Icon of the Seas Visa Requirements for Green Card Holder

[PN26646]

Hello,

 

My family is booked on the Icon of the Seas in March. My dad is a Vietnamese citizen with a US green card, so I've called the cruise line to ask for what documentation he will need for the cruise, or whether he needs visa for Mexico and Honduras. 2 agents told me that on their system it shows that he needs to have his green card and Vietnamese passport. But regarding visa requirements, he needs to contact Vietnamese embassy to verify as it is the responsibility of the passenger to make sure he has all the documents needed, "just as when you fly." 

I would like to ask you all if you have any experience with this situation, or recommendation on what I need to do.

 

Thank you!

[Biker19]

19 minutes ago, PN26646 said:

I would like to ask you all if you have any experience with this situation, or recommendation on what I need to do.

Welcome to CC.

As long as RCI will allow him to board with what they said he needs, there should be no need for any visas.

[Another_Critic]

@Ferry_Watcher to the courtesy phone.

 

Edited February 20 by Another_Critic

[TinkLoverSam]

why not simply call the embassy as instructed and ask them?

[Ferry_Watcher]

2 hours ago, Another_Critic said:

@Ferry_Watcher to the courtesy phone.

 

 

My wheelhouse is limited to Alaska bound cruises.  If this cruise was heading to Alaska, the US Permanent Resident card (Green Card), along with his Vietnamese passport  would be all that the gentleman would need.  There would be no need for a Canadian visa if a person is a US Permanent Resident.  Although, a Canadian visa would be needed if the gentleman was just traveling on only his passport from Vietnam).

 

OP, it's always best to do your own due diligence.

[FionaMG]

And just to stress that even if no visa is required, both the green card AND the passport are needed in order to board, as neither serves alone. Turning up at the port with only one or the other will result in being denied boarding.

[Pochi Hanaki]

I am surprised they said he needed a passport as that is only required for Barbados & Martinique. You can cruise with just the green card if on a closed loop.

[Pochi Hanaki]

22 hours ago, FionaMG said:

And just to stress that even if no visa is required, both the green card AND the passport are needed in order to board, as neither serves alone. Turning up at the port with only one or the other will result in being denied boarding.

That is not true. A US resident with a green card is treated the same as a US citizen with just a birth certificate. For the Caribbean the only country requiring a passport is  Barbados & Martinique. While it is not smart traveling without a passport they will not deny you boarding. When you check in online with a green card they don't even ask you about your passport. 

[mscinmia]

On 2/20/2024 at 2:52 PM, Ferry_Watcher said:

 

My wheelhouse is limited to Alaska bound cruises.  If this cruise was heading to Alaska, the US Permanent Resident card (Green Card), along with his Vietnamese passport  would be all that the gentleman would need.  There would be no need for a Canadian visa if a person is a US Permanent Resident.  Although, a Canadian visa would be needed if the gentleman was just traveling on only his passport from Vietnam).

 

OP, it's always best to do your own due diligence.

And my wheelhouse is sailings out of S. Florida ( sup at Port Everglades)....  ARC (green card) and valid home country passport is all that is needed.  You are considered apart of the US with the green card.  He would not be able to sail with the passport only as a US B1/B2 visa is needed to sail out of the US and once an ARC comes into play there is no way to get a US Visa.

[FionaMG]

32 minutes ago, Pochi Hanaki said:

That is not true. A US resident with a green card is treated the same as a US citizen with just a birth certificate. For the Caribbean the only country requiring a passport is  Barbados & Martinique. While it is not smart traveling without a passport they will not deny you boarding. When you check in online with a green card they don't even ask you about your passport. 

 

The problem is not getting into the other countries on the itinerary. It's getting back into the US. A green card proves residence; it doesn't prove citizenship. That's why the passport is needed as well as the GC. US citizens must provide both a government issued photo ID which proves who they are, while the birth certificate proves citizenship.

 

A green card holder must present their passport and their green card to cbp on arrival back in the country. A green card alone is not enough and Cbp officers have authority to deny entry. In fact, they have discretional authority to deny entry even if you have both.

 

Carriers are required to ensure that passengers have the necessary documentation to re-enter the US. Non-residents will be asked to show their ESTA or their visa before being allowed to board, for this very reason. Out of the proverbial "abundance of caution" (i.e. to cover themselves against potential penalties) any passenger who does not, in the carrier's opinion, meet the criteria will be denied boarding. Not to say that mistakes can't be made and someone incorrectly denied boarding but why would you take the risk?

 

See the replies by @Ferry_Watcher and @mscinmia, both of whom work at cruise ports and confirm both documents are required.

