The time has finally arrived. Starting March 1, it will be mandatory for U.S. citizens to have a passport when traveling to Mexico. This date had been pushed back several times, in part because agencies were flooded with applications and could not process and issues new passports in a timley manner. In fact, I thought this was already required and was suprised to learn that the drop-dead date is still coming up.

Considering that an estimated 93% of Americans travelling from Mexico to the U.S. already have one, it should be a pretty smooth transtion. According to the Dallas Morning News:

"The new rule applies also to U.S. legal residents, who will have to show their green cards or other documents demonstrating their legal status in the U.S...

The new measure aligns itself with the State Department’s Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which since June has required U.S. travelers to show their passports to re-enter the country...

The U.S. allows children under 15 traveling with their parents to re-enter the country by showing their birth certificates.

It is not clear if Mexico will do the same or require all travelers to produce passports."

For more info on the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, click here.

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