New Requirements And New Fees For Us Passport Holders
The new regulations and new fees have prompted a passport rush
. The State Department is warning Americans that they won't be allowed to enter the country from Mexico or Canada without a passport after June 1, 2009. The fees to the Department of State were increased as of July 2010.
The U.S. government has also introduced passport cards designed to speed border crossings by U.S. citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean by car, rail or boat. The government approved the wallet-size cards as a cheaper and more convenient alternative to passport books. They may be used only by citizens returning to the United States through land or seaports from Mexico, Canada, Bermuda and the Caribbean. Air travelers must carry full passport books.
The cards emit a radio signal picked up by Customs and Border Protection officers at checkpoints. The signal provides inspectors with a file number linked to passport data on each cardholder. The cards are handy for frequent border crossers, and cost just $55 for a first-time adult applicant, rather than the $135 fee for a passport book. They can be ordered standard issue or expedited. They are swiped at the border as a credit card is swiped at a terminal- the information coded in the back magnetic strip.
The U.S. Passport Book and U.S. Passport Card for adults are valid for 10 years. Passports for minor children under age 16 are valid for 5 years. The U.S. Passport serves as a valid evidence of U.S. citizenship and identity for important uses such as employment authorization and for many federal benefits and services.