Passport help please !!

[luvmyprincess]

Hey all !

Well I fianally located all of the copies of our birth certificates.They are all the size of an index card and all but mine has a raised seal. Mine is very old and did not have a raised seal,but a stamp seal. I brought them to the post office to see if these were ok ahead of time. At best I thought mine would be the only issue. Turns out I was told NONE of them were correct!! I wasn't even understanding what the guy was telling me about it being wrong?!?

Something about a new kind ... and a number .. or something????

They have : The town , date of copy issued, name,birthdate,birth city,mom/dads name and and town clerk signature...and raised seal (but mine! )

Can ANYONE please tell me what it is they are looking for? As it stands now I have to go to 3 different towns( not close ) to obtain another copy.

 

[gichicdoc]

I would suggest that you contact the Disney Cruiseline and explain to them what you have. I suspect that they will be satisfied with all of your BCs except for yours - that doesn't have a raised seal. If that is the case, then I would go online to the county or city's site and see if you can't order a newer copy of your BC by email or mail- almost all cities have this option now. If your cruise is just a few weeks away, then you may have to go to the Records Dept. but if you have time, I bet you can get what you need by mail.

 

[mickeyfan1]

My BC does not have a raised seal. It has a stamp from the Commonwealth of Mass. The stamp certifies it as an original copy. It worked for me getting my passport. I also have a town BC and that was rejected because is was not from the state in which I was born. You might want to contact your state department of vital records to see if they can issue you the correct documents.

If you are doing a Med or Baltic cruise on DCL, you MUST have a passport. You also need one for the Alaska cruises.

 

[lmhall2000]

Most counties (where you were born) have a website where you can order them for a small additional fee...check online in their county offices! Good luck!
Tara

 

[JanyJan]

I believe most (maybe all) states have central offices where you can just submit a form to get a copy of your birth certificates. In my state, I just fill out the form and mail it in with a copy of my driver's license (to prove who I am) and $15. I can get all my own and my childrens. It's easy, just google the state you were born in (not currently living in).

I know what you mean about those index card things. I remember seeing those for me and my siblings in my mother's memory box. I don't know if they were issued by the hospitals or what. All the current birth certificates I've seen are full pages of paper (8.5x11).

 

[adamsclan]

We had some trouble with one of ours. Apparently some states went back and assigned numbers to birth certificates, and if you were born in that state you must have that number on it to be recognized for the passport. (West Virginia was the state in question) You can order a lot of birth certificates online. Any new copies should have the number on them as well as a seal.

 

[pluto1979]

I think your best and safest bet would be to get a passport for everyone. It will cost more but it is much easier to carry and is accepted everywhere! Of course this means you will either have to go to a passport agency or have it expidited.

Again, though, you can check online as to what the municipality has to say as well as Disney. The will know that immigrations will need from you.

Have a wonderful cruise and dont let this bother you.!

 

[luvmyprincess]

Thanks for everyones replies !From what I'm being told the index card type I have,are abstracts. I guess I'm looking at going into Dorchester to get a full length copy,because I'm thinking this is what they are looking for . What a drag !!

Going into the office it is $18. If I order them via internet or phone it is $ 45 for the first then $37 additional. By mail is $28 and takes 20-30 days . I won't need them till Feb, but I'd like to get it done before the expected raise in the fee for a passport.

Thanks for the help !!

 

[tvguy]

Thanks for everyones replies !From what I'm being told the index card type I have,are abstracts. I guess I'm looking at going into Dorchester to get a full length copy,because I'm thinking this is what they are looking for . What a drag !!

There are a whole bunch of birth certificate type documents out there that are legally worthless.....not sure why they are ever issued. You can't use them for anything.
Some states will issue a copy of a birth certificate that isn't a CERTIFIED copy (in some states the certified copy has a stamp, or seal, now many states just print them on engraved paper like paper money), they also issue asbract copies. Hospitals issue ones that are also worthless.

