Pay Posted August 3, 2022 Report Share Posted August 3, 2022 Hi everyone! I have a cruise booked early September of this year and I’m still waiting on my passport. It got delayed because they said that my original copy of my birth certificate wouldn’t work because it doesn’t have the institution where I was born on it nor the person who registered my birth, so I submitted them a short form birth abstract that they said would suffice as long as it had the “I” indicator on it (which mine did). I’m worried that my passport won’t come in time since I had to make corrections, so if it doesn’t I want to have a back-up plan for documentation boarding the ship. What should I use for back-up? Will my short form birth abstract suffice to board as shown in the example picture attached? Apparently, my original birth certificate doesn’t have some info that’s needed for a passport, so does that mean that it won’t work to board the ship as well?? Please help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrznTxn Posted August 3, 2022 Report Share Posted August 3, 2022 If you embark and disembark within the US you do not need a passport, only your birth certificate and a photo ID (drivers license). The passport is nice if for some reason you have to return to the US from one of the foreign ports and you need it to fly but is not required at port stops. We have folks on each of our cruises who do not have passports and it is not a problem. If you are going out of Galveston we saw this on our last cruise that ended this past Monday. They just put you in a different disembarkation line for customs but is not an issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pay Posted August 3, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2022 52 minutes ago, CrznTxn said: If you embark and disembark within the US you do not need a passport, only your birth certificate and a photo ID (drivers license). The passport is nice if for some reason you have to return to the US from one of the foreign ports and you need it to fly but is not required at port stops. We have folks on each of our cruises who do not have passports and it is not a problem. If you are going out of Galveston we saw this on our last cruise that ended this past Monday. They just put you in a different disembarkation line for customs but is not an issue. Thank you! I know the passport is not necessary. What I’m trying to figure out is if the ship will let me board with a ‘short form birth abstract’ like in the example photo I attached. Would you happen to know? Thanks so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokeybandit Posted August 3, 2022 Report Share Posted August 3, 2022 Does the birth certificate have a raised seal? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pay Posted August 3, 2022 Author Report Share Posted August 3, 2022 1 hour ago, smokeybandit said: Does the birth certificate have a raised seal? 1 hour ago, smokeybandit said: Does the birth certificate have a raised seal? Hey there! Yes I believe so it does! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sonia2 Posted March 6, 2023 Report Share Posted March 6, 2023 Hello, was following up on this question… did the abstract birth certificate work for you to board your cruise? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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