Dude, Is That A Passport In Your Pants, Or Are You Just Happy To See Me? (Citation: CLB)
June 6th, 2008
Some of you have recently asked me what to do with your passports, particularly in China. Carry them on your person or other?
I can’t/won’t advise you on this. This is your call to investigate and make. For myself, I will likely carry a copy of my passport and visa on me, not the original. I will also carry with me a copy of the Trip Information Sheet and my airline ticket so that if I am stopped I can pull out a document that verifies what I tell people as to why I am in China. There is risk in my strategy. I may find that they don’t find this acceptable. So you should not assume that my way is the only way or right way. Everybody is responsible for their own selves on this issue on this trip.
See this recent good CLB post on this very topic, Is That A Passport In Your Pants or Are You Just Happy To See Me? Thanks, Dan Harris. As always, you have a way with titles for blog posts, of which I admittedly used verbatim in this post to grab my own student’s attention.
As I have mentioned in one of our recent predeparture sessions, China is cracking down on expats with the wrong or expired visa in advance of the Olympics. There are a number of theories why they are doing this. I won’t go into that in detail here, but in short, my own view is that they are coupling the Olympics with visa issuance and renewal to find out who the “gamers” are in their country that are not playing by the rules, paying taxes, starting unregistered firms, to get a handle on who is legitimately there, etc., and, they are doing this as part of a fear of terrorism in lieu of the upcoming Olympics. Whatever the case, this is an issue to take seriously.
See, e.g., the below email excerpt I recently received from one of our MBA alumni now living and working in China where he/she describes a situation that is even more heavy handed than I realized:
The visa situation is horrible leading up to the Olypmics. The government is going to the [___ citizen] homes and trying to take away their visa by showing they are on the wrong type (i.e., working with a tourist visa). I got mine before these problems. I was on a student visa and now on a business visit visa for work. It was easier to call me an “internship” to get the visa. When I need to renew it might be difficult. My _____[omitted] company is trying to get a license here and get him/her a working visa but he/she is having difficulties so he/she keeps going to other countries to get a tourist visa. We have had guests who had a lot of problems, it is hurting our business. Last week _______ [omitted] came and spoke to ______[omitted name] [and us] because the police are calling people and asking questions to find reason to deport them. It is crazy here. They have pulled over two of my foreign friends and taken away their scooters and tried to take their passports.
As you can see, the Chinese don’t waste time endlessly debating visa, passport and immigration issues like we do in the US and Washington D.C. They make a decision, execute and get it done. Don’t blame them. They are only enforcing the laws that have been on their books for some time which hoards of companies and expats were violating en masse, but now said expats are crying that the enforcement rules have changed. Happens all the time in regulatory environments across the globe. Further, in terms of an checkpoint, or an opportunity to create a checkpoint via the Olympics, the Chinese strategy here is pretty darn effective and efficient, in my view.
And for cryin’ out loud, folks, if you DO carry your original passport on your person or in your backpack (can easily be cut open with a knife from behind), do NOT lose it or let it get it stolen!! Per the FAQ document, if your passport is lost or stolen I can do nothing for you other than drop you off at the embassy or consulate to solve this problem (plan for it to take a few days), you are on your own, and the rest of us move on. Any extra expense in you catching up with us will be yours to incur.
Take this issue seriously! Toto, we are not in Kansas anymore.
Entry Filed under: Pre-Departure, China, India, Pre-Departure
23 Comments Add your own
1. Simeon Trieu | June 6th, 2008 at 9:00 am
When I travel, I keep my original passport on my person. People can break into your hotel room and steal your passport that way, also. So, the best way that I’ve found to keep my passport safe is to get a small neckback that I carry my cash, ID, passport, and checks in and store it UNDERNEATH my clothing. They may be able to slash and pick your backpack, but they will sure have a hard time getting under my shirt and suit!
2. Dan Harris | June 7th, 2008 at 5:08 am
IF you keep your original passport and visa on your person (and even if you don’t), I suggest you upload a copy of them to somewhere on the internet (your hotmail or gmail account, for example) so that even if you lose everything but the clothes on your back, you still have a place you can go (fairly easily) with the key information.
3. Eric Kvilhaug | June 7th, 2008 at 5:51 pm
For people who have been to China, how likely is it that laptops, passports or the like will be taken from hotel rooms. I worry that my laptop will be taken, I am not sure if the worry is warranted (sounds like it is), so here is my question. What are you going to do with laptops, cell phones, camera, passports, gifts for tours, etc?
4. WhiteDuskRed | June 8th, 2008 at 3:34 am
We have colleagues who gotten their laptops stolen when they left it in the car trunk. Suspected the driver to be in cahoots with whoever who stole the laptop but with no evidence whatsoever the matter was laid to rest and they poor chaps got to replace the company laptops with their own money.
