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Passport Heads Up - Don't Get Too Close To Expiration Date

Passport Heads Up - Don't Get Too Close To Expiration Date

Old Mar 15, 2008, 7:53 am
  #46  
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Originally Posted by HangingOver
You would have found that story funnier had you ever been to US Embassy in Cairo. Only Egyptians work up front and the entire place was looking at him like he was insane. The service may be "standard" but I doubt many people try to take advantage of it in person. Online is the way to go.
Online is indeed easier, but that is pretty new. A few years ago, though I didn't go in person, I had to fax a form to the consulate. Now, the online system is quite convenient, but it wasn't always there.

Originally Posted by HangingOver
The people I spoke to there didnt seem to care that I was an American citizen, and didnt seem to care I had to get back to the US. :
You probably had the privilege of dealing with a vice consul who resented being stuck on a consular tour who had been hired for the political or economic cone. You should have complained, because behavior like that is inexcusable.
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Old Dec 4, 2009, 9:25 am
  #47  
 
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Does anyone have any recent experience with this in China? I have a valid visa, but my passport expires in May.

Does China have the six-month passport validity requirement upon entry?
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Old Dec 4, 2009, 10:02 am
  #48  
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Arrow

Originally Posted by HedgeFundie
Does anyone have any recent experience with this in China? I have a valid visa, but my passport expires in May.

Does China have the six-month passport validity requirement upon entry?
No, they don't:

[KVS Availability Tool 5.1.7/Diamond - TIMATIC: Visa/Entry Requirements]
Code:
04DEC09 / 1659 UTC
National U.S.A. (US)            /Embarkation U.S.A. (US)
Destination China (People's Rep.) (CN)

[Visa Information - Destination] China (People's Rep.) (CN)

[Information For Normal Passports]
Passport required.
- Passport and/or passport replacing documents must be valid
  on arrival.

Visa required.

Additional Information:
- Note: different passport validity may be required when
  applying for a visa. 
- Valid visa or resident permit in an expired passports are
  accepted, provided holding also valid passport of the same
  nationality.
- Travel on a one-way ticket is accepted. Visitors must hold
  sufficient funds to cover their stay and all documents
  required for their next destination. 
- In connection with the outbreak of influenza A(H1N1), all
  arriving passengers will be required to complete a Health
  Declaration Form and submit it to Quarantine Officers, prior
  to clearing immigration. Regulations and screening
  procedures are dependant on the airport of arrival and are
  subject to change at  very short notice. Flights arriving
  from countries which have reported confirmed human cases of
  influenza A(H1N1) infection will be subject to onboard
  temperature screening, prior to disembarkation.
  Health and Quarantine officers may pay particular attention
  to:
  - passengers arriving from (or having recently visited)
  countries which are reporting high numbers of human cases of
  influenza A(H1N1) infection; or
  - those suffering from flu-like symptoms or fever.
  Upon completion of individual assessments, passengers will
  be allowed to continue through immigration or may be placed
  in quarantine, should the quarantine officer consider it
  necessary. 
Warning:
- Passengers not complying with the entry or transit
  regulations will be deported by same or returning aircraft.
  [[TIDFT/CN/VI/WA/ID2516]] 



No vaccinations are required to enter China (People's Rep.)
from any country.

Recommended:
- Malaria prophylaxis. Malaria risk - including the malignant
  (P. Falciparum) form - occurs in Hainan and Yunnan.
  Chloroquine and sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine resistant P.
  falciparum reported. Risk of P. Vivax malaria exists in
  Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hainan, Sichuan, Xizang
  (only along the valley of the Zangbo river in the extreme
  south-east) and Yunnan. There is generally very low malaria
  risk (P. vivax only) in Anhui, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu,
  Jiangxi and Shandong, although within these provinces this
  risk may be higher in areas of local outbreak. Where
  transmission exists, it occurs below 1500 m: from July to
  November north of latitude 33 degrees north, from May
  through December between 33 and 25 degrees north, and
  throughout the year south of 25 degrees north. There is no
  malaria risk in the urban areas or densely populated plain
  areas. In general, tourists do not need to take malaria
  prophylaxis unless they plan to stay in remote rural areas
  in the provinces listed above. Recommended prevention in
  risk areas:II ; in Hainan and Yunnan: IV 

CHECK [[TINEWS/N1]] - SCHENGEN ANNOUNCES NEW VISA EXEMPTIONS,
EFFECTIVE 19 DECEMBER 2009
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Old Dec 4, 2009, 10:17 am
  #49  
 
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Thank you KVS!
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Old Dec 4, 2009, 10:36 am
  #50  
 
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Originally Posted by soitgoes
Yes, looking out for American interests is the goal of the State department.
Yes, some foreign service officers have no interest in consular services, though almost all are forced to spend time doing so at the beginning of their career.
However, services for US citizens are absolutely a part of the mission of the State department.

I certainly found this to be the case in the several years I lived abroad as an expatriate. During those years I made regular trips to the embassy for various consular services and always received them with good grace and expediency - whether it was getting documents notarized, registering my child's birth and obtaining a US passport for her, or getting tax advice from the itinerant IRS agent who came through once a year. I always thought that was what the consul's office was there for - to assist US citizens. They always assisted me when I asked.
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Old Jul 6, 2014, 5:52 pm
  #51  
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My passport will be 5 months and 29 days from expiration when I enter Costa Rica for three days. I have proof of onward travel and am expecting my new passport back in the mail while I am away. Any idea how this may play out? I would hope the agents would see this for what it is...constant travel makes applying for a new passport difficult, and this is as close as I have ever come to not having one. Fingers crossed they will just point it out and not ban me from entering!
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Old Jul 6, 2014, 9:10 pm
  #52  
 
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Originally Posted by SkyTeam777
My passport will be 5 months and 29 days from expiration when I enter Costa Rica for three days. I have proof of onward travel and am expecting my new passport back in the mail while I am away. Any idea how this may play out? I would hope the agents would see this for what it is...constant travel makes applying for a new passport difficult, and this is as close as I have ever come to not having one. Fingers crossed they will just point it out and not ban me from entering!
You don't say what your nationality is. I'll assume US since you appear to have a US location in your profile. According to Timatic, Costa Rica only requires that US citizens have a passport that's "valid upon arrival." That is, you could arrive on the final day of validity and be admitted (although you'd have to renew your passport while in Costa Rica before leaving in order to have a valid travel document).

But there's a curious thing in your question. You say "I ... am expecting my new passport back in the mail while I am away." Passport renewals require that you return your old passport with the renewal application. So, how are you going to travel on your existing passport if you're expecting the renewal in the mail while you're gone? If you decided to keep your existing passport during the "renewal" by reporting your existing one lost or stolen, then it's no longer a valid passport. Costa Rican authorities may automatically check the Interpol database of cancelled passport numbers so they might detect that it's invalid, and the CBP computers when you return to the US will certainly know that you reported the passport as lost or stolen.

Last edited by Steve M; Jul 6, 2014 at 10:43 pm
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Old Jul 7, 2014, 1:20 am
  #53  
 
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Originally Posted by Steve M
But there's a curious thing in your question.
You took the words right out of my mouth!
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Old Jul 7, 2014, 2:57 am
  #54  
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Originally Posted by Norri
You took the words right out of my mouth!
Thanks! I have two passports, and interesting they only require valid on arrival. I was reading elsewhere they require six months.
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