Travel Tip: Travel Documents and Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI)
In a previous post (Oct. 9, 2006: Travel Tips: Passports and PASS Card), I wrote about the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI).
At the time of the post, I noted that the WHTI would require all US citizens traveling into or out of the US to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda by air to have a valid passport by January 8, 2007. Provisions applicable to sea and land travel were suspended until certain Congressional criteria were addressed.
Now the requirement of travel documents for sea and land entries will be effective June 1, 2009.
For a list of documents that are acceptable, visit the US Customs and Border Protection WHTI page. There are exceptions, including: for active duty military; for cruise passengers whose cruise begins and ends in a US port (a so-called 'closed-loop' cruise--but there is no change in passport rules for visiting foreign ports of call); for those with an 'Enhanced Driver's License'; and, for those who participate in an approved Trusted Traveler program (NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST and others--see the Customs and Border Protection site).
But we have to ask: Do we need anything other than a passport? Not really. A passport will do just what it designed to do: identify you as a citizen of your country and allow your passage through your country's borders. The WHTI simply extends the requirement of having a passport to travel between the US and Mexico or Canada, and to all means of travel.
This suggests some precaution in falling prey to those pandering new required documents. If you do not need a document, then there is no need to spend the money nor enduring the burdens of obtaining one.
Some advantages of the Trusted Traveler program include: dedicated lanes and expedited border processing for pre-approved, 'low-risk' travelers. Disadvantages: requires a background check, in-person interview and fingerprinting, plus an additional five-year membership fee.
Civil rights advocates have questioned the effectiveness, supposed enhanced security, necessity and more of the Trusted Traveler program (see the American Civil Liberties Union website.) The ACLU has also questioned the validity and security of Enhanced Drivers Licenses that are already available in Washington State and New York.
Tom
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At the time of the post, I noted that the WHTI would require all US citizens traveling into or out of the US to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda by air to have a valid passport by January 8, 2007. Provisions applicable to sea and land travel were suspended until certain Congressional criteria were addressed.
Now the requirement of travel documents for sea and land entries will be effective June 1, 2009.
For a list of documents that are acceptable, visit the US Customs and Border Protection WHTI page. There are exceptions, including: for active duty military; for cruise passengers whose cruise begins and ends in a US port (a so-called 'closed-loop' cruise--but there is no change in passport rules for visiting foreign ports of call); for those with an 'Enhanced Driver's License'; and, for those who participate in an approved Trusted Traveler program (NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST and others--see the Customs and Border Protection site).
But we have to ask: Do we need anything other than a passport? Not really. A passport will do just what it designed to do: identify you as a citizen of your country and allow your passage through your country's borders. The WHTI simply extends the requirement of having a passport to travel between the US and Mexico or Canada, and to all means of travel.
This suggests some precaution in falling prey to those pandering new required documents. If you do not need a document, then there is no need to spend the money nor enduring the burdens of obtaining one.
Some advantages of the Trusted Traveler program include: dedicated lanes and expedited border processing for pre-approved, 'low-risk' travelers. Disadvantages: requires a background check, in-person interview and fingerprinting, plus an additional five-year membership fee.
Civil rights advocates have questioned the effectiveness, supposed enhanced security, necessity and more of the Trusted Traveler program (see the American Civil Liberties Union website.) The ACLU has also questioned the validity and security of Enhanced Drivers Licenses that are already available in Washington State and New York.
Tom
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Labels: Airlines, Airports, Passports, Security, Travel Tips
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