Disney Cruise Line will no longer accept photocopies of guest birth certificates

FILE-A general view of the Disney Wonder cruise ship at Avalon harbor on October 26, 2022 in Avalon, California. (Photo by AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/Getty Images)

Guests that board the Disney Cruise Line will now have to provide an original copy of their birth certificate instead of a photocopy of the document. 

Disney Cruise Line emailed guests booked on upcoming "closed loop cruises" regarding the policy, which is posted on the company’s blog.

"For round trip sailings departing from the U.S., Guests using a birth certificate as citizenship documentation are reminded that only an original state-issued birth certificate is acceptable," the email reads. "Guests 16 years of age and older are also required to present a physical government-issued photo ID."

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"Children 15 years of age and younger will need to present an original state-issued birth certificate but do not need to present a government-issued photo ID. Photocopies of birth certificates will not be accepted," the email concludes. 

These latest changes are detailed on the "passports, visas and citizenship documentation" page on the cruise line's website.

Cruises that begin and end in the same location are considered "round-trip" or "closed-loop," meaning they begin and end at the same port in the United States and travel within the Western Hemisphere, per the Disney Cruise Line blog. 

FOX Business noted that Disney Cruise Line is expanding and expects to launch more routes from international destinations as it continues to target families in the cruise market. 

In June, the company announced it would be setting sail from Singapore in 2025 with the Disney Adventure.  

Disney Cruise Line started in 1998 and currently sails to locations in the Bahamas, Caribbean, Europe, Alaska, Mexico, Canada, Hawaii, the South Pacific, Australia, and New Zealand, with a fleet of five ships – the Disney Magic, Disney Wonder, Disney Dream, Disney Fantasy and Disney Wish, according to FOX Business. 

Disney Treasure, the sixth ship, will set sail this winter from Port Canaveral, Florida, for a seven-night eastern Caribbean cruise.