[hapster85]

 

On 2/20/2024 at 11:08 AM, PN26646 said:

Hello,

 

My family is booked on the Icon of the Seas in March. My dad is a Vietnamese citizen with a US green card, so I've called the cruise line to ask for what documentation he will need for the cruise, or whether he needs visa for Mexico and Honduras. 2 agents told me that on their system it shows that he needs to have his green card and Vietnamese passport. But regarding visa requirements, he needs to contact Vietnamese embassy to verify as it is the responsibility of the passenger to make sure he has all the documents needed, "just as when you fly." 

I would like to ask you all if you have any experience with this situation, or recommendation on what I need to do.

 

Thank you!

My less than 10 minutes of research suggest that he will not need a visa for either country, but may need to complete a pre-check for Honduras. Being as he is a permanent resident, perhaps reaching out to the US State Department would help answer your questions definitively. 🤞

[Pochi Hanaki]

30 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

 

The problem is not getting into the other countries on the itinerary. It's getting back into the US. A green card proves residence; it doesn't prove citizenship. That's why the passport is needed as well as the GC. US citizens must provide both a government issued photo ID which proves who they are, while the birth certificate proves citizenship.

 

A green card holder must present their passport and their green card to cbp on arrival back in the country. A green card alone is not enough and Cbp officers have authority to deny entry. In fact, they have discretional authority to deny entry even if you have both.

 

Carriers are required to ensure that passengers have the necessary documentation to re-enter the US. Non-residents will be asked to show their ESTA or their visa before being allowed to board, for this very reason. Out of the proverbial "abundance of caution" (i.e. to cover themselves against potential penalties) any passenger who does not, in the carrier's opinion, meet the criteria will be denied boarding. Not to say that mistakes can't be made and someone incorrectly denied boarding but why would you take the risk?

 

See the replies by @Ferry_Watcher and @mscinmia, both of whom work at cruise ports and confirm both documents are required.

I don't need to see any replies as you are wrong and you shouldn't give out wrong information and if they are giving the same information they should stop. My wife has a green card and I know the rules inside and out. This is directly from US Customs and Border Protection web site "Unexpired Valid Permanent Resident Card • Passengers with a valid, unexpired Permanent Resident Card (PRC or “Green Card”) may be boarded without any additional documentation."  Also - from same government site "If you are a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) of the United States the U.S. government does not require you to have a passport for any travel, including air, land, or sea travel"  In case you don't trust the agency who's job is to screen people coming into the US here is advice from an immigration attorney "For a closed-loop cruise, neither a U.S. citizen nor a lawful permanent resident (LPR) is required to have a passport to reenter the United States. A U.S. citizen can provide certain other proof of U.S. citizenship and an LPR can travel with only a green card."

 

 

Edited February 21 by Pochi Hanaki

[FionaMG]

24 minutes ago, Pochi Hanaki said:

I don't need to see any replies as you are wrong and you shouldn't give out wrong information and if they are giving the same information they should stop. My wife has a green card and I know the rules inside and out. This is directly from US Customs and Border Protection web site "Unexpired Valid Permanent Resident Card • Passengers with a valid, unexpired Permanent Resident Card (PRC or “Green Card”) may be boarded without any additional documentation."  Also - from same government site "If you are a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR) of the United States the U.S. government does not require you to have a passport for any travel, including air, land, or sea travel"  In case you don't trust the agency who's job is to screen people coming into the US here is advice from an immigration attorney "For a closed-loop cruise, neither a U.S. citizen nor a lawful permanent resident (LPR) is required to have a passport to reenter the United States. A U.S. citizen can provide certain other proof of U.S. citizenship and an LPR can travel with only a green card."

 

 

Not going to argue with you. My son was a GC holder prior to getting citizenship. The information I gave is the information his immigration attorney provided him with. So which attorney is right? Who knows. Everything about the law comes down to interpretation and if the cruise line's interpretation is that both passport and GC are required they can and will deny boarding. Their ship, their rules.

 

[Pochi Hanaki]

4 minutes ago, FionaMG said:

Not going to argue with you. My son was a GC holder prior to getting citizenship. The information I gave is the information his immigration attorney provided him with. So which attorney is right? Who knows. Everything about the law comes down to interpretation and if the cruise line's interpretation is that both passport and GC are required they can and will deny boarding. Their ship, their rules.

 

Well as I have posted you don't need to go by any attorney. I posted verbiage directly from the CBP web page concerning cruises. Royal Caribbean also doesn't require passports for green card holders except in specific countries as I have list plus I think Colombia and Panama. Multiple people including my wife have traveled on RCI with just a green card and no passport (her's was expired at the time). Yes I am not trying to be argumentative I am just putting out the truth in case someone happens to read your post and think it's fact.