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I saw a few people asking and replying on this topic and on the new travel initiative that is making passports mandatory. Also received some questions via email. (Even if you think you know this already I suggest you read it anyway.)
Right Now:
AMERICAN citizens are not required to have passports or proof of citizenship when ENTERING the U.S. Virgin Islands from a UNITED STATES AIRPORT.
ALL ARRIVALS to the U.S. Virgin Islands from FOREIGN airports are required to show proof of citizenship and pass through customs.
ALL PERSONS LEAVING the U.S. Virgin Islands, whether American citizens or not, MUST BE prepared to SHOW PROOF of CITIZENSHIP upon leaving the islands to return to the mainland.
Accepted documents for Proof of Citizenship for Americans:
1. A passport issued under competent authority,
2. An Alien Registration Card (this applies to United States of America permanent residents only)
3. A certified copy of a birth certificate AND government issued photo identification like a driver's license
4. A Certificate of Naturalization, issued by the United States Immigration and Naturalization Service.
The above is as per the Office of Customs & Border Protection at the airport on St. Thomas.
(For small children that do not have any form of photo identification a birth certificate is sufficient or one of the other three options listed above.)
(Citizens of any country other than the United States should follow U.S. travel regulations and requirements for entry into the United States. If you have any questions call 340-774-4279.)
Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative: (this is the initiative that is requiring passports)
Visit: http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2225.html
In addition to other information it includes that the compliance date has been moved back from Dec. 31, 2005 to 2006 to allow a longer lead time for travelers to come into compliance with the requirements.
And 2nd it states that it will NOT affect travel between the United States and its territories. U.S. citizens traveling between the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa will continue to be able to use established forms of identification to board flights and for entry.
If traveling outside the United States or a U.S. territory, a passport or other secure document will be required. For example, a person may travel to and from the United States to the U.S. Virgin islands without a passport or other secure document, but under proposed regulations, a passport or other secure document would be required to re-enter the U.S. Virgin Islands from the British Virgin Islands or another country as of December 31, 2006.
I would recommend noting that FAQ page and perhaps visiting at a later time to review whether any additional changes have been made.
Hope this clears things up.
--Islander
Thanks Islander! That clears it all up for me. I've appreciated all your insight over the last year or so, and am looking forward to our trip in 2 weeks! Thanks again.
Sooo....that means to get to St. Thomas from the U.S. mainland, you only need one form of i.d. such as a drivers license, but to leave St. Thomas and return home to the mainland, you would have to have at least two forms of i.d., i.e., drivers license and birth certificate? I have only read that the driver's license was necessary when traveling to and from a U.S. territory, including the USVI.
Nobody cares who leaves the mainland -- EVERYBODY cares who comes in. That's the difference.
You need to be able to prove you are eligible to be in the country. For citizens, that means proving you are a citizen. And for most people without a passport, that means proving who you are and where you were born. The drivers license proves who you are and the birth certificate proves where you were born. People whose names have changed also have to bridge that gap.
I use my maiden name as a middle name and have never had trouble traveling with drivers license and birth certificate.
But a passport is easier and what I use today.
In the past, people were allowed to slide by sometimes, but it's getting tighter and tighter. Better safe than sorry.
Well, I have to thank-you for this timely information because I'm sure it saved us some trouble. We are leaving in about two weeks for STJ and I had only planned on taking our driver's licenses. Now I know better! What's interesting is that I only recently found my birth certificate after years of not knowing where it was located.
