Does passport really have to be good for 6 months after travel???

[LizzieTrowbridge]

I am cruising on Carnival in March, 2011 with my two children whose passports will expire in August, 2011, which is 5 months after the cruise returns. Do I really need to get new expedited passports for the children before we leave so that they are good for 6 months after travel???

[DarthGrady]

Thats a new one to me. I just skimmed over the Carnival documents page and noticed the part about the 6 month period.

 

http://www.carnival.com/CMS/fun/cruise_control/EMB_travel_document.aspx

 

Edit: It does say that they strongly recommend it, but it doesn't say its a requirement. Hmmmm....

[jandjfun]

Thats a good question. I have been wondering the same thing since mine expires next year. But here is my issue. If they don't require a passport to begin with, why would your passport have to be valid for 6 months past your cruise date?

[sailinglisa]

It depends on the countries you are cruising to. Most countries require that visitors passports be valid for 6 months after the visit because if for some reason you are unable to leave that country when you are supposed to, you are at least covered for that amount of time and can contact the US embassy to renew your passport.

 

jandjfun - just because a country does not require a passport for cruise travel, does not mean they do not require one for a land trip there. And if, for some reason, you cannot get back on your ship after the port call (think medical evacuation or emergency, missing the ship, etc.), your cruise has turned into a land trip and you will definitely need to get a passport from the US Embassy in that country to be able to leave.

[LizzieTrowbridge]

We are cruising to Belize, Mexico, and Honduras. I hate to spend the expedite fee ($60 each in addition to regular passport processing) if I don't need to, but now I'm getting nervous. I suppose if the passports expire in August, they still need to let us on the ship because I can also bring the children's birth certificates, and if for some reason we need to fly home from any of these countries, it would be well before August since the cruise is in March.

[Tbay-eh]

Okay - here goes. If you are American and cruising on a closed loop you do not need a passport. If, like us, you are Canadian then you need a passport to travel anywhere outside Canada. If you travel to certain countries - THEY may require your passport to be valid beyond 6 months. If you are cruising the Mediteranian then you may have to have to a passport valid beyond the 6 months - if you are cruising the Caribbean then you don't need it. Just re-read your post, if using for ID only for Caribbean area you do not have to worry about it as long as it does not expire before the end of your cruise.

[SadieN]

We have had the horrific experience of one person in our group be denied at the airport (it was an international flight) because of this very issue. Not fun having to go the Federal building and lose 3 days.

 

Good Luck

[MDavis23]

A school group was going out of the country and they were told that all passports had to be valid for six months after their re-entry into the U.S. I would not take a chance on something you can correct prior to cruising.

[sailinglisa]

We are cruising to Belize, Mexico, and Honduras. I hate to spend the expedite fee ($60 each in addition to regular passport processing) if I don't need to, but now I'm getting nervous. I suppose if the passports expire in August, they still need to let us on the ship because I can also bring the children's birth certificates, and if for some reason we need to fly home from any of these countries, it would be well before August since the cruise is in March.

 

Lizzie - it is not the cruise line that mandates this, it is the countries you visit that mandate the 6 month rule. No way around that.

[more cruises]

We are cruising to Belize, Mexico, and Honduras. I hate to spend the expedite fee ($60 each in addition to regular passport processing) if I don't need to, but now I'm getting nervous. I suppose if the passports expire in August, they still need to let us on the ship because I can also bring the children's birth certificates, and if for some reason we need to fly home from any of these countries, it would be well before August since the cruise is in March.

 

I think you've got this exactly right.

[dostl]

We travel at the end of January and my sons passport expires in August....just 3 weeks shy of the recommendation of 6 months. We went two days ago to renew his passport and paid $10 to pick up the passport in two weeks vs delivery (we are in Canada). Although it may not be necessary I was not willing to take a chance of being denied or to have the stress or concern of getting hassled.

[thinfool]

If you do not sail until March 19 you still have 2 choices.

