If you are used to traveling to Canada using your driver’s license and birth certificate or naturalization certificate as identification, take note. The State Department and Department of Homeland Security is proposing a rule that would require all persons entering the U.S. including U.S. citizens to present a passport. This rule, if passed, would go into effect by December 31, 2007 but would be implemented in stages. It would also affect travel from Mexico.
Elaine Dezenski, acting assistant secretary for Border and Transportation Security for the Department of Homeland Security stated: 'What we're trying to do ... is really raise the bar, raise the minimum standards for travel to certain parts of the world.' The administration will review this proposal and issue a final ruling some time later in 2005.
These regulations will put a particular hardship on people who live in cities and towns on the U.S. / Canadian border. Until September 11, traveling back and forth over the border was a casual affair, requiring no paperwork and only a declaration of items purchased while visiting. After 9/11, the U.S. began requiring returning U.S. citizens to provide identification and this applies to all persons in the vehicle. This change has resulted in extended wait times at border crossings and certain loss of revenue as the casual visitor may not have the appropriate documentation to make a spontaneous trip. In 2002, the most recent year for which figures are available, 16.2 million U.S. residents visited Canada and 16.8 million visited Mexico in 2002.
According to the State Department, only 23 percent of Americans currently have a passport. Currently, a passport costs $97 plus the cost of two photographs and obtaining an original birth certificate. The price of a passport increased on March 8, 2005, when the U.S. State Department added a new security surcharge of $12 to the cost of all U.S. passports. This surcharge covers upgrading the mail provider from first-class to priority, which is intended to provide extra security to applicants.
