New Passport Office Inaugurated In Detroit - Expedited Passports

American citizens in Michigan now have a passport office nearby.  On Monday, Ambassador Janice L. Jacobs, Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs, inaugurated a Regional Passport Agency office downtown at 211 West Fort Street.

Before this office opened, the nearest Regional Passport Agency was in Chicago, Illinois. A Regional Passport Agency office helps travelers who need a passport for travel within the next 14 days. Given that new passport rules will go into effect on June 1st, requiring a passport to come back across the Canadian border, the new passport office could not have opened at a better time.

Regional Passport Agencies admit travelers by appointment only. They are open only during limited business hours, Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm, meaning that many travelers will have to take off work to visit.

Is there an easier way to get a passport immediately? And what about the many Americans who don’t live within driving distance of a Regional Passport Agency office? Fortunately, there is a way to get your passport quickly without having to wait in line, make an appointment, or drive long distances. A private passport expediting company can forward your application directly to the US Department of State for faster processing-sometimes in as little as 24 hours!

Why waste time driving to the passport office for your appointment? Order your passport from us today!

Still trying to come up with ideas for Mother’s Day? Cruises have become surprisingly affordable-why not pitch in with your siblings and get her a cruise? For example, the Travel Deals blog has a link to some great deals on Caribbean cruises, starting as low as $179!

Remember, though, that travel requirements for cruises to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean are changing.  Currently, travelers on cruises to these regions can use photo ID and proof of citizenship, like a birth certificate, to re-enter the United States. However, starting June 1st, 2009, passports will be required for adults on cruises to Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean, unless the cruises begin and end at the same US port.

If you’re purchasing a cruise for Mom this year, make sure to check with the cruise line to see if passports will be required. If your mother doesn’t have a passport, you can help her apply for an expedited passport if she needs one. Since most of the cruises that are on sale leave within the next month or so, the best way to make sure Mom has her passport in time is to use a private passport expediting service. Although the US Department of State offers expedited service, their expedited service currently takes at least 3 weeks door-to-door.  An expediting company can have her expedited passport application processed in as little as 24 hours, so she won’t have to worry about being left in port.

Order an expedited passport today, and get ready to enjoy life on the high seas!

Today is May 1st, which means that in exactly one month, new passport regulations will go into effect as part of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative. We’ve written about the WHTI pretty extensively, but since it’s about to become reality, here’s  a quick review of the upcoming changes:

• Passports are already required for air travel to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.  There are no exceptions, and this will continue after June 1st, 2009.
• Starting June 1st, 2009, passports will be required for land and sea travel to these locations, too. Currently, all you have to have is a state-issued photo ID and a birth certificate.
• After June 1, 2009, children under age 16 will be able to use a birth certificate instead of a passport for land and sea travel to these locations only.
• After June 1, 2009, children ages 16-18 traveling with supervised, chaperoned groups like sports teams, church groups, or school groups will be able to use birth certificates instead of passports, as well.
• Passports will still be required for all air travelers, no matter how old.
• Passengers on closed-loop cruises (cruises that begin and end at the same US port) may continue to use an ID and birth certificate.

To help US  citizens who travel across the border frequently, the Department of State has introduced a wallet-sized passport card that is less expensive than a traditional passport book. Unfortunately, it’s also less useful-you can only use it for land and sea travel to Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean.  You can’t use it for plane travel at all.

If you need a new passport, you should apply well in advance of your scheduled departure date, preferably at least 2 or 3 months before your trip. However, if you just realized you need a passport before June 1, there are ways to get a new passport quickly.

The easiest way to get a passport in a hurry is to use a private passport expediting service. An expediting service will deliver your application to the US Passport Agency directly, so it goes to the top of the pile.  By using an expediting service, you could have your new passport on its way back to you in as little as 24 hours, with no appointments or waiting in line.

Don’t get caught without a passport after June 1-order your new passport today!

Michigan has decided to offer an Enhanced Driver’s License (EDL), which its citizens can use instead of a passport for quick trips into Canada. Like the newer passports, the enhanced driver’s license has a radio frequency identification chip to provide stronger identification, so it is WHTI-compliant for land and sea trips to Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean. The final phase of the WHTI goes into effect June 1, 2009. After that date, you will need a passport or an enhanced driver’s license to cross the border. Currently, Michigan is one out of only four states to offer the EDL.