Heard hundreds of stories regarding hotel staff opening and stealing stuffs from the safes in the rooms. Anyway most laptops will not fit into the safes in hotels. If you must keep it in the room, keep it in a robust suitcase/lugguge and keep it well locked. I do that even in major hotels since I cannot be assured of the integrity of the staff.
When in China, keep your valuables (cash, IDs and travel documents) with you wherever you go. But there’s always the risk of getting robbed. So always travel in a group, avoid suspect areas and be aware of your surroundings…
5. Pierre Michael | June 8th, 2008 at 8:31 pm
I have a money belt that I’ve used before on my travels to Europe, it definitely gave me peace of mind about my passport, plane tickets and cash. Two problems though, 1) these are not my only valuables, and there’s no way I can keep all my valuables with me at all times, 2) (and this is more pertinent to people traveling post India) when you go to bed what do you do with your money belt? In Europe I stayed mostly in hostels, sharing rooms with strangers. I usually took my money belt off when going to bed and put it in my backpack, or put it under my pillow. Well, one night in Germany, one of the guys in my hostel room woke up to find $500 missing from his bag, someone must have come in in the middle of the night….Scary. Anyways, the best recommendation I can give is to bring a small padlock or combination lock and find lockers to put your stuff in.
6. Matt Fencl | June 10th, 2008 at 6:22 pm
Nice work using the Wizard of Oz quote to illustrate your point. Ironic that I lost my Driver’s License my senior year at the University of Kansas and used my passport to get into bars for several months. In retrospect it was a pretty stupid habit, but I ended up only losing my dignity at the bars, not my passport.
7. Adam Windham | June 11th, 2008 at 9:24 pm
The pickpockets in most other countries are phenomenal to the point that I almost feel they deserve your stuff for being so stealthy. Petty crime, especially pick-pocketing is all over Europe, a friend I was traveling with had his wallet and cell phone lifted from his front jeans pocket, on the subway, while I was about a foot away. Didn’t even realize it for about an hour. After that I carried everything in my money belt. I would like to get some outside input on whether carrying around copies of all your information will be acceptable because that seems like the best way to go, assuming everything left in the hotel room is safe as well.
Soon, we’ll all just have a chip in our hands that has everything; passport, credit cards, driver’s license, social security (if it still exists), bank records,… ahhh won’t that be nice? nothing more to carry around…
8. Richard Ciesco | June 11th, 2008 at 10:28 pm
I think that the Chinese government is trying hard to control this issue but in reality with over a billion people in the country it is impossible to check everyone. But from the sound of it, I am sure they are trying to. I wonder how hard it will be to get a vise after the Olympics? I have been thinking about getting a job with a company who does business in China, so I could spend some time over there to doing business. From the sounds of it though it seems now even businesses are having a problem getting visas. I wonder if this will affect companies from moving their operations over there? We will just have to wait and see.
9. Witold Sadowski | June 12th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
I keep all my valuables in a money belt… although at times not very comfortable, it does a great job…
10. gary chou | June 13th, 2008 at 1:05 am
I have heard argument for both ways–bring your passport with you or keep it at the hotel. While many people (including Dr. Carr) thinks keeping the passport at hotel is safer, I personally wouldn’t do that. True, there are risks for both routes, but the level of risk is simply hard to compare. One thing for sure is that, if the passport is lost from my body, I will know about it immediately and have the first opportunity to react to it. Also, I will have more information regarding how it’s lost. (e.g. the physical appearance of the robber.) If it’s lost in the hotel, there will be confusion first. For example, is it really lost or a misplacement? Why hasn’t anything else being lost? Did the cleaning staff take it? Did other students take it as prank? etc. Too much uncertainty.
11. Sarah Ybarra | June 13th, 2008 at 3:48 am
My wonderful Chindia roommate bought me a money belt to keep my belongings in so I will definitely be using that. I think I will probably keep my original passport in my hotel room. Fortunately I haven’t run into many sheisters in my life so I remain pretty trusting of people. I’d never ask someone on the street to hold my passport or my money for me but I have no problem leaving my belongings locked in my suitcase. I’ve checked out the hotels that we are staying at and, based on what I saw online, I think I will feel comfortable leaving my valuables in my room. Eric Cole, who vacationed in Asia after the China trip last year, did inform me that during my post Chindia adventure I will most likely be required to leave my passport with people when I rent things like scooters and kayaks. I do feel a little bit uneasy about that but I guess the rental people would feel uneasy about letting people rent things without a guarantee that they will return. I am definitely emailing myself a copy of my passport because it will make things much easier in the unlikely event that I lose it.
