Starting today, U.S. citizens won’t be able to return easily to the United States from Mexico or Canada with just a picture ID and a birth certificate. The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative is now in effect and every U.S. citizen needs a passport or one of five other documents to cross the border.
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But the old system was a daily challenge for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, said Thomas Winkowski, assistant commissioner for the CBP Office of Field Operations. “Our employees (were) dealing with 8,000 different documents. WHTI boils it down to six documents,” he said.
The 9/11 Commission recommended the passport requirement in its 2004 report “to tighten up (the border),” said Bonnie Arellano, CBP spokeswoman.
The six documents accepted are the U.S. passport, passport card, an enhanced driver’s license (that only Washington and New York states currently issue) or one of the “trusted traveler” cards — SENTRI, NEXUS or FAST.
Citizens without a passport will be routed to a secondary inspection area, where they will have to wait while customs employees verify their citizenship, Arellano said.
Winkowski estimated that 80 percent of travelers returning to the U.S. will have the right documents. “I expect a smooth transition,” Winkowski said.
For details about the new requirements, visit www.getyouhome.gov.
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