So my mother and I decided to get passports for the first time as we’re planning on taking a good vacation here in the next couple years. So we apply today and they take our picture, birth certificates, and application.
Then we remember we leave on TUESDAY for Victoria. We knew we didn’t have time to get passports in time for this trip but it wasn’t until tonight we realized they took our birth certificates. :eek: This is the only other way we know of to get across the border.
I can easily get a new one as I live about 3 miles from where I was born but my mother was born in Salt Lake City.
There are a few companies that can retrieve vital records for you; one popular one is Vitalcheck; poking around on their website, it looks like they offer 1-2 day shipping from Utah, so hopefully that’ll help you.
After thrashing around on CBSA’s and CIC’s websites for way too long, I found the site of the Canadian consulate-general in Seattle. More thrashing around led me to this travel site, which says:
So it looks like you need your birth certificate and photo driver’s license or equivalent. It’s maddeningly-imprecise though, and it took me WAY too long to find this.
Well at this point we think we’re going to roll the dice with Lexan’s link and hope to hell it’s closer to the 1 business day than 4 to be processed and shipped. I don’t really see what other options we have, we need it by Tuesday.
To add to Tapioca Dextrin’s links: Since you’ve applied for your passport, you must have gotten a form letter back from the passport agency, stating that your application is being processed.
This letter is the ‘Department of State official proof of application’ mentioned in one of the quotes; it and a photo ID should get you into and and of Canada via land or air.
At least I hope so, since that’s what I’m using tomorrow! (But I’m bringing my birth certificate anyway.)
We just crossed in Vermont this past weekend and only needed driver’s licenses. My friend who lives in Montreal says
As far as the passport, it is not absolutely required
yet…they do recommend bringing a photo license ID and a
birth certificate instead to prove residence. I bet they
won’t even ask for that though, but just to be safe if [our other friend]
has her original, then she won’t have any issues crossing
over.
I guess we were lucky they didn’t ask for more than the license.
It’s too bad you didn’t think to take a copy of your BC before sending it off. I’m in the process of getting my new Canadian passport, and have to send my original away; I have copies of everything.
But then, I went through the immigration process moving to the US, and I know just how long everything can take. Better safe than sorry.
Why don’t you drive into Canada (just need a driver’s license) and take the ferry from Tsawassen instead of taking the ferry from Port Angeles or whatever?
I have not ever needed anything other than my driver’s license when crossing into Canada. As it stands, returning from Canada by land requires nothing more than it always has, namely, the same thing that got you into Canada (government issued photo ID).
I didn’t get one of those. The post office gave the the travel.state.gov link and told me to look there in a week.
But I’m going to be flying, so I DO need it.
It’ll take about a week from the day you submit your stuff.
If you’re really concerned, I would call the people in Utah and FAX over a birth certificate request form. They might be sympathetic and print up a certified copy and overnight it to you. I know I got my expedited birth certificate from <coughWisconsincough> on Friday when I ordered it Tuesday. You might be able to improve on that.
If all else fails you may be able to talk your way through it with customs. Unless your suitcase is ticking, I doubt they’ll give you a great deal of hassle.
