Change in Foreign Travel Policy

The Bush administration today suspended a new policy that would have required passports for Americans who travel by air to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda. The policy has overwhelmed the State Department with passport applications and in some cases disrupted summer travel plans. The suspension should allow the State Department to catch up with the massive surge in applications.

In a press release, the U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security announced that U.S. citizens traveling to Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Bermuda who have applied for but not yet received passports can nevertheless temporarily enter and depart from the United States by air with a government issued photo identification and Department of State official proof of application for a passport through September 30, 2007.

Adults who have applied for but not yet received a passport should present government-issued photo identification and an official proof of application from the U.S. Department of State. U.S. citizens with pending passport applications can obtain proof of application at: http://travel.state.gov/passport/get/status/status_2567.html.

Children under the age of 16 traveling with their parents or legal guardian will be permitted to travel with the child’s proof of application. Travelers who have not applied for a passport should not expect to be accommodated.

Note: This accommodation does not affect entry requirements to other countries. Americans traveling to a country that requires passports must still present those documents.