12. Robyn Bowie | June 13th, 2008 at 8:41 am
As long as there is a safe in the hotel rooms, I think I would feel better about leaving my passport there. It is a good idea to carry a copy though and I am planning on doing that as well as sending myself a copy over e-mail so I can get to it anywhere in the world. I am also sending copies of any credit cards I am bringing as well as debit/ATM cards. Same with driver’s license and any other ideas such as international student ID. I did purchase a money belt, though it is going to be so hot, I’m going to try to avoid wearing it and just bring less money with me or something. My biggest worry is my camera and I’m still on the lookout for the perfect case to keep it safe. If anyone has any ideas shoot them my way!
13. Lonnie | June 16th, 2008 at 8:50 am
The customs and police landscape is changing here. Hong Kong just announced that all leaves are canceled for customs inspectors thru the Olympics and they are really scrutinizing credentials at the border and elsewhere.
I took the train from Guangzhou to HK the other day and was subject to three x-ray screenings one-way. And because these guys aren’t much brighter than the Homeland Insecurity folks in the US and know only minimal English it is a daunting task to get where you are going if you don’t speak Chinese.
With terror alerts now abounding I would not be caught anywhere without my passport on my person. It is not just customs that will be checking foreigners coming in and out of the country. Too, word on TV tonight was that those with any criminal convictions may be refused entry. And do not leave any bags unattended anywhere as they will be carted off and searched thoroughly.
I too often use a waist wallet even if it means I will get slowed down coming through the metal detectors. And Dan is right: email yourself and one of your classmates a copy of your documents to make it easier for the State Department to help you if you lose your ID here.
It is stricter now, but the officials are courteous and respectful. The earthquake may have taken the world’s focus off of political issues, but the central government is doggedly in pursuit of a trouble free Olympics.
Everyone expects a halo effect of about 1-3 months after the Olympics before some “normalcy” is restored.
It is good to see you unblocked in South China!! Life here is wet: homes near me are flooded and 800,000 from Guanxi south have been displaced. China has had a rough year. My professor friends in Gansu are shell-shocked by quakes, floods, riots and in-classroom camera surveillance of minority students. It is a fragile time for everyone, so be empathetic…
L
14. Chris Carr | June 16th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
Good advice, Lonnie, as always. Thanks!
15. Rob Belloni | June 16th, 2008 at 10:04 pm
I’ve been reading this thread with much interest, and appreciate the feedback. Despite a high level of awareness, I seem to have a knack for getting robbed and hope to avoid the hassle on the trip. What follows are a few robbery stories, in hopes that you might learn from my mistakes…
Lent my truck to my Dad. Dad forgets to lock the door and parks it on the street. Someone steals my ash tray along with the $4 in pennies and nickels.
Moral - Ask “did you lock the car?” Thieves are generally idiots and will steal anything if given the chance.
Park my truck at the lake to go fishing. Lock everything up. Return at sunset to find that someone pried the camper shell open, crawled in through the sliding window, stole my cd’s and chopped apart my dash board with a screw driver in a failed effort to steal the cd player.
Moral - Camper shell rear doors are not the best protection. Get a car alarm
Left for memorial day weekend in the dorms. Returned to find my printer and my roomate’s 200+ cd collection stolen. Despite the police’s insistence that we left the door open (we did not), it was later determined the thieves had a master key to the dorms.
As a humorous aside, the thieves also stole my roomates video card, used it, and did not return the movie. Somewhere in the San Luis PD’s archives is a video of the thief parking directly in front of the video store with license plate visible and using the card to rent the video. San Luis PD was unable to find this person due to poor video quality.
Moral - A locked door at a dorm or hotel doesn’t always mean much. Even with a video of the person who stole your stuff and their car - they’ll probably get away with it anyway.
My parents, who had been robbed once before and have a full alarm system, left the maid at the house to run errands. Return to find the alarm off and jewelery stolen. It was almost certainly the maid (they pretended to force the window open but the latch was not broken).
Moral - Maids occasionally steal your stuff. Better to clean your own house (as my parents do now) and when you are traveling - hang the do not disturb all day.
Vacationing in Hawaii Summer and I took a surfing lesson. The surf coach guy (stoner) encourages us to leave our stuff in a cubby hole where we they run the lessons, “Someone is here the whole time, nothing will happen.” Being paranoid, I put everything in the car except the rental car key. Return from the water to find someone has stolen the rental car key (and the safe key to our hotel).
Moral - Don’t leave your stuff with people - ever. That one cost me about $200 for a new car key, a taxi to bring it, and a new safe key. When in the water on vacation, bring a waterproof plastic case (they make them especially for swimming/diving) and bring everything you can with you. Someone on the beach is probably going to steal your stuff.
After being robbed enough times, you learn to roll with it. My main goal on this trip in this regard is to put myself in a position where if I do get robbed, they don’t get very much. My Dad suggested wearing a cheap wallet filled with monopoly money just for the humor aspect when someone decides to snatch it. I’m considering it…
16. David McKinnon | December 12th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Great ideas from the comments. E-mailing documents, money belts, etc. Rob, I hope your luck changes!
