Can I come to the DR with a passport that expires in like 4 or 5 months?

joof

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Jul 10, 2012
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I have a ticket to come for a week this Xmas

My passport expires around April of 2019

I'm going to get the renewal expedited if I need a new one now since I waited too long to do a regular renewal
 

Mauricio

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Nov 18, 2002
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I’m coming to Dr with my family this December and decided to not take the risk and renew the passport of my daughter that expires in March. 6 months is stated to be the minimum.
 

RV429

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Apr 3, 2011
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It's not 6 months, it's the length of your stay. That's the DR requirement. However, some airlines (Jey Boo) try to impose a 6 month thing. So if you are concerned then just renew as Mauricio did.
 

Riva_31

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Apr 1, 2013
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San Pedro de Macoris
by the moment you arrive to the Dominican Republic your passport must have at least 3 month of validation, most of the countries acept with 6 months. But I wont take the risk and better renew, mine will expire in april 9th and I just renew before 5 months. Now Im ready to travel.
 

Bred

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Aug 13, 2006
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by the moment you arrive to the Dominican Republic your passport must have at least 3 month of validation, most of the countries acept with 6 months.

Not true.

It's not 6 months, it's the length of your stay. That's the DR requirement.

Exactly.

Though for USA citizens US Department of State web site says - "PASSPORT VALIDITY: Must be valid at time of entry"

For British citizens gov. uk web site states -

"Passport validity :

If you’re entering as a tourist your passport must be valid up to at least the date of your proposed departure from the Dominican Republic. If you’re entering the Dominican Republic for any other purpose your passport should have at least six months’ validity."

Never guess. Look at the documents.
 

DRob

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Aug 15, 2007
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Much of what was written above is true, but as a practical matter things can vary from immigration officer to immigration officer. You have more than a month before your trip, I would strongly encourage you to put in for a passport renewal. That way, you can avoid any issues.

Enjoy your trip!
 

ctrob

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Nov 9, 2006
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If they want to they can turn you around at the arrival gate and put you back on the plane, sending you back on the same plane.

It's not worth the risk, you should get it renewed.
 

keepcoming

Moderator - Living & General Stuff
May 25, 2011
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Agree get the renewal....I have always been told 6 months, but found that while one source says 6 months, another says the Caribbean does not enforce that rule. I decided to get the renewal just to be on the safe side. Who needs extra headaches/worries when traveling.
 

Cdn_Gringo

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Apr 29, 2014
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It's always better to be safe than sorry. Why risk the money purchasing a vacation only to be turned around upon arrival? Now that passports are swiped into a computer at all airports, if the system is set to flag soon to expire passports, the expiration date will appear in red on the screen.

If you encounter a delay in departure, say you get Dengue and have to spend time in hospital because you are too sick to be allowed on your return flight, you could end up stuck here until you renew.

Don't be lazy. A new passport is not hard to get and doing so avoids any of the potential problems that could otherwise arise.
 

Riva_31

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Apr 1, 2013
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San Pedro de Macoris
Not true.



Exactly.

Though for USA citizens US Department of State web site says - "PASSPORT VALIDITY: Must be valid at time of entry"

For British citizens gov. uk web site states -

"Passport validity :

If you’re entering as a tourist your passport must be valid up to at least the date of your proposed departure from the Dominican Republic. If you’re entering the Dominican Republic for any other purpose your passport should have at least six months’ validity."

Never guess. Look at the documents.

Was checking on Mirex webpage and says for Dominican Visas passaport validation minimun expiration date must be 6 months, I read before we acepted 3 months passport valid.
 
Jan 9, 2004
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I have a ticket to come for a week this Xmas

My passport expires around April of 2019

I'm going to get the renewal expedited if I need a new one now since I waited too long to do a regular renewal

As you have been advised already........get an expedited renewal.

Passport requirements vary from country to country which is likely why there is conflicting information out there.

The DR requires your passport to be valid for a period of 6 months from your departure date. Some countries only require 3 months, and still others use your date of arrival to start the 3 or 6 month window.

Adding, the airlines have their own rules about who they will board. While those rules may not necessarily comport with the law of the country you are travelling to, they are meant to insure that the airline does not become the victim of a lawsuit by a passenger who claims he/she did not know the law and the airline should have warned them.

On the flip side, if you were traveling with tight timelines and got delayed returning home causing your passport to expire, you may have an eventful experience re-newing your passport outside your home country.

Bottom line, you still have time to do an expedited renewal now and then enjoy your time in the DR without concern over an expiring passport.


Respectfully,
Playacaribe2
 

ctrob

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Nov 9, 2006
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Adding, the airlines have their own rules about who they will board. While those rules may not necessarily comport with the law of the country you are travelling to, they are meant to insure that the airline does not become the victim of a lawsuit by a passenger who claims he/she did not know the law and the airline should have warned them.

