Thursday, February 26, 2015

Traveling Tips on Passports, Visas, and IDs


Passport
*keep your passport with you at all times
* take a photocopy of your passport photo page and bring the copy in your purse
or email it to yourself just in case something happens to yours.
*you can apply for a passport at your local post office.
*make sure your passport is valid up to 6 months.  Many countries say that they won’t accept a passport that expires in less than 6 months for some reason.  I’ve never had a problem though.


Visas  
Visas are required for some countries for Americans. 
Some countries requiring visas are: India, Brazil, Vietnam, China, and Russia. 
There are different types of visas to get to depending on your travel purpose and length of stay.  Visas are something that you should get before you leave the U.S. 
The process for me receiving my India visa went like this: Applied online, printed necessary documents, mailed the signed documents and what was asked for on the website such as two passport certified photos (you can get these at Walgreens, Cosco, Sam’s Club, etc), payment, and your current passport. I didn’t really feel too comfortable sending my passport through the mail (which is actually just fine to do since I did eventually have to in order to have my passport renewed) so I went to the Travisa office in downtown Chicago to hand it all in and then picked it up a week or so later when they called me. Travisa is a third-party company that aids in the process of visas.  You must have at least two empty pages in your passport (which I’m not sure why because they only use 1), your passport must be valid for the next 6 months, and be sure to apply for a “multiple-entry” option.

Visit http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/country.html to look up visa information for Americans traveling to other countries.


IDs
*use your passport, state ID, credit card, and ATM card as your proof of identity.
It has happened to me where I was asked for other forms of ID from an official and
luckily i had them all. Of course keep them all in a secure place and with you at all times.  I used a money pouch as my “wallet” and carried in my small day pack everywhere.

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