9/07/05 -
Passports deadline extended through 2006 -
GENERAL INFO - The departments of Homeland Security and
State of the US government have released changes to the Western
Hemisphere Travel Initiative. The Initiative had required that
all US citizens have passports in order to return to the US when
visiting the Dominican Republic and other Caribbean countries as
of 31 December 2005. The government announced it would extend
the requirement to 31 December 2006. As of that date, the US
government will require US citizens and foreign nations to
present a passport when entering the United States. The
requirement will apply to all air and sea travel to or from
Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean and
Bermuda. As of 31 December 2007, the requirement is extended to
all land border crossings as well as air and sea travel. See
http://travel.state.gov/travel/cbpmc/cbpmc_2223.html