However, it’s important to remember that, like the new passport card, the EDL won’t work for air travel.  That’s why it’s best to only use it in place of a passport for quick jaunts across the border by car.  For extended stays, a passport is still best, even if you’re driving.  After all, if something were to come up and you needed to fly home quickly, you would want to have a passport, wouldn’t you?

Remember, the new rules for border crossing go into effect on June 1, so if you’re a frequent international traveler, you’d better apply for passport, quick!

If you apply for a passport with regular processing,  you should allow 2 to 3 months for it to arrive, just to be on the safe side. If you order through the government with expedited processing, expect to wait at least 3 weeks. However, faster passport processing service is available through private passport expediting companies.  These companies hand-deliver your passport to the US Passport Agency for processing-it’s basically the equivalent of being whisked to the front of the line, so you can get your passport processed in as little as 24 hours.

Need a passport? Apply with us today to get a passport quickly and conveniently!

US citizens planning a trip to Canada, Mexico or the Caribbean need to be aware of new travel requirements that will become effective June 1st, 2009. After June 1st,  the days of being able to cross the border by flashing your driver’s license and your birth certificate are over.  US citizens traveling to these regions will need to show US passports or passport cards to re-enter the country…or else!

Right about now, your inner three-year-old is probably asking “Oh yeah…or else what?” What happens if you try to get back in to the US without a passport after June 1st? Will you be trapped at the border forever? Arrested?

Fortunately, the consequences for American citizens trying to re-enter the country without US passports after the deadline are not quite that grim. According to the US government’s fact sheet on the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, travelers will “likely experience a delay as U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers attempt to verify your identity and citizenship.” In other words, expect to be massively inconvenienced.

Being held up by Customs and Border Protection is no small matter…delays in getting home can result in having to pay extra for lodging, missing work and many other inconveniences. It’s also worth noting that if you are planning on traveling on a cruise or with a professional tour group, they probably won’t let you leave the US with them in the first place if you don’t have the right documents for re-entry.

So, please, don’t forget your US passports!

If you have a trip planned for Mexico, Canada or the Caribbean, the fastest way to get US passports is to use a private passport expediting service.  When you use an expediting service, you get the benefit of faster processing and more personal customer service.

RushMyPassport.com offers a variety of processing times for applications for US passports to make sure your trip stays on schedule. For the fastest service, order your US passports from us today!

Update: Passport rules for the Virgin Islands have changed. View the latest rules here.

If your spring or summer travel plans include travel to the Virgin Islands, you may be wondering if you need a passport. The answer depends primarily on your itinerary.  First, are going to the US Virgin Islands or the British Virgin Islands?

The US Virgin Islands consist of St. Thomas, St. Croix and St. John. These islands are US territories.  If you travel directly to and from the US Virgin Islands, you do not need a US passport.

However, if you stop by any other countries in the Caribbean along the way, you may or may not need a passport. Here’s the scoop: Before June 1st, 2009, American citizens traveling to the Caribbean by sea can use either a passport or a driver’s license AND a birth certificate (or naturalization certificate) to prove their identity and citizenship when they re-enter the US. However, air travelers must have a US passport.

So, if you’re on a cruise that stops in both the US Virgin Islands and another Caribbean country, you can use your driver’s license and birth certificate. If you are on a flight that has a layover in another Caribbean country on the way to the US Virgin Islands, you need a passport-even if you never set foot outside of the airport.

After June 1st, 2009, sea travelers to other Caribbean countries will need passports, too.

The British Virgin Islands consist of 16 inhabited islands and more than 20 uninhabited islands. The major islands are Tortola, Anegada, Virgin Gorda and Jost Van Dyke.

The United Kingdom owns these islands.  Like other Caribbean countries, they are covered under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI). So, the rules are the same as the rules described above: Before June 1st, 2009, air passengers need passports while sea passengers can use driver’s licenses and birth certificates. After June 1st, 2009 everyone needs a passport.

For more details on changing passport regulations in the Caribbean, see “Do I Need a Passport to go to the Caribbean?” (more…)

For many years, crossing the Canadian/American border was hardly more difficult than crossing from one state to another. In the “good old days,” all you had to do was verbally declare your citizenship at the border and you were good to go. The Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI) put an end to that practice.

Under the WHTI, Passengers on US/Canada flights have been required to carry passports since 2007, but the rules remained more relaxed for land and sea crossings. American citizens crossing by land were only  required to bring photo ID and a birth certificate or other proof of citizenship with them before driving across the border.

