Passport Panic!

[Jade13]

Passport validity six months of departure is a common requirement for visa free entry into a nation by an alien. You might want to look to see if any of the places you are cruising actually requires a passport of US citizens. If the foreign country does not require a passport, then I think you might be fine.

 

Even if a passport is not required to the ports you are calling in, you might run into a blanket HAL rule that passports must be valid for six months. HAL and other transportation lines implement these rules and enforce the immigration laws of the nations that they sail to because if they transport a disqualified passenger to a port and get caught doing it, HAL gets fined/punished.

 

Finally, on the time it takes to get a passport, the State Department has 13 passport offices where, for loads of additional fees, they will make a passport for you either same day/while you wait or overnight. In order to use this service, you must have an appointment and an 'emergency', but I'd be willing to be that if you went in and said that you are going on a curise next week and the cruise line is requiring a passport valid for six months beyond disembarkation, I'd bet you a donut that they would accept your applicaiton. You may find a list of the passport offices here.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Rick

 

 

I have done walk-in without an appointment (needed to show my airline ticket) and had a passport in a couple of hours. It depends on where you are going. Costa Rica and other countries require 6 months. I agree this may be a blanket HAL rule.

[davispigeon]

HAL says I definitely need a new passport since I'm a UK citizen.

So, I threw together the renewal packet and got it to FedEx for overnight delivery. There's only one place in the US to get UK passports: Washington, D.C.

I spoke to the UK passport agent and she said it takes 10 working days. I've only got 9 working days once they get it. I'm hoping the passport people take pity on me and process it in time, otherwise...:eek:

[ron46936]

Passport processing times for renewals improved a lot late last summer. We sent ours in in May and it took almost 13 weeks. Our friends sent theirs in in Sept and they got it back in a couple of weeks.

[sail7seas]

ron,

 

 

davidpigeon is not seeking renewal of a U.S. Passport. He needs renewal of his U.K. passport.