New U.S. passport rules in effect

As of January 23, 2007 citizens of the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Bermuda are required to present a valid passport, Air NEXUS card, or U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Document to gain entry into the United States.

In addition, for international outbound travel, some countries now require a traveler’s U.S. passport be valid at least 6 months or longer beyond the dates of the trip. Travelers with passports expiring prior to the required validity date need to apply for a new one. Country specific requirements can be found at: http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/brochures/brochures_1229.html.

The most current detail from CWT on passport rules can be found in the January 2007 issue of CWT Traveler: http://www.carlsonwagonlit.com/us/cwttraveler. In addition, see the December 2006, November 2006, October 2006 and August 2006 issues of CWT Traveler for detail on how the passport rule changes evolved.