State Department Temporarily Adjusts Passport Requirement
The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) today expressed approval of the State Department’s move to temporarily give U.S. citizens flexibility in the requirement that they have a passport in order to return by air from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda.
Under the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative (WHTI), U.S. citizens traveling by air from those destinations to the United States have been required for several months to present a passport. During that time, the number of passport applications has soared, creating a backlog of people waiting for many weeks for their applications to be approved. NBTA has long been an advocate for implementation of the WHTI requirements in such a way that security is strengthened without impeding business travel or the flow of commerce. Unfortunately, recent reports from NBTA members have indicated that passport application processing delays have created problems for business travelers.
The State Department announced today that through September in addition to a passport, U.S. citizens entering the country by air from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda would be allowed to present as documentation a government ID, such as a driver’s license, together with a print-out of a status check from the State Department website demonstrating he or she has applied for a passport. This stop-gap measure should provide relief for travelers who recently applied for passports or will do so soon.
NBTA is pleased to serve as both an advocate and information source for its membership base of business travel professionals. In the role of information source, NBTA conveyed the State Department change to its members today, noting:
“It is important for business travelers to realize a lag time still exists between the submission of a passport application and an applicant’s ability to confirm on the State Department website that the application has been received. As of today, State Department website indicates ‘it is taking up to 1 week for Expedited Applications and up to 4 weeks for Routine Applications to be tracked online.’”
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The National Business Travel Association is the source for critical information on the business travel industry. For nearly 40 years, NBTA has dedicated itself to the professional development of its members through advocacy, education and training, and networking opportunities. NBTA represents over 2,700 corporate and government travel managers and travel service providers, who collectively manage and direct more than $170 billion of expenditures within the business travel industry. For more on NBTA, visit www.nbta.org.
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