I've never understood being able to enter the country without proof of citizenship. If I had balls of steel, I could have been travelling on my driver's license this whole time. Legally I don't think there's any country (including my own) that I can enter without a passport. I'd always assumed that was just how it was everywhere.
You're legally supposed to have proof of citizenship and ID to cross the border. I've never crossed without it.
But you have a couple years.
Given that they've almost doubled in cost since my parents got theirs in 2001, I'm going to go with the getting it sooner, rather than later option.
If I had balls of steel, I could have been travelling on my driver's license this whole time.
My friend who is a naturalized citizen of the US travels abroad with her passport
and
naturalization papers anyway. Because, who knows what Canadian agent might get a bug up his butt and try to deport her to her country of birth -- Colombia. Legally, she should have been safe with the driver's license, but practically, she was not.
For this reason, I have never seen Niagara Falls from the Canadian side -- she had left her passport in Florida.
It also said Canada may retailiate by requiring Americans to show passports. But FWIW, I wouldn't travel to the US without my passport now, anyway. Especially by air.
I travel back and forth to the US without a valid passport all the time, and have for years. I use my driver's license, and I have an expired passport as backup. However, as readers of my LJ are painfully aware, I have now have proof of Canadian citizenship again, and will be getting a new Cdn passport in the near future.
You're legally supposed to have proof of citizenship and ID to cross the border
That's what I'd thought -- but I know people who travel on nothing (Detroit/Windsor tunnel), and I may have just looked at the floor on an impromptu expedition or two. And the article states just a license will do. Don't know if that's de jure.
Not bright behaviour.
If I had balls of steel, I could have been travelling on my driver's license this whole time.
They'd have to be not only steel, but stolen.
They'd have to be not only steel, but stolen.
Which isn't easy since, logically, they'd have to stolen from someone who has balls of steel.
Hey, that reminds me. Passport expires in a few months. Need to go get more pictures taken. Probably should submit a new picture for my credit card as well. It's a nice picture but....my hair isn't that long and I'm not 19.
JohnSweden - what's your lj name?
And the article states just a license will do. Don't know if that's de jure.
Legally, I'm pretty sure you have to have a DL and birth certificate, if you don't have a passport.
In practice, I used to travel to Canada with only a DL all the time. But since 9/11 I've been carrying my passport. (Driving, you still don't really need one to get into Canada, but getting back into the US has gotten to be much more of an ordeal.)
Yeah, I know a lot of people who've gone with just their license--they'll lecture you about it now, but generally let you cross. (Paul didn't have his birth certificate with him when we went up for Gram's wake.)
Realistically, I don't see how this is going to actually tighten security any more than actually enforcing the rules would.
