we're leaving for seattle saturday (so excited!) we might decide to spend a day in victoria so i am bringing passports for my husband and myself. for our three teenagers, i am planning to bring birth certificates, but was wondering, is a copy of a certified birth certificate sufficient or do i need to bring the one with the actual colored certified seal? i think i just brought the copies to the caribbean when we last needed them a few years ago.

If you're American citizens, your drivers license will probably be fine. Your passports will certainly be sufficient.

We've traveled many times to Victoria without incident. My wife and I have always shown our license. They ask us the kids names and if they are ours. Occasionally they will come up with an off the wall question...one time they asked us if we had any firearms in our home in Florida! I told them "of course" and they said "enjoy your stay in Canada!

since my husband and i have passports, i'm going to bring them. but i was wondering if the kids need birth certificates, as they do not have passports and not all of them are old enough to drive. in the caribbean, birth certificates were required (they asked for them).

Hi

Young friends of ours were leaving for their honeymoon to Mexico and, when they arrived at the airport, were turned away by the airline. They had their drivers licenses but they did not have their birth certificates with the raised stamps on it. They had no passports but without the raised stamp birth certificates no one is being allowed BACK into the US from Mexico or canada. You can certainly check this out at the State dept site www.State.gov and see what you'll need. You're fine with your passports but you'll need documentation for your children plus it also confirms that they truly are your children.

9/11/2001 has changed the system.

thanks, i better bring the certified copies then. i have them handy, just didn't want to bring them if xeroxes were good enough since it's a bit of a hassle to replace them if lost. but it would be a bigger hassle to have problems at the border!

here's the directive from State's page. There's also a DC phone number if you need it for the canadian Embassy.


CANADA - Passport or proof of U.S. citizenship and photo ID required. Minors (under 16) traveling alone or in someone else's custody, must present written authorization, signed before a notary, from the parent(s) or guardian. Visas are not required for visitors staying up to 180 days. Anyone with a criminal record (including a DWI charge) should contact the Canadian Embassy or nearest Consulate General before travel. U.S. citizens entering Canada from a third country must have a valid passport. For student or business travel, check with the Canadian Embassy, 501 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20001 (202/682-1740) or nearest Consulate General: CA (213/346-2701), MI (313/567-2085), NY (212/596-1700 or 716/858-9501), or WA (206/443-1375). Internet: http://www.canadianembassy.org/