us travel requirements ?

netwhizkid

Hi i'm going to New York on Aug 5th for 10 days coming back the 15th arriving the 16th. I have done this before and everything worked okay. I know i will be fingerprinted etc. BUT My passport is due to expire within 6 months 31st/January/06 i wonder will this make any difference as i read an article one time that said they don't have to admit anyone on a passport that will expire within 6 months. Is this true ? I hope not because if it is i shall have to rush and get a new passport within the next two weeks.

Any help i'd appreciate very much. Btw as for my thread on Ryanair to New york, i don't care now as i got my flights for €595 ex shannon return to JFK with aer lingus, thats luck eh !

i71jskz5xu42pb

http://dublin.usembassy.gov/ireland/passport_validity.html

Firewalkwithme

Finger prints
Urine sample
Blood sample
Sperm count (if applicable)
Retinal scan
Copies of all medical records
Copies of all school / college records
A family tree extending back to the time of the Crusades (just so they know who's side you were on)

and bright orange overalls incase you visit Guantanamo Bay.

netwhizkid

Originally Posted by The US Embassy, Dublin
Validity of my Irish/EU Passport for Travel to the United States
In most cases, to enter the United States, you must have a passport that is valid for at least six months after the date you enter. However, the United States has an agreement with some countries (including Ireland) that allows you to enter on a current passport up to the actual date of expiration. An Irish/EU passport need remain valid only for the duration of the holder's stay in the United States. However, if you are traveling visa-free on the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) and your passport is valid for less than 90 days, you will generally be admitted only until the date the passport expires.

Thanks a million, PaschalNee

So basically my Interpretation of this is that i can travel because of whatever agreement they have with the USA, would this be right or wrong or have i mistaken something.

tabatha

they wont except u if your passport expires within six months. i called the embassey about this in may as i am also going in august. better get a new passport asap!

netwhizkid

I was just speaking to Aer Lingus and they said it was okay, and that link PaschalNee gave also seems to suggest i'm okay. Has anyone else here ever been in this situation ? The Aer Lingus person said as long as passport is expiring after the date of my return that it'd be fine. Still i'd like to know as if i had to get a new passport it'd give me 2 weeks tommorow to get it.

i71jskz5xu42pb

netwhizkid wrote:

I was just speaking to Aer Lingus and they said it was okay, and that link PaschalNee gave also seems to suggest i'm okay. Has anyone else here ever been in this situation ? The Aer Lingus person said as long as passport is expiring after the date of my return that it'd be fine. Still i'd like to know as if i had to get a new passport it'd give me 2 weeks tommorow to get it.

Your interpretation of the link is correct - you're OK to travel. Why not print out the page to bring with you if you're still feeling unsure.

In addition Aer Lingus have a strong incentive to get it right - if you get sent back they foot the bill. So if they say it's OK there's a pretty strong chance it's OK.

As long as you were not associated with the Nazi party between 1933 and 1945 I'd say you're fine.

John R

You really expect somone on boards to be able to give you a 100% up to date reliable answer? Ring the embassy FFS.

netwhizkid

Originally Posted by John R
You really expect somone on boards to be able to give you a 100% up to date reliable answer? Ring the embassy FFS.

Boards has given me reliable info in the past, what good would it do for someone to lie.
well i am accepting this info to be right, i have since rang continental and bluffed them saying i wanted flights the quoted me €750 and they also said i will be okay to travel as aer lingus did, i rang the US embassy and they said call 1580 whatever, €2.40 a min to listen to music, i think i'm okay to travel although i shall bluff American Aerlines "looking for flights" and see what they say too, three airlines then can't be wrong !

BuffyBot

netwhizkid wrote:

Boards has given me reliable info in the past, what good would it do for someone to lie.
well i am accepting this info to be right, i have since rang continental and bluffed them saying i wanted flights the quoted me €750 and they also said i will be okay to travel as aer lingus did, i rang the US embassy and they said call 1580 whatever, €2.40 a min to listen to music, i think i'm okay to travel although i shall bluff American Aerlines "looking for flights" and see what they say too, three airlines then can't be wrong !

What a load of bull. The problem with boards.ie and the such sites is that they tend to make people incredibly lazy.

A 2 second google search turned up the following: http://dublin.usembassy.gov/ireland/passport_validity.html

Would that have been too much work for you...

Ruu_Old

id renew my passport to be on the safe side.

netwhizkid

I was at Shannon Airport this morning (collecting a relative) and the aer lingus people told me i'm good to travel. At least now i know and it was a relief actually to find it out. I was having visions of not being allowed to travel !

tabatha

i dont see what the problem is with renewing your passport. if you bring it into them you could have it in 10 days, plenty of time. call the department of forgien affairs, thats what i did as my passport was out 2 months after i returned and i was told to get a new one.

netwhizkid

I am not paying €75 plus €50 extra if you need one within 2 weeks (at short notice as it were) plus after this trip i won't be flying for a year proabably so why would i need to get a new one now when mine is good until 31st Jan 06, Aer lingus phone service told me i'm ok, Continental told me i'm okay, American Airlines told me i'm ok, and another Air Lingus man at Shannon airport told me i am ok, plus this link to the US embassy also told me i'm okay, so if there is any problems and i'm not left go, you be reading about it in the tabloids I reckon that this is some sort of urban myth spread by the govenment/passport people to sell expensive passports and some people would renew for fear of not being admitted. The last time i was there i behaved/ and came home on my return flight as i had stated entering the country. I don't think i need worry as i am obeying the rules. Going to the USA is fine only obey their rules and like they say when in rome.... its no wonder we hear all these horror stories, its because so many irish people get drunk and arrested, overstay their visas or whatever conditions they had imposed on them when entering the country. If you do what they say they will have no bother. After all Irish people are liked in America, we have a likeability about us that many countries envy.

tabatha

pass me the puck bucket!

Lex Luthor

Ruu wrote:

id renew my passport to be on the safe side.

Just out of curiosity....is your passport one of the new style ones?

I was told by my company that everybody who travels to the US needs to make sure that their passport is the new style...not exactly sure what they meant but something to do with them being able to be scanned in.
If your passport is about to expire and you've had it for 10yrs, chances are it's not a new style one. I think 9/11 prompted this. Ask more questions.

penexpers

The "new style" is the machine readable passport. They started issuing them around about 1990, IIRC.

Ruu_Old

not all Irish people are liked in America, get that illusion out of your head.
Yes the "new" passports just have a little code on the bottom of the picture page that allows the INS or "Border Protection" to scan it and read information on you, make sure you havent over-stayed. They have been out for a while.
I dont have any sympathy for people who overstay unless it was a mistake, simple as that.