Consider this your passport wake up call: As of Monday, U.S. airline passengers will once again need to carry a valid passport when traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda.
I have dedicated a series of blogs to the ongoing saga of passport changes. If you are planning to travel to a foreign destination any time soon you may want to familiarize yourself with the many changes that have occurred within the past year or so.
You can do so by reading the following:
· Holiday Travel: Important Passport Information For Parents and Children
· Passports For Children–What You Need To Know
· New Passport Requirements Force Deadbeat Parents To Pay Up
Most recently, the federal government temporarily waived new passport requirements that took effect January 23, 2007 under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. But, that was just because the deluge of applications caused months-long backups and the number of complaints from frustrated travelers reached record highs.
Currently, the State Department says it has just about caught up (thanks to extra staff) and as such it is now able to process routine passport applications in six weeks (three weeks for expedited service). Department spokespeople recently noted that as of last month the government has issued an estimated 18 million passports, up from 12.1 million in 2006.
But, if think the passport rule change roller coaster ride was about to end–think again. Beginning January 31, 2008 all Americans returning by land or sea from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean must show a valid passport or a birth certificate or other proof of citizenship and government-issued photo ID such as a driver’s license.
And don’t expect the changes to stop there. While no official date has been announced, the government says it still plans to implement tighter rules sometime next summer (the exact date will be announced with at least 60 days’ notice) that would mandate a passport or another to-be-determined document for U.S. travelers who re-enter the country by land or sea.
If you are planning to take a cruise sometime next summer note that if your trip starts and ends in the United States you won’t have to go through the hassle of getting a passport. You can continue to show a government-issued photo ID and birth certificate or other proof of citizenship.