Maybe the Visa checks will calm down a bit now that the Olympics is over? Even if that’s the case we should still plan and prepare for the worst.
17. Oscar Merlin | December 13th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
From visiting across the border often, I have learned to place my wallet always in your front pockets. Why? Because when you are using public transportation and its crowded, you can tell right away if someone is trying to steal your wallet from you. And, with regards to my passport, I usually hide it within my luggage. And I do not mean between clothes, but within a double wall on my luggage bag or some other spot where you would not look for it right away if you are quickly sorting through peoples baggage.
18. Andrea Muntzel | December 13th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
All of this input is helpful but it’s also a little overwhelming… I haven’t traveled much at all, have never been robbed, and tend to be too trusting of people. After reading the discussion, I’ll definitely be on my guard but I’m torn over whether it would be better to keep my things on my person or in my room. I hope we discuss more whether the Chinese are being as strict with passports as they were during and before the Olympics because in that case I think I would want to carry my passport on me. If not, it seems smarter to leave it in a safe place. Either way, there’s something about having my valuables on me that makes me feel better about the whole situation. I suppose it’s a control thing.
19. Morgan O'Hara | December 14th, 2008 at 10:24 pm
Yes, that is a passport in my pants, and though it’s kind of bulky, it doesn’t stick out too much.
Abroad, I keep my passport in my front pocket. It wears a plastic cover. I don’t drink anymore, so the risk of me mistaking it for a flyer at some dive bar is no longer an issue. I’m also pretty aware, so the danger of it getting swiped is minimal. In fact, the chance of me forgetting my passport in a hotel room safe is much higher than me losing it (though in the first case, it should be retrievable). Finally, I would not stash my passport in my book bag for prolonged periods. Or my purse, if I had one.
As for the joys of bureaucracy – often times you can skirt around it, but rarely can you brazenly beat it. And though it might seem painful, when it comes to official procedures and rules and regulations, it’s best to conform. That’s what you call prudence, not surrender.
20. Raquel Rusing | December 19th, 2008 at 4:45 pm
So basically [forgive me Dr. Whitaker]… I should give out copies of my passport as Christmas cards to everyone going on the Chindia trip so that they can carry a copy for me. In addition, email it to every email account I’ve ever owned… including ownlyndrms@aol.com from 7th grade. Contact the US Embassy in China BEFORE going and beg to have them process the initial paperwork in case I just MIGHT lose my passport… then proceed to super glue the original passport to my chest. All the while be paranoid that I will still lose it.
I’m being ridiculous. I know. But after reading these responses I was inspired by the good humor associated with the trials of traveling abroad. I’ll do my best to prevent the worst… but will also prepare myself to accept the worst.
I have a monopoly set and an extra wallet… I’m SO tempted.
21. Josh Hickman | December 24th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
I am definitely paranoid about getting stuff stolen while on our trip. I mean, is there really a safe place to put all this stuff? I know people who have had success with the under-the-shirt/pants belt/vest thing, so I think that is what I will be doing. There is always a way around the lock on the hotel door, always a master key to any safe, and always the thought of housekeeping stealing my identity. I guess I would never feel comfortable unless that I could have it on me so I could check it every 30 seconds…well hopefully not that often. Electronic backups are also a good idea, but would also worry me, as they can be intercepted or backed up/copied with a click of a mouse. Even though it isn’t the original, all the information is still there, and who knows what people will do with it nowadays.
22. Jenna Healy | January 1st, 2009 at 1:11 pm
Wow. Paranoia or justified precaution?
What I got from the article and the comments is that there is no safe place for a passport. It can be stolen from your body, your safe, your suitcase, anywhere! Foreign countries are exactly that—foreign. There’s no telling what will happen or predicting or controlling situations.
I think we will all be OK. I’m going to keep my passport and important documents around my neck under my clothes… and sleep with it on! And email and keep copies. Then, I’m going to let go of the fear and know that it will all be OK.
Great post Raquel.
23. Nick Chamness | January 4th, 2009 at 8:09 pm
I have done pretty extensive traveling all over the world, and have considered this problem many times. Luckily, losing my passport is never something I have had to deal with. I have almost always tried to carry it with me and did make several copies that were placed in other locations. I am always paranoid that somebody will slash my backpack open and steal all kinds of stuff, which is why I usually carry my backpack facing forward. Not the most comfortable thing, but at least you can keep an eye on you stuff at all times. The passport holder that goes around you chest also seems like a good idea.
Bottom line is that you can only be so careful. Unfortunately stuff happens when you are traveling and you just have to deal with it and adapt to the situation. I am sure everyone will be very careful with their passport while we are over there!
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