On June 1, 2009, the Western Hemisphere Travel Iniatiative (WHTI) will go in to effect at land and sea ports of entry, requiring travelers including U.S. and Canadian citizens to present the new approved travel documents to enter the United States. WHTI mandates dcoument requirements for  travellers who were previously exempt, inlcuding citizens of the U.S., Canada, and Bermuda.

The approved documents include: passport; passport card; a NEXUS, SENTRI or FAST trusted traveler program card; or a state- or province-issued enhanced driver’s license. Travelers under age 16 need only to present a birth certificate or alternate proof of citizens. A list of acceptable documents and how to apply for them is available at GetYouHome.gov.

NEXUS is a CBP-Canada Border Services Agency program that both governments implemented to attempt to simplfiy the entry process for pre-approved, low-risk travellers.

SENTRI is a land-border crossing program that provides expedited Customs and Border Patrol processing for low-risk, pre-approved travelers along the U.S./Mexico border.

FAST (Free and Secure Trade) program is available to commercial drivers crossing the northern and southern borders.

Travelers without the proper travel docuemnts may face long delays.

This entry was posted on Monday, January 12th, 2009 at 3:39 pm and is filed under General Immigration and Nationality Law. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.