Document Requirements For Border Crossing Take Effect

By Celina Avila

EL PASO — The time has finally arrived where oral declarations of citizenship will no longer be all that is need for U.S. citizens returning from Mexico back into the United States.

Effective Thursday morning, past the midnight hour, Americans will be required to show proof of citizenship beyond a driver’s license. A passport or birth certificate will be required and some are still worried about the confusion and commotion the document requirements will have.

“A lot of people have the misconception that they’re going to be asking for passports… and that’s not true,” said Aida Candelaria of the El Paso County District Clerk’s Office.

Americans crossing at the various ports of entry will need to show either a passport or passport card, but for those who don’t have one, astate issued IDand a birth certificate will work.

Those wishing to apply for the new passport card for land and sea travel can begin applying on February 1 and cards are expected to begin arriving a month later. Full enforcement of the document requirements will begin June 2009.

Because of the new requirements, staff at the county clerk’s office has been ‘chaotic’, with lines and sign-in sheets filling quickly to request certified copies of birth certificates.

“Lately, we’ve been having so many people that we’re needing to close out around noon,” Candelaria added. “Usually, around noon, we’ve got about 6 sign-in sheets and that’s usually about 150 already signed in.”

A sample image of the newest passport and passport card application can be found in the associated link above. Pricing for them has changed also: passports for adults are $75, passport cards for adults are $45 and $35 for a child.

Mexican citizens headed into the U.S. will not need to show any new forms of identification. To avoid any confusion, the rules are listed as follows:

Oral declarations of citizenship alone will NO longer be accepted U.S. and Canadian citizens aged 19 or over will need to present a government-issued ID such as a driver’s license, along with proof of citizenship, such as a birth or naturalization certificate Children aged 18 or younger will only be required to present proof of citizenship such as a birth certificate Passports and trusted traveler program cards – NEXUS, SENTRI, and FAST – will continue to be accepted for cross-border travel