I will be traveling around Europe soon, to:

Germany (I'd be starting from there, not the US)
Czech Republic
Austria
Italy
Lichtenstein
Switzerland
France (Yeah I know, poop on it)
Luxembourg
Belgium
and The Netherlands.

If I have a U.S. Active Army Military ID, and a set of orders, do I need a passport?


I have tried so hard to find the answer to this, but nobody can say for sure, and it is damn near impossible to get an answer from the State Dept.



That's all I really need to know. I know most of these countries are in the EU so I'm thinking it should not be a problem, I just want to save the 97 dollars for one, and I don't think I'd even get it in time for leave anyway...





So What say you?

Nobody has been in the same situation?


Mabye I should have fit the word, "tactical" in the title.




HA!

First are you driving or train or flying in between countries?  

If driving and by train then you should have no worries with just your .mil ID.  (With the exception of Italy, I think but don't quote me)  It is all within the EU and the .mil ID is accepted as a sudo passport.  I went from Berlin to Denmark and only showed my .mil ID to cross the border.  This was back in '93 mind you.  

Best thing to do if you can't contact the State Dept is to ask your JAG Officer or local Embassy.

Sorry I can't link you to a more concrete answer.

Not quite the same as you, but when I was in the Navy, if we were going to travel out of the country we ported in, we were required to have a passport.

The last time I traveled in Europe, they checked my passport in each country, but I only got a stamp at the first country I hit in, and the one on the way out. So I am betting you will need the passport.

If it were me I'd get the passport.  Good for about 10 years and I think renewal is cheaper than the first one.  Also, apply for the passport now.  They will mail it to your address in the states then have a buddy fed-ex it to you in Europe.  Usually only takes 2-4 weeks to get the passport (my last renewal took less than 2 weeks).  

GunLvr

You're going to foreign countries.  Get a passport.  Maybe you'd be able to pass through EU countries through Germany without a passport.  But Switzerland?  No way.

Plus, if you ever have to deal with authorities and don't have a passport, you'll wish you had gotten one.

Quoted: You're going to foreign countries.  Get a passport.  Maybe you'd be able to pass through EU countries through Germany without a passport.  But Switzerland?  No way. Plus, if you ever have to deal with authorities and don't have a passport, you'll wish you had gotten one.

+1 on everything.

Get the passport...

+1

You'll definitely need a passport.

If you're on official government travel you can and should get a US government passport. That's a special passport issued to US government employees; the cover of the passport is different than the civilian passport. When you're acting as an agent of the US government you should use this. Contact your local travel people; they should know the details of how to get one. It should be no cost to you.

You should ALSO get a personal passport to use at times when you're not acting as an agent of the US government. Carry both of them.

Awesome, thanks for the advice.


It's not what I hoped to hear, but I guess I'm getting a passport.


Thanks again.

When I was in Germany you needed a passport. An ID card and orders means nothing to a lot of these countries... except maybe to get your social and sell it to the Russian mafia.

You should be able to go to Munich and get a passport in one day. MWR usually has passport trips where they laod a bus ful of dependants and such and go up to get same-day passports.

$97 for a passport? I don't remember paying that much. Where did you get that price?