Do You Need a Passport to Go to Puerto Rico?

Do You Need a Passport to Go to Puerto Rico?

Visiting Puerto Rico feels like visiting a foreign country. It's located in the Caribbean, and most people speak Spanish primarily, with English being spoken as a second language. The island's gorgeous beaches, lush rainforests and glitzy casinos make it a fairly popular destination for travelers. About 3.4 million tourists paid Puerto Rico a visit in 2007.

US citizens traveling to Puerto Rico often question whether or not a passport is required. While most Caribbean destinations do require a passport, Puerto Rico does not. It may feel like a foreign country and be located away from the mainland, but Puerto Rico is part of the United States, and has been since the end of the Spanish-American War. It is a US territory, which means that while it's not a state and doesn't participate in national elections, its citizens are officially US citizens and traveling is like traveling to any other part of the US. That means that all you will need is a government-issued photo ID, like a driver's license or state ID card, to enter and leave the island.

That said, depending on your travel plans, you may wish to invest in a passport before your trip to Puerto Rico anyway. For example, if you're not flying directly to Puerto Rico and will be spending time elsewhere in the Caribbean on the way there or on the way home, you will definitely need to get a passport.

If you're on a closed-loop cruise that stops in a Puerto Rican port, you won't need a passport but you will need a certified copy of your birth certificate with a raised seal. Having a passport, though, can be a godsend if something happens and you need to fly home from anywhere other than Puerto Rico.

If you do decide to get a passport, make sure you allow enough time for your application to be processed. It generally takes about 6 weeks for a passport or a passport renewal application to go through. If you apply for expedited processing and pay the additional fee, you'll still to allow about 3 weeks for your passport to arrive in the mail.

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