By Dan Schlossberg
ConsumerAffairs.com
June 8, 2007
The U.S. Government has been forced to suspend its new requirement that U.S. citizens flying to and from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean have a passport.
Since only one in four Americans had passports at the start of the year, the imposition of the new rules created a sudden stampede. And now the U.S. State Department admits it has been unable to process the huge increase in demand for passports because of the new rule.
For now, U.S. citizens traveling from those North American countries need only show proof that they have applied for a passport, along with a photo ID. There is no word on how long the suspension will last.
The temporary suspension will allow government clerks to clear their backlog of passport applications.
That backlog, which began soon after the new rules went into effect in January, has created chaos with the arrival of the summer vacation season. Many angry consumers have complained to the government the delay in receiving their passports resulted in the cancellation of their travel plans.
The rule was put in place as a post-911 measure to combat terrorism. Previously Americans could travel to Canada and Mexico and enter those countries without a passport.
Caribbean, Mexican and Canadian tourist destinations have complained about the U.S. passport backlog as well, noting a decline in the once-lucrative U.S. tourism market.
Behind from the Start
The program has been marked by delays, confusion and turmoil.
In April, children were given a temporary and partial examption from the new rules, when the Department of Homeland Security decreed that birth certificates would suffice for kids coming by land or sea, according to the Department of Homeland Security.
That saves families $82 per child, the cost of acquiring a child's passport, and make it easier for sports teams and school groups to cross the border.
