Passport changes on the horizon at the border

COEUR d’ALENE — Driving to Canada for the weekend? Remember to pack more than beer and a birth certificate.

Beginning in June 2009, U.S. travelers crossing international borders by land or sea must present a passport or another single document denoting citizenship and identity. Currently, travelers driving across the border must present a driver’s license with proof of citizenship such as a birth certificate to cross the border, or they can show their passport.

The new standard is part of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, a program started under the 2004 Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act.

“After 9/11, Congress passed (the IRTPA) to implement more strict standards for entering the U.S., and we’ve been rolling it out for a couple of years,” said Mike Milne, spokesperson for U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “What this brings us is a more secure America based on a more secure border.”

The new passport requirement will affect travelers heading to and from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and the Caribbean region. Air travelers have required a passport to enter the U.S. from these destinations since last year.

Staff at Eastport and Porthill — North Idaho’s two border stations — probably won’t have to deny many people access to Canada when the new standard takes effect, said area port director Patricia Lagerwey. Most who roll through the primary booths already have a passport, she said.

“It is a very high percentage of people who are compliant now with (the upcoming) requirements,” Lagerwey said.

But border travelers without passports don’t necessarily have to fork over a couple gas tanks worth of cash for a new passport book ($100, execution fee included). To help people prepare for the transition, the federal government has created a less expensive passport card that will meet the requirements for land and sea travel.

The wallet-sized card itself costs $20, with an additional $25 execution fee. The cost for a person under 16 is $10, compared to the $60 passport book. The card lasts 10 years for adults and five for minors, the same as the book.

It’s also intended to speed up border crossings, as officers can scan the card to access photographs and other biographical information stored in government databases.

Lagerwey predicted the cards will move traffic through the station much faster, especially during busy summer months, as officers won’t have to fumble with birth certificates or type in long names.

“It’s much like a supermarket when cashiers have to type in bar code numbers manually and slows everything up,” she said. “It’s best to streamline things.”

The card is also installed with a vicinity-read radio frequency chip, so at some port entries  (North Idaho entries not included), officers can retrieve the holder’s information before the traveler reaches the inspection booth.

No personal information is stored on the chip, Milne said.

People have applied for the cards in advance since February, though the cards have only been in production since late June.

About half of the daily passport applicants at the Coeur d’Alene Post Office apply for the card, said mail entry clerk Corrol Bainard. About 80 percent of applicants are planning trips to Canada or Mexico, she said, and the card is a cheap alternative for constant border crossers such as families ferrying their kids into Canada often to play hockey or other winter sports.

“It’s a really handy item, it’s less expensive (than a passport book), and if you’re going to be in Canada or Mexico and your book is lost, damaged or stolen, the card would still get you home,” Bainard said. “It’s $20 well spent.”