On June 1, 2009, the final phase of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative will take effect. After that date, Americans will need a US passport, a US Passport Card or another “WHTI-compliant” document to cross the border. This disturbs advocates for an open border between the US and Canada, who believe that it will  affect trade and tourism.

For example, in this article from GlobeandMail.com, New York Congresswoman Louise Slaughter predicts that after June 1, “There will be pure chaos. Lines will lengthen, people will be denied entry, tourism and business will suffer. And with the addition of the Olympics it’s going to be even more so.”

During a March 24th symposium sponsored by the Brookings Institution, US Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano had a clear message for open-border advocates like Congresswoman Slaughter: Get over it. The GlobeandMail.com article quotes Secretary Napolitano telling the symposium, “It’s a real border, and we need to address it as a real border.” She also asked citizens of both countries to accept a  “change of culture” at the US Canadian border. (more…)

This Saturday, March 28th,  passport offices around the country will celebrate “Passport Day in USA.” During this event, many Passport Acceptance Facilities will be open to accept passport applications, answer questions and provide information about the passport application process. All Department of State Regional Passport Agencies will also be open.

“Passport Day in the USA” is the only day of the year when the general public will be allowed to submit passport applications directly to a Regional Passport Agency without first making an appointment and paying an additional expediting fee.

This event is especially important this year, as the regulations governing travel to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean are changing effective June 1st. Currently, passengers traveling to these countries by plane must have a US passport, but passengers traveling by land or by sea can use a driver’s license and birth certificate. After June 1st, land and sea passengers will also need passports.

Since the rules are changing, it could take longer than usual to get a passport as the deadline approaches.  The last time the rules changed, passport offices were swamped with applications and wait times shot up dramatically. So, if you think you are going to be traveling this year, it’s a good idea to head down to your local passport office and apply for a passport.

To look up the nearest participating passport office and its hours of operation, visit the Department of State’s website.  However, don’t expect to actually get your passport on Passport Day in the USA. You’ll still have to wait at least 4 weeks!

If you need a passport more quickly, consider using a private passport expediting company to submit your passport application.

A private passport expediter will deliver your passport application directly to the US Passport Agency for processing,  so you won’t get caught in a “traffic jam” of passport applications.  Plus, expediters offer processing times that can be as fast as 24 hours!

Expedite your passport today and see how easy it is to get ready to travel!

UPDATED INFORMATION AS OF JUNE 1st, 2009: 

Air travel to and from Canada requires a US passport book for everyone of all ages, unless you have a valid NEXUS card. NEXUS card holders can use their NEXUS card as a substitute for a passport provided you are flying to preclearance Canadian airport with NEXUS kiosk.

Land and sea travel requires a passport, passport card, NEXUS, FAST or SENTRI card in most cases. However, children under the age of 16 can use birth certificates for land or sea travel. So can children under the age of 19, provided they are on an organized trip with a school, sports team, church group, volunteer group or similar organization. Passengers on closed-loop cruises (beginning and ending in the same US port) can use a driver’s license along with a birth certificate or naturalization certificate.

US travel regulations have changed a lot over the past few years, making questions like “Do you need a passport to go to Canada?” somewhat complicated to answer.

Right now, whether or not you need a passport to go to Canada depends on how you are traveling.  Our neighbor to the north is included in the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, aka the WHTI. Currently, American citizens traveling by land or sea to companies covered by the WHTI do not have to have passports. However, you will need to show a government-issued photo ID to prove your identity and a birth certificate, naturalization certificate or certificate of citizenship to prove that you are an American citizen. You do need a passport to go to Canada if you are traveling by plane.

Just when you thought you had it figured out, the rules are changing again in just a few short months. Effective June 1st, 2009, most land and sea passengers will have to have US passports to re-enter the country as well. There will be a few exceptions for certain people crossing the border by land or by sea: (more…)

Passport requirements for travel to the Caribbean have changed! Click here to see the most up-to-date information.

US travel regulations have been changing over the past few years, so you may need a passport to go to the Caribbean even if you were able to travel without one in the past. Here are the details you need to know to  plan your Caribbean adventure, including current requirements and upcoming changes.

Right now, whether or not you need a passport to go to the Caribbean depends in part on which Caribbean country you are traveling to. There are 17 Caribbean countries that are part of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI):

• Anguilla
• Antigua and Barbuda
• Aruba
• Bahamas
• Bermuda
• British Virgin Islands (more…)