The post office would be the experts on this since they are trained to determine what is legal for a passport.
I was involved in Little League baseball when they cracked down on birth certificates in 2002 (after the Danny Almonte 2001 LL World Series fisaco in which a 14 year old claiming to be 12 pitched....the athletic abilities of a 14 year old versus a 12 year old are enormous). Some parents have some pretty odd birth certificates, very hard to deterimine what is legit.

 

[luvmyprincess]

There are a whole bunch of birth certificate type documents out there that are legally worthless.....not sure why they are ever issued. You can't use them for anything.
.

Yes , I'm beginning to wonder about that myself now !!!

Just curious.... will I need to produce my marriage license as well? Obviously the name on the b.c. will be my maiden name ...hahaaa...

Anybody know if that is necessary too ???

 

[mickeyfan1]

For you yes, you will need both. They really really really want to know who you are.

 

[rovernole]

I have a full size page (8 1/2" x 11") with raised seal for my hubby (born in Puerto Rico), myself (Florida) and my son (Florida) but only a certified true abstract copy of the original record for my daughter (Florida) which is about half a page but with a raised seal. Is that sufficient or do I need to full page for her? My hubby and I used ours for our honeymoon in 1997 so I assume those will work fine but I have never had to use the kids' before. Thanks for any help!

Jenni

 

[Sparkie]

Just wanted to add one thing I learned when we applied for our passports last year.


Dont laminate your original birth certificate. It makes it invalid.


When my children were born I wanted to protect their birth record and thought laminating would be a good way to do that- I didnt know it made the document invalid.

We took a chance and sent our laminated birth certificates in with our passport applications - they had the raised seal - the were just laminated-
Anyway- we sent them in with our applications and our passports were processed. The person at the post office said we could send them in and see if the passport office would accept them and if not they would be returned and we would have to apply again.


So when you get your new copies- dont laminate.

 

[jilljill]

I have a full size page (8 1/2" x 11") with raised seal for my hubby (born in Puerto Rico), myself (Florida) and my son (Florida) but only a certified true abstract copy of the original record for my daughter (Florida) which is about half a page but with a raised seal. Is that sufficient or do I need to full page for her? My hubby and I used ours for our honeymoon in 1997 so I assume those will work fine but I have never had to use the kids' before. Thanks for any help!

Jenni

My DD's BC from MD is a certified copy of the handwritten document that I filled out while we were in the hospital. This is a perfectly legal certified BC and she has gotten 3 passports with that copy. Her BC is not a full sheet of paper either, so I don't think the size of the BC matters.

If in doubt take it to the local location that processes passports and ask their opinion if it's a true certified BC.

 

[Tarabra]

This is interesting to know. Neither my husband's or mine has a raised seal, but worked on the cruise. Didn't realize they might not work to get a passport.

 

[Disney Lover Linda]

Make sure you get the type of certificate that lists parents names also. About 18 yrs ago I ordered a replacement birth certificate for my son and got one with no parents names on it. It was accepted for most things but when my vision insurance (of all things!) changed at work they wanted copies of children's BC - they rejected my son's because it did not list me as the Mother! I guess they don't vision insurance to just anybody! This is especially silly since I work at the hospital my son was born at.

 

[luvmyprincess]

For you yes, you will need both. They really really really want to know who you are.

Yes .... I guess so .....

Thankful, I know right where that is . Watch .... they'll tell me that is wrong too !!!

Thanks for everyones help !

 

[mickeyfan1]

Yes .... I guess so .....

Thankful, I know right where that is . Watch .... they'll tell me that is wrong too !!!

Thanks for everyones help !

OMPug, my marriage license is a 3 x 7 piece of paper, really looks like a receipt, actually, it is! The 10 dollars we paid to get married receipt and proof of marriage all in one document. But it works, that is all that matters.

 

[JanyJan]

OMPug, my marriage license is a 3 x 7 piece of paper, really looks like a receipt, actually, it is! The 10 dollars we paid to get married receipt and proof of marriage all in one document. But it works, that is all that matters.

Is the return policy printed on the back?

 

[luvmyprincess]

Is the return policy printed on the back?

No refund or exchange !!