Before you get a job on a luxury yacht, you will need a passport for international travel. Here are some useful passport tips that you need to know when working on private luxury yachts ...
Before you get your first job, you will need to contact the passport office if:
1) You do not have a passport at all.
2) If you already have a passport, but it expires within the next year, you will receive a new one. (A foreign country cannot allow you to enter if you do not have enough time to leave your passport)
3) If you already have a passport, but you have less than 10 remaining pages, you should add pages.
o Passport requirements, places, documents and procedures can be found on the Internet on the relevant website of your government.
o Schedule an appointment online to save time, otherwise be prepared for a long wait. Put your documents in order, as you do not want to return the second time.
o Good advice: pay extra to get the maximum number of added pages. Reason: Depending on the yacht program, you can jump on islands in the Caribbean or in another area in the world where you cross borders almost on a weekly basis. Every time you enter a country, you get a stamp, and your pages fill up faster than you can imagine!
Here is the “unwritten rule” for the crew of the yacht:
If you only understood that:
a) Your passport is running out of pages OR
b) your passport should expire soon
Then you will probably be in a third country in the world and must go to a remote embassy to fill out documents and send your passport through Fed Ex, plus you will have to return to get it later.
This is a nightmare, especially for coordinating with the route of the yacht, but it can be easily avoided.
o If you need to increase the number of added pages, process them in advance in advance when you are sure that the yacht will not travel. Consult with your captain. The procedure is inconvenient and time consuming, plus you will not be able to cross the border while waiting. In addition, if you do not cope early enough, you will pay a premium for expedited processing.
o For the most part, your captain will keep your passport at work and use it with customs and immigration as needed. However, do not assume that the captain is going to keep track of the remaining blank pages and the expiration date. Technically, it is your responsibility. Captains are very annoyed when prevented passport problems affect the route of the yacht.
o Do not carry a passport with you when you are on a yacht if you absolutely do not need it. Protect your passport, as it is a travel document that is not easily replaced abroad.
o Make a photocopy of your passport and save it with your personal belongings and leave a copy with your relatives in your home country.
An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of treatment when it comes to your passport. It's not hard to do, just remember to do it by working and traveling in exotic places on luxury yachts!
