Mexico and Canada Passport, Travel Rule Deadline Extended?

After much discussion of passport travel requirements by business pros and travel industry leaders, the US Senate voted May 16 that a December 31 deadline requiring US citizens to show passports at Mexico and Canada borders be extended by at least 17 months.

Currently, no passport is needed to travel between Canada, Mexico and the US; plans had called for that to change for air and sea passengers by December 31, 2006, and land travelers by December 31, 2007; if the bill becomes law, travelers will have until June 1, 2009 to get a passport for Mexico and Canada border crossings.

Current Passport Regulations

The Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 requires that by January 1, 2008, travelers to and from the Caribbean, Bermuda, Panama, Mexico and Canada have a passport or other secure, accepted document to enter or re-enter the United States, according to the US Department of State. US citizens may currently travel to and from Mexico, Canada, Panama, the Caribbean and Bermuda using a US birth certificate with embossed state seal and driver's license, rather than a passport.

Smaller percentages of young people have passports than do older travelers, according to the Washington Post, and estimates are that only 27% of American citizens currently hold passports, but no hard numbers on passport-holding student travelers are available. The National Tour Association, which has a membership comprised largely of tour operators, had previously informed the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security that "...a passport-only (border crossing) requirement would severely limit student travel."

Student Travel Exec Suggests Free PASS

Although details haven't been confirmed, a new card called the PASS (People Access Security Service Card) previously discussed by U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff -- a form of government-issued ID that's less expensive than a traditional passport -- may be one way to go for student travelers without passports. A Hearst Newspapers story cited a Homeland Security spokesman as saying the new PASS would cost about $50.

Regarding future passport requirements, Doug Ellison, owner of a youth travel firm outside Ontario, told the Washington Post, "I can see the student travel business [from Canada into the United States] almost drying up."

"The proximity of these countries, especially Canada and Mexico, makes them among the most popular destination for U.S. students. The United States is equally popular for many young travelers coming from these countries," wrote the US-based Student Youth Travel Association in a December, 2005, press release.

“An ID card sounds like a good alternative, but even if the cost is modestly high, or the process of getting one is complicated and time-consuming, young travelers will still face the same obstacles they would getting passports,” said Michael Palmer, SYTA’s executive director. “We suggest making the IDs free to young travelers, or offer it to them at a minimal cost that takes into account the family’s financial status.”

The biometric PASS is ostensibly being phased in later this year, but recent passport changes have all been notable for delayed deadlines. Today's vote comes a few months after prior decisions by the Department of State that implementing passport-only travel to Canada and Mexico would be delayed by at least one year.

• Learn about all the travel documentation you need to visit Mexico
• How to get an American passport
• How to get a passport without a birth certificate
• All about Mexico "tourist cards"

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