Safety is a top priority for cruise lines, and background checks on passengers are becoming a standard part of the pre-travel process for more than one cruise line operator. While this may seem intrusive, these checks aim to protect everyone on board by identifying individuals with serious criminal histories.
For travelers with criminal records, understanding these policies—and those of the countries on the cruise’s itinerary—is essential to avoid being denied boarding or entry. This article outlines the current practices in the cruise industry, the legal restrictions you might face at destination ports, and the steps you can take to address potential criminal inadmissibility issues before you board, especially when it comes to Canada.
Cruise Line Background Checks
It has become increasingly common for cruise lines to carry out their own background checks on guests before boarding. This is done through third-party consumer reporting agencies and aims to protect the welfare of crew members and other guests.
While it’s not a legal requirement for them to do so, many of the main players in the industry, including Carnival and Royal Caribbean, have started carrying out these checks. As a result, you could be denied boarding if you are a sex offender or have a violent felony conviction on your record, such as for armed robbery.
Other non-violent misdemeanor and felony convictions, on the other hand, would not usually result in someone being denied boarding. If you were going to be excluded from a cruise line for a reason such as this, you would usually be contacted in advance of the planned travel date informing you of the decision that has been made.
Destination Travel Restrictions
What is much more likely to be a problem for someone with a criminal record is their ability to enter and visit the different destinations along the route. While it is usually quite easy to get a passport as a felon once you’ve completed your sentence, each country has its own set of entry restrictions, which could present a major obstacle to your travel plans.
Countries such as Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom are quite strict when it comes to visitors with a criminal record, especially when compared to some destinations in the Caribbean.
If you can’t secure the appropriate visas for each destination country before you depart, it is unlikely you would be allowed to board the cruise to begin with. Staying on the ship in the countries you are not permitted to travel to is not usually an option, because you would still be present in that country’s territorial waters.
This makes it crucial to check the entry requirements of each destination country carefully before you buy your tickets. If you can’t secure the right visas due to criminal inadmissibility, it’s likely you won’t be allowed onto the cruise.
How do destination countries know if you have a criminal record?
Cruise lines routinely share passenger data with law enforcement agencies and border authorities in each destination country. Many of these bodies will have information-sharing agreements with foreign countries such as the United States that gives them access to information about any arrests, charges, or convictions that a potential visitor has on their record.
If you try to go on a cruise and are on probation or have an active arrest warrant or bench warrant out for you, this would also likely be flagged up at this stage of checks.
Entry to Canada
Cruises to Canada, or those that pass through a Canadian port could be particularly difficult to arrange for American citizens who are convicted felons. The Canadian government is one of the strictest in the world when it comes to their policies for criminal inadmissibility.
Both felony convictions and misdemeanor convictions in your past would likely mean you would not be eligible to enter Canada for any reason unless you had successfully applied for and received a Temporary Resident Permit or Criminal Rehabilitation beforehand. This includes :
- Assault or Domestic Violence
- Robbery, Theft, or Burglary
- Murder or Manslaughter
- Drug Trafficking
- Human Trafficking
Even crimes that might be regarded as relatively minor in the United States such as DUI, DWI, or reckless driving, are now regarded as serious criminality in Canada, which means unless you navigate your way through one of these legal routes well in advance of your cruise, it is unlikely you would be allowed to board the cruise ship.
In the case of more minor crimes, Deemed Rehabilitation is a third option that can sometimes come into play. This requires a certain period of time to have passed since you completed the sentence for your crimes (usually 5-10 years) and is a much simpler, fee-free process.
How Dogen Law Can Help
If you’re planning to visit Canada on a cruise but have past felonies or misdemeanors that could make you inadmissible, seeking guidance from an immigration lawyer can significantly simplify the entry process. Without dealing with the paperwork correctly beforehand, you could be denied entry onto the cruise right at the start.
At Dogen Law, we have extensive experience helping clients navigate the various legal pathways to visit Canada during a cruise. Our team can assist you with applications for a Temporary Resident Permit or Criminal Rehabilitation to help you overcome criminal inadmissibility to Canada.
Get in touch today by completing our online assessment to see if you are eligible.
FAQs – Quick Answers
Do Carnival Cruises allow felons?
The Carnival Cruise Line guest screening policy explains that the company can and does routinely carry out criminal background checks on guests who have booked a Carnival cruise. They are carried out through a third-party consumer reporting agency in order to ensure the safety of crew members and other guests.
Carnival may deny boarding to those who have been convicted of felonies involving aggravated physical and/or sexual assault, armed robbery, and other violent crimes. Other non-violent felonies would not usually prevent someone from boarding, but could still prevent them from being able to secure visas to visit destinations such as Canada. Guests are usually notified of being denied passage via email.
Do cruise lines do a background check?
Yes. As mentioned above, Carnival Cruises, Royal Caribbean Cruises and others carry out background checks on guests through consumer reporting agencies prior to boarding. Cruisers would not usually be denied entry to the cruise unless they had been convicted of violent crimes such as physical and/or sexual assault.
However, it’s important to remember that being able to board does not guarantee you will meet the entry requirements at each foreign port on your journey. Many countries have strict criminal inadmissibility guidelines that could mean you wouldn’t be allowed on the cruise.
What happens if you commit a crime on a cruise ship?
While cruise ships don’t tend to have police on board, there are always processes in place to deal with on-board criminality. A standard response to a crime being committed onboard could include suspected offenders being detained by security on the captain’s orders until the next port-of-call is reached. There, law enforcement officers would be invited onboard to investigate and potentially make arrests.
In the place of something resembling a jail, many cruise ships utilize specific cabins or lockup rooms to protect other guests until contact can be made with these law enforcement agencies.
