Category: Government Regulations

If you are traveling in 2010, there are new passport laws you need to be aware of.   For example, at the beginning of last year, American citizens could enter Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean without a passport. However, on June 1st, 2009, the final phase of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI for short) went into effect. Now, most Americans traveling to these countries do need passports to travel. Here are the details of the new passport laws: Americans traveling…

Well, better late than never...it looks like citizens of New Mexico (as well as other states that issue driver's licenses that aren't compliant with the REAL ID Act) will still be allowed to fly with their driver's licenses after the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve. Previously, New Mexican government officials had been warning citizens that they would not be able to use their driver's licenses to fly after January 1st, 2010. That is the date that the REAL…

Everyone needs a passport to fly to another country. However, after January 1st, 2010, New Mexico residents may need a passport for domestic flights, too. On that date, states are supposed to be in compliance with the "Real ID" act, and Americans without Real ID-compliant IDs will not be able to fly. New Mexico's driver's licenses are not Real ID-compliant, and according to this article on KOAT.com, the state is "nowhere near close."  Lawmakers are working to pass a new…

If you're planning on flying overseas anytime in the near future,  you may need a fast passport name change if the name on your passport doesn't match the name  that you usually use to book airline tickets.  The TSA's new Secure Flight program technically doesn't go into effect until next year, but as Joe Sharkey points out in the New York Times, it's pretty much in effect now. Most airlines already require that your tickets match your IDs exactly, down…