I may have told this story once.....I was flying stand-by out of POP. I watched as a kid got off the incoming flight with his family. They let the family continue thru customs while delaying the 17 y.o. kid. His passport expired in a few days. His family continued thru customs so they couldn't get back to him and he couldn't get to them to discuss the problem. They put him back on the same plane and sent him home. He was practically in tears, no money, no cell phone, no keys to his house. I offered to loan him some money, but he didn't take it.

So you def can't rely on the airline that's bringing you in to catch any passport problems.

And the little jerk got my seat on the plane.
 

Timotero

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Feb 25, 2011
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I may have told this story once.....I was flying stand-by out of POP. I watched as a kid got off the incoming flight with his family. They let the family continue thru customs while delaying the 17 y.o. kid. His passport expired in a few days. His family continued thru customs so they couldn't get back to him and he couldn't get to them to discuss the problem. They put him back on the same plane and sent him home. He was practically in tears, no money, no cell phone, no keys to his house. I offered to loan him some money, but he didn't take it.

So you def can't rely on the airline that's bringing you in to catch any passport problems.

And the little jerk got my seat on the plane.

Good story, and it really drives home the point.

But I’m curious......if you were at the gate waiting for standby seat, how did you observe what was going on in immigration and customs? At the POP airport those activities are a floor below and far removed from the gate area.
 

ctrob

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Nov 9, 2006
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Good story, and it really drives home the point.

But I’m curious......if you were at the gate waiting for standby seat, how did you observe what was going on in immigration and customs? At the POP airport those activities are a floor below and far removed from the gate area.

Understood. I say "watched him get off with family" but just a figure of speach. At some point he got stopped, probably at customs I guess. And they brought him back to the gate where I was hoping to get on the same plane when it departed. All the drama took place right at the gate - the plane was delayed while 10 suits and a few others to decide what to do. And that's where I talked to the kid.
 

Timotero

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Feb 25, 2011
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Understood. I say "watched him get off with family" but just a figure of speach. At some point he got stopped, probably at customs I guess. And they brought him back to the gate where I was hoping to get on the same plane when it departed. All the drama took place right at the gate. And that's where I talked to the kid.

Ok, that makes sense. Again, it really drives home the point of validating passport requirements when you travel. But it did have a bit of an “urban myth” about it. :)-)

Hey, did I ever tell the story of how I fell down a manhole while walking in NYC? I stumbled around in the dark sewers for awhile. At one point I was threatened by a giant alligator!
But it all worked out ok, it seems the alligator recognized me. Turns out it was the same alligator I had personally flushed down the toilet a few months after my uncle brought it back as a gift from the Dominican Republic. :)-)
 

josh2203

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Dec 5, 2013
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It's always better to be safe than sorry. Why risk the money purchasing a vacation only to be turned around upon arrival? Now that passports are swiped into a computer at all airports, if the system is set to flag soon to expire passports, the expiration date will appear in red on the screen.

If you encounter a delay in departure, say you get Dengue and have to spend time in hospital because you are too sick to be allowed on your return flight, you could end up stuck here until you renew.

Don't be lazy. A new passport is not hard to get and doing so avoids any of the potential problems that could otherwise arise.

Exactly. My family is just visiting us, they renewed their passports just before departure, easy, cheap, and no need to think this and that, no need to worry about this and that. They renewed it with their home authorities, in their mother tongue, paying with EUR. They want to focus on other things here than worrying about their documents.

When we four travel, the same thing, I want to spend time, energy and money elsewhere than worrying about our documents abroad...
 

ctrob

Silver
Nov 9, 2006
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Ok, that makes sense. Again, it really drives home the point of validating passport requirements when you travel. But it did have a bit of an “urban myth” about it. :)-)

Hey, did I ever tell the story of how I fell down a manhole while walking in NYC? I stumbled around in the dark sewers for awhile. At one point I was threatened by a giant alligator!
But it all worked out ok, it seems the alligator recognized me. Turns out it was the same alligator I had personally flushed down the toilet a few months after my uncle brought it back as a gift from the Dominican Republic. :)-)

All my stories are absolutely true. And I have tons.

Did I ever tell you story of when I was in the Army and I ran over two Air Force guys with my Chevy pick up? Best told with a bottle of Brugal.
 

CristoRey

Welcome To Wonderland
Apr 1, 2014
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I may have told this story once.....I was flying stand-by out of POP. I watched as a kid got off the incoming flight with his family. They let the family continue thru customs while delaying the 17 y.o. kid. His passport expired in a few days. His family continued thru customs so they couldn't get back to him and he couldn't get to them to discuss the problem. They put him back on the same plane and sent him home. He was practically in tears, no money, no cell phone, no keys to his house. I offered to loan him some money, but he didn't take it.

So you def can't rely on the airline that's bringing you in to catch any passport problems.

And the little jerk got my seat on the plane.

Thats a great story.
 

USA DOC

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Feb 20, 2016
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...I called the USA embassy in SD just this summer to ask about how long I could use my passport on the airlines before it expires, I told them the airlines told me 6 months or less no travel...the embassy said they are wrong you can use until ex. date? dont listen to that embassy, always check, most if not all airlines want at least 6 months ....and I got the new passport From SD embassy in about 9 days..........Doc.............