New Passport Rules – You’re Going to Need One
January 22, 2007 by Mary Jo Manzanares
Filed under Air Travel, Travel Tips
Today is the very last day to travel between the United States and the Western Hemisphere (Canada, Mexico, Central America, South America, the Caribbean, and Bermuda) with only a driver’s license or voter registration card.
Beginning January 23rd, 2007, all persons traveling will be required to present a valid passport. This means both children and adults must have passports. Alternate acceptable identification includes the Air NEXUS card, a U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Document, or an Alien Registration Card Form I-551.
The new regulation does not apply to travel to and from U.S. Territories such as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and currently only applies to people traveling by air. Passports will be required for travelers by land and sea in January 2008. You can get a full run down of the details about the new regulation here.
If you don’t have a passport, check out my previous post for information about how to go about it. Current new passport fees are $97 for adults and $82 for children.
Photo credit: Stephen J. Sullivan
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I typically travel with my passport even for any air trips, even domestic flights. It has always seemed a more positive form of identification than a driver’s license to me, and is instantly recognized by TSA and airline personel everywhere.
I always travel with a passport, too. In fact, it’s in my wallet and I just keep it there at all times. You never know when the urge to leave the country might hit!