Are passports required?

[Joann]

My son will be deployed shortly since he finally graduated from C school. I asked him if he would need a passport and he said he will just need 2 ids and his military orders.  I hate to question him, but  I know I would get the right answer here.  Are passports required for deployment?

[Anti M]

No, they are not required. But from experience, and reading the experiences of others here, they are a REALLY GOOD IDEA. What if there is an emergency and he needed to return from overseas? The military transport is not always immediately available nor convenient. Also, he may have the opportunity to travel places where a passport might be required. They're not all that expensive given they're good for ten years, and they open a world of exploration.

My nephew was not delayed getting to his deployed boat via civilian transport because he had a passport before he joined the Navy. The other guys waited another month to get to the same boat.

I have heard of a sailor who was ready to transfer back to the states, and had put in for leave to get married. His ship was deployed and was in a foreign port. He could not just fly home because he had to wait for military transport, because he had no passport. Nearly missed his own wedding. A passport would have meant he could travel via civilian air lines at the Navy's expense.

Just get one, they are not required, but essential if the need arises.

[Fur&FeathersDVM]

They are DEFINITELY a good idea. I don't know if your son is going and meeting a command on deployment, or leaving with them, but in either scenario, he should have one. My husband had to meet his ship on deployment right after graduating officer candidate school with another officer who had just received orders to the ship, and they were never even offered military transport- they just bought civilian plane tickets for them in order to better meet the ship's schedule. Sometimes there's just not military transport available for the location/time that they need them out there. A lot of the guys in my husband's officer candidate school class got deployed upon graduation, and of those, well over 3/4ths took civilian transportation. Needless to say, they were all very grateful for their passports- their commands probably would have been less than pleased if they were delayed (I know my husband's command expected him to have one)! And it's always a good idea when you're going to be overseas to have a passport with you to prove you're an American citizen- just in case. And the way things are these days, it can sometimes be to your advantage to not have to identify yourself as a member of the American military overseas- a passport allows you to just be another citizen. And as was already mentioned, if something happens and he needs to get home in a hurry, you'd rather he not risk having to wait for military transport and hope that it just happens to be available the location he's in at the time he needs- better to be able to just hop on a plane and come home.

 

[J/J Mom]

Just another one in support of -- have him get one, he may need it.

[Beth]

No passports are not required for any deployments.  My BIL got off his ship and only did a partial tour it only took him 4 days to get home after getting off the ship in Bahrain, which is typical of the amount of time.  If he's stationed in another country then i think it's probably a good idea to have one.  I don't think they can go into another country though with out the permission of there command.  There are a few extreme situation that you might need one but, for the most part he's good without one.

[Fur&FeathersDVM]

Even if you're just on deployment in another country and not stationed there, it's a *really* good idea to have one. When my husband went to meet his ship, even though he was on orders he was specifically asked for it. Additionally, what if you're in a situation where you need emergency leave? You definitely don't want to have to wait a few days or weeks to be able to catch a military transport if one isn't readily available. The reality is bad things can happen back home when our sailors are gone and considering that a passport is less than $100 and is good for ten years, I think it's worth the peace of mind to have one. How would your sailor feel if an immediate family member back home was severely ill and he or she didn't have a passport so they couldn't get home quickly even if the command approved emergency leave because they didn't have a passport? Emergency leave comes up every deployment for at least one sailor in the command and having a passport is going to make it a lot easier to get home. Bahrain is not a typical case because we have a base there- there's going to be a lot of military transport available there. What happens if you're in the Seychelles (plenty of ships port there) and need to go home on military leave- you're not going to be able to get a military flight there.

[Anti M]

Yes, but "extreme situation" is usually a family emergency and time will be a huge factor.

I have yet to figure out why Americans are so opposed to holding a passport. They're such handy things for expanding your horizons.

[Craig]

I'd make dang sure he gets a passport, here's why...

 

When a sailor pulls into a foreign port, the Status Of Forces Agreement (SOFA) and other local agreements take effect.  So you truly don't need a passport for that host country.  However, we sailors love our liberty.  When we pulled into Hong Kong, our Morale and Welfare office set up a tour to Macau and to China.  Those of us that had passports, we were allowed the time off (liberty) and while we are drinking beer and touring, all the others that failed to have a passport had to pull up the slack for us.   But heck, if the Navy sponsored it, then the Navy wanted us to vent and to recharge ourselves.  That's what liberty is all about... 

 

This happened while I was stationed in Italy too.  We had another MWR trip to Austria and Germany.  The trip was for 1 week.  We put in leave papers with the understanding that if no one got hurt, then leave paper just got torn up and thrown away.  So basically 7 days of liberty (which probably wouldn't happen in todays Navy), and all the others that didn't have passport ended up working the butts off. 

 

When our ship pull into Palma Spain I decided to take 3 weeks vacation to spent the entire time on the beach.  The fact that the beaches in Palma being totally topless didn't play any part in the equation of taking leave there.   I took a plane to Barcelona Spain, and then took the train to Italy to meet back up with the ship.  Without a passport, I wouldn't have been able to do that. 

 

If the passport is good for 10 years, why not get one?  It's a much needed item...

 

 

[Anti M]

I've been to Palma, although as a 14 year old girl.  Expanded horizons, indeed.

Dad had a passport in the mid-60s, mom met him at many of the ports and they were able to travel to Switzerland, Denmark, and through France.  I was 7 and stayed with family friends in VA.  The chief's wives club set up the whole "meet them in port" tour, mom and dad just added their own side trips.

[SonandSea]

I'm glad my son has a passport. He'll be in nuke school for a couple of years, but I'll be certain to get it to him before he enters the fleet. Thanks for this info.

[judy r]

Yes he needs a passport so go ahead and get it now and make sure he keeps it current..My son had to fly home for family emergency and had to travel on civilian aircraft and he also came home from afghan with his passport so very much a necessity now a days.

[swhis10]

Where do they go to get a passport, my son said the post office on base does not do them

 

[judy r]

Have himcheck with personnel if they dont issue him one should be able to tell him where to get it.  Usually at the main post office.