The TA is correct - even though the passport is valid up to the exp date, a lot of foreign countries require that the passport exp date be more than 6 months away so a lot of cruise lines have had to adopt this policy as well.
We were on a Princess cruise last August and my passport expired in November. I had to get a new one that would be good for at least 6 months from when I was sailing.
I paid the extra $40.00 to put a rush on it and got the new one back in 6 working days.
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