 

1. Let the kids use their birth certificates. (US citizens can do this)

 

2. There is plenty of time to renew their passports if you do it now...without expedited service. Renewals at this time of year will likely go thru in 2 weeks or less.

[LizzieTrowbridge]

Thanks for weighing in, everyone! I think I will renew the passports on Monday!

[nbsjcruiser]

Okay - here goes. If you are American and cruising on a closed loop you do not need a passport. If, like us, you are Canadian then you need a passport to travel anywhere outside Canada. If you travel to certain countries - THEY may require your passport to be valid beyond 6 months. If you are cruising the Mediteranian then you may have to have to a passport valid beyond the 6 months - if you are cruising the Caribbean then you don't need it. Just re-read your post, if using for ID only for Caribbean area you do not have to worry about it as long as it does not expire before the end of your cruise.

 

I wasn't aware that it had to be valid for 6 months when going to the Mediterranean. This issue came up for us a few years back so I decided to call the passport folks and I asked them that question. The reply I got was that they put expiry dates on there for a reason. It is valid as long as you travel before it expires. They said many people are confused about that. Is this 6 month thing a requirement of countries in the Mediterranean area because according to the passport folks this is an old wives tale.

[cdiver]

Renew the Passports, kids Passports are only good for 5 years. Carnival has it's policies, however check with:

 

http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html

[jellybeen8]

nbsjcruiser:My Understanding (and this is for canadian passports) is that they are still valid until the expiry date however, individual countries can require that your passport is valid an additional 6 months after you leave that country in case for whatever reason you get stuck there for so long. I know this is Definitely true for England. I had to get a passport renewed a few years ago as it expired 5 months after my return. After dealing with the immigration at heathrow that year I was glad I did - they are pretty strict. (also, hi from another sj-er)

[Joaljoe]

Wow! We never knew about this. Making us very nervous! We cruise next month and our passports expire in August. We will be 2 weeks shy of the 6 month mark. Guess we have some calling around to do.....

[Tbay-eh]

I wasn't aware that it had to be valid for 6 months when going to the Mediterranean. This issue came up for us a few years back so I decided to call the passport folks and I asked them that question. The reply I got was that they put expiry dates on there for a reason. It is valid as long as you travel before it expires. They said many people are confused about that. Is this 6 month thing a requirement of countries in the Mediterranean area because according to the passport folks this is an old wives tale.

 

I used the Mediterranean as an example because Carnival cruises there. And yes - there are countries there or close to that required passport to be valid 6 months after travel. It is not a Carnival, Canadian, US, etc requirement it is the individual country - they can and do demand whatever they want. Three friends just recently travelled through Europe - one of the group could not enter certain countries because of the requirements. As I said - I just threw the Mediterranean out there so if people do sail there it is up to them to find out what countries require this.

[njmomof2]

As far as timing is concerned, my mom sent in her renewal paperwork and had the renewed passport back in 1.5 weeks. So currently in the US, there are no delays.

 

ETA: And she sent it in during Christmas week.

[maplo]

I was so happy the op brought this topic up. I actually was coming on here to ask the same thing about a passport. Our trip is 14 day RT from LA to Hawaii. Our last stop before returning to LA is Ensenada Mexico. I had heard about this 6 month thing. My DH passport expires April 2012. We get back Nov 9 which is 5 months before his would expire. Once I heard about this 6 month rule, I figured he had to renew. How do I find out if Mexico requires passports to be valid for another 6 months after returning? After reading some of the posts so far on this topic, sounds like Mexico wouldn't require that?? This board is so helpful. Thanks.

[tiyana4]

It depends on the countries you are cruising to. Most countries require that visitors passports be valid for 6 months after the visit because if for some reason you are unable to leave that country when you are supposed to, you are at least covered for that amount of time and can contact the US embassy to renew your passport.

 

jandjfun - just because a country does not require a passport for cruise travel, does not mean they do not require one for a land trip there. And if, for some reason, you cannot get back on your ship after the port call (think medical evacuation or emergency, missing the ship, etc.), your cruise has turned into a land trip and you will definitely need to get a passport from the US Embassy in that country to be able to leave.

