Get ready for new border rules on Monday

Starting Monday, June 1, most Americans will need a passport, passport card or other high-security document to drive back into the U.S. from Mexico or Canada. Don’t have the right stuff? You may face a secondary inspection and delays.

Actually, you may be delayed anyway because no one can say for sure what will happen Monday.

“We are expecting a smooth implementation,” Kelly Ivahnenko, spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, told me this month. She explained that about 80% of travelers were already showing the right documents at checkpoints. Those who don’t, she added, won’t be denied entry.

But because about 800,000 people cross into the U.S. by land every day, even 20% arriving unprepared could cause delays. And two years ago, when new rules required fliers to show passports when returning from these countries, and also the Caribbean and Bermuda — a change that affected fewer travelers — backups and confusion resulted.

Checkpoint procedures will change for everyone Monday. To help you figure it out, CBP has posted videos that show the process, from start to finish.

For details on the new documents and rules, visit the government’s GetYouHome website. For information on passports and passport cards, go to the U.S. State Department’s website for travelers.

— Jane Engle, assistant Los Angeles Times Travel editor

[Image: The San Ysidro port of entry in San Diego. Credit: Denis Poroy / Associated Press]

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This entry was posted on Saturday, May 30, 2009 at 7:39 am by Jane Engle and is filed under Baja California, Business Travel, Cabo San Lucas, California, Cancun, Caribbean, Cozumel, Guadalajara, Ixtapa & Zihuatanejo, Latin America & Caribbean, Los Cabos, Luxury Travel, Mexico, Mexico City, News, Tips & Advice, Oaxaca City, Puerto Vallarta, San Jose del Cabo. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a comment, or trackback from your own site.