Travel Q+A: Summer Bargains, Security Guidelines

April 19, 2005 — -- Between choosing your destination, finding reasonable fares and then sorting through changes to the security procedures there's plenty to keep you guessing when planning a vacation. ABC News' aviation analyst John J. Nance is here to assist by answering a selection of the questions that you sent in via e-mail.

Nance is a veteran airline captain with 13,000 flight hours, a former U.S. Air Force pilot and a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserves and writes a weekly travel column for ABCNEWS.com.

Angie in Cleveland writes: Hi, I heard someone say that by the end of the year it will be a requirement to have a passport for Canada, Mexico and Caribbean, have you heard this and if you have do you know where I can find more information about this? Thanks!

John Nance: The new rules will be phased in starting on Dec. 31, 2005. According to a recent ABCNEWS.com article from the AP: The new requirements would take effect on Dec. 31, 2007, for travelers entering the United States from Mexico and Canada by land, and on Dec. 31, 2006, by air or sea.

The deadline is a year earlier, Dec. 31, 2005, for travel from Bermuda, the Caribbean and Panama. The proposed rules are scheduled to be finalized this fall. Until then, the government will solicit comments from the public. http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory?id=645076&page=1

More information can be obtained from the Department of Homeland Security Web site at http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=4433

It's a bit onerous for those who don't have passports to go get them, but all 290 million of us need to remember that we are, in fact, a nation at war, and this is a very mild hardship compared to what our grandparents and great-grandparents went through in World War II.

Question: Is it necessary to have a passport for a child traveling overseas or will just a birth certificate do?

Nance: Well, let's put it this way. Under some circumstances currently you would have no problem using just an original birth certificate with photo ID, but once the new rules begin going into effect at the end of this calendar year, everyone, regardless of age, who wants to re-enter the United States from the Caribbean and South and Central America must have a valid passport, and at that point a birth certificate will not be good enough. By 2008, all ground, air and sea travel into the United States from anywhere will be subject to that requirement. The basic point is: Why wait and run a risk of being at the wrong place with the wrong document for your child? I would strongly advise applying for a passport now.

The Web site of Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., has the following information which includes the requirement for permission slips from absent parents:The most common document -- and one that you likely will need -- is a U.S. passport. Most foreign countries require a U.S. passport documenting your citizenship before they allow entry into their country. A few don't require a passport, but they require a certified (original) birth certificate with a photo identification. Even if the countries you plan to visit do not require a passport, it may be advisable to have one because it will facilitate your entry into the other countries and will facilitate your re-entry into the United States.

Also, a child under age 18 must have consent of both parents to travel abroad. One parent leaving the country with a child must have a notarized consent from the other parent or a child traveling with neither parent must have a notarized consent from both parents.

Make certain that you can return to the United States with the proof of citizenship that you take with you. Although some countries may allow you to enter with only a birth certificate, U.S. law requires that you document both your U.S. citizenship and identity when you re-enter the United States. The best document to prove your U.S. citizenship is a valid U.S. passport. Other documents that establish U.S. citizenship include an expired U.S. passport, a certified copy of your birth certificate, a Certificate of Naturalization, a Certificate of Citizenship or a Report of Birth Abroad of a U.S. citizen. To prove your identity, either a valid driver's license or a government identification card that includes a photo or physical description is acceptable.

(The above reproduced from: http://www.house.gov/murtha/services/passport.htm)