NEW PASSPORT REQUIREMENTS for 2007

As of December 31, 2006, all U.S. citizens are required to have passports for travel within the Western Hemisphere, per the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission and the 2004 Intelligence Reform Bill. To implement the law, the Departments of State and Homeland Security proposed a phase-in program referred to as the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI). As announced in April 2005, the WHTI program originally recommended three different deadlines for U.S. citizens to obtain a passport, depending on the region they were traveling to within the Western Hemisphere. The government has now modified their original timeline to the following requirements for U.S. citizens:

* December 31, 2006 - Passport or other accepted document required for all air or sea travel within the Western Hemisphere.

* December 31, 2007 - Passport or other accepted document required for all U.S. border crossings.

The ICCL explains:

"The International Council of Cruise Lines (ICCL) is pleased that the government eliminated the initial December 2005 deadline for travel to the Caribbean, Bermuda and Central and South America. However, it would prefer implementation of all phases of the WHTI to be delayed until January 2008. There is no basis for treating travelers who travel by air or sea any differently from those who travel over land borders, and having two different sets of rules, depending on one's mode of travel, would be extremely confusing to travelers."

"In addition, having a unified implementation date of 2008 for all modes of travel will give much needed time to the federal government, the travel industry, and most importantly, the traveling public, to adapt to the new passport program. The Western Hemisphere includes the regions that are the most heavily visited cruise destinations in the world, accounting for approximately 70 percent of all cruise ship visits, or 7.6 million passengers. Currently, the State Department estimates that only 20 percent of all Americans have passports."

"The ICCL's highest priority is the safety and security of our passengers and crew, and we clearly understand that the government has a legitimate need to enhance the security at the borders. Requiring a standardized identification document, (e.g. passport) is an important aspect of that effort and it simplifies the process of border crossings to have a single recognized document in place. The members of the ICCL request that sufficient time be allotted to allow for the public to understand the new rules, and for the travel industry to be able to communicate the new requirements to their customers, and most importantly, for the public to obtain their passports."

Please visit the following State Department web pages for new passport requirements:

Click here to view the implementation timeline and further details regarding the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative.

Click here to learn how to apply for a passport.

Click here to print copies of all necessary passport application forms.