO Land and limited Sea ports use only.)

· FAST card (For Land use only.)

· State Issued Enhanced Driver’s License (None of the states have issued these as of yet)

· Enhanced Tribal Cards (when available)

· U.S. Military Identification

· U.S. Merchant Mariner Document

· Native American Tribal Photo Identification Card

· I-872 American Indian Card

 

 

Aunty Pat

 

 

Barefoot Windjammer - Phantom ‘81

K&D German Rhine Line ‘84

NCL - Norway ’85, Pride of America ’05, Southward ’87, Star ’97 & ‘05, Starward ’92, Sun ’02 & Windward ’93

RCC - Song of America ‘89

American Hawaiian - Independence ‘98

HAL - Volendam ’99, Noordam ’06, Oosterdam ’07 & ‘09, Statendam ’02 & ‘08, Prinsendam ’03 & ’06, Westerdam ’09 & Zuiderdam ’04, ’06 & ‘07

Carnival - Spirit ‘05

Celebrity – Summit ‘05

Cruise West - Yorktown Clipper ‘06

Princess - Golden Princess ‘07

A & K - East Queen ‘07

Cunard - QM2 ’08

[fann1sh]

You will need a passport after June 9 unless you have another approved document.

 

From the State Department website

U.S citizens can use any of the following documents to travel to Mexico:

Acceptable Documents: one of the following documents should be presented to prove both identity and citizenship.

· U.S. Passport Book

· U.S. Passport Card

· SENTRI card (For U.S-MEXICO Land and limited Sea ports use only.)

· FAST card (For Land use only.)

· State Issued Enhanced Driver’s License (None of the states have issued these as of yet)

· Enhanced Tribal Cards (when available)

· U.S. Military Identification

· U.S. Merchant Mariner Document

· Native American Tribal Photo Identification Card

· I-872 American Indian Card

 

 

Aunty Pat

 

While this is the wise position of the State Department, it isn't the final word under WHTI. Please refer to:

 

http://www.getyouhome.gov/html/lang_eng/eng_sa.html

 

This reads, in part:

 

"Cruise Ship Passengers: U.S. citizens on closed-loop cruises (cruises that begin and end at the same U.S. port) will be able to enter or depart the country with a birth certificate and government-issued photo ID. Please be aware that you may still be required to present a passport to enter the countries your cruise ship is visiting. Check with your cruise line to ensure you have the appropriate documents."

 

If you miss the ship and have to fly home.....you'll have to wait for a passport to be issued to get there.

[Chacooe]

All of this is so confusing, one government agency says one thing and another says something different. They all need to work together. Persaonlly, I don't think that if you are traveling just to Mexico, Canada, or the Carribean that you should need a passport at all, even to fly home.

[Chacooe]

This is what I copied from the Carnival site about Passports.

 

 

CRUISE TRAVEL

 

U.S. citizens traveling on cruises that begin and end in the same U.S. port must show proof of citizenship (such as an original or certified copy of a birth certificate) and a government-issued photo ID (such as a driver’s license). Effective June 1, 2009, U.S. citizens traveling on cruises that begin and end in different U.S. ports, or begin or end in a foreign port, must have a passport or other recognized document. For a complete list of accepted documents, see www.travel.state.gov.

U.S. Alien Residents need a valid Alien Resident Card. Canadian citizens must present a valid passport. Non-U.S. citizens need a valid passport and a valid, unexpired U.S. Multiple Re-entry Visa, if applicable.

 

Hope this helps.

[smeyer418]

You will need a passport after June 9 unless you have another approved document.

 

From the State Department website

U.S citizens can use any of the following documents to travel to Mexico:

Acceptable Documents: one of the following documents should be presented to prove both identity and citizenship.

· U.S. Passport Book

· U.S. Passport Card

· SENTRI card (For U.S-MEXICO Land and limited Sea ports use only.)

· FAST card (For Land use only.)

· State Issued Enhanced Driver’s License (None of the states have issued these as of yet)

· Enhanced Tribal Cards (when available)

· U.S. Military Identification

· U.S. Merchant Mariner Document

· Native American Tribal Photo Identification Card

· I-872 American Indian Card

 

 

Aunty Pat

 

 

Hello Aunt Pat there are special rules for cruise passengers on a closed loop cruises to WHTI countries. The rule is that a passport is NOT required. While the State Department is a good place to look they don't decide who can get back into the US that is the Customs and Border Protection of the Department of Homeland security. They say no passport is required to reenter into the US on a closed loop cruise. They also say the countries you visit can require it but these countries want US citizens to visit and are less concerned than the US is about the paperwork requirements. Yes it confusing but the answer to the original poster is no passport is required...and these are the FINAL rules....

[4merlurker]

Thanks for clarification everyone. I would love to get passports but that would add another $500 to this vacation so this time around we'll rough it :o LOL.

 

I do realize the convenience and piece of mind of having a passport and we will get them when we ABSOLUTELY need them but since we do not cruise every year nor vacation abroad it's not necessary yet.

 

~Connie

[sobern2003]

Yes,thanks for the claification. I may or may not get the card. As money is definitely an issure for me I do need to limit what I spend,so that I can haave the best possible time. I really really need this vacation very badly! I cannot wait!!LOL:D

[Chacooe]

If you get the full passport they run about $100.00, if you get the card then it is $65.00. For the people who have families, I would get on passport or passport card at a time, that was it is not a large expense all at one time. I do have a feeling though that sometime in the next few years they are going to require this of anyone leaving the country.