 

You are exactly right. It depends entirely on the country and the method of travel. It is up to individual travelers to determine if the itinerary they choose, the airline, or departure port has this requirement.

 

I wasn't aware that it had to be valid for 6 months when going to the Mediterranean. This issue came up for us a few years back so I decided to call the passport folks and I asked them that question. The reply I got was that they put expiry dates on there for a reason. It is valid as long as you travel before it expires. They said many people are confused about that. Is this 6 month thing a requirement of countries in the Mediterranean area because according to the passport folks this is an old wives tale.

 

It is NOT just an old wives tale. We just returned from a Med cruise and land vacation in Paris and this is definitely true. London, Barcelona, and Paris all had this requirement. How do I know, I asked beforehand. My DD's passport did not expire until March 2011. My plan was to wait until she turned 16 so her passport would have been good for 10 years. However, our cruise ended in December so we had to renew early. Her passport is only good for 5 years, but the peace of mind of knowing our documentation was in order was priceless!

 

I would not want to be the family member/friend denied boarding at the airport or be stuck trying to update my passport while the ship is sailing away. Denied boarding happens more often than people think.

[nrdsb4]

A school group was going out of the country and they were told that all passports had to be valid for six months after their re-entry into the U.S. I would not take a chance on something you can correct prior to cruising.

 

They were given incorrect information if they were told this is a US requirement for re-entry. The US does not insist that its own citizens' passports must be valid for 6 months after re-entry. If you think about the reason for those kinds of requirements, that wouldn't make any sense. A US citizen does not need a valid passport to reside in the United States for as long as they desire. So even if your passport expired the day after you got home, it's irrelevant-you have a right to remain here indefinitely. However, the US has certain requirements for foreigners entering the US as it relates to passports and their expiration date. They don't want people coming here without proper documentation to get back to their homes in the time they are allowed to remain here without a visa.

 

What they may have been told is that the countries to which they traveled insisted that their passports be valid for six months past the date of their planned departure. It is not an old wives tale that certain countries have requirements about the length of time left on a valid passport. You have to check each country's requirements about this before attempting to fly there. Some countries waive these requirements for cruises as it's assumed you are only there a day or so.

[blindrid]

We are cruising to Belize, Mexico, and Honduras. I hate to spend the expedite fee ($60 each in addition to regular passport processing) if I don't need to, but now I'm getting nervous. I suppose if the passports expire in August, they still need to let us on the ship because I can also bring the children's birth certificates, and if for some reason we need to fly home from any of these countries, it would be well before August since the cruise is in March.

 

You are taking this way to seriously, casusing undue brain damage. Do not travel scared and you'll be fine.

 

For those places listed, the PP does not need to be in place for 6 months after. The chances of you flying home is remote (other people in here will disagree with "what happens if your house floods while you are gone" people).

 

Don't worry, you're fine - if you want to verify everything, go to the Department of State's website.

[salty dingo]

Some countries require a passport good for 6 months, but Carnival does not. They just require it to be goods through the end of the cruise.

[viaggi_per_mare]

We travel a lot and go under the premise that our passport is good for 9 years. As soon as we pass 9 years, we renew. It used to be 90 days for Italy and it recently changed to 6 months. ANY country can make their own entry rules WHENEVER they want, which is sometimes a hard concept for Americans. We are used to much more safeguards than exist in other countries. By renewing right after year 9, we avoid the possibility that they suddenly change it to a year requirement - this is highly unlikely but, it is a small price to pay for trouble free travel at borders. We have been on planes where people have been denied entry and end up flying back. You only have to see that once to know you don't want that to happen to you.

 

....I know people will flame me for this "plan ahead" strategy, but what works in America (I have one more day left, you can't stop me") does not work in other countries. Going from hospital to hospital with a badly cut hand and being told "no foreigners, sorry" - is a lesson in reality out of the US - Plan accordingly.