U.S. changes passport plan for travelers entering from Canada, Mexico

WASHINGTON — The government has delayed a Dec. 31, 2005, deadline for the first phase of a plan to require Americans traveling to and from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and the other allied nations to show a passport or other secure document.

The departments of State and Homeland Security said they expect to officially adopt the new policy — which drew complaints from travelers, the affected nations and even President Bush — by the end of the year. But they pushed back by a year the date when the requirements would begin to affect travelers, and said they would work to come up with an alternative document that would be cheaper and easier to obtain than a passport.

Under the new timeline, all who travel by air or sea from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Bermuda and South and Central America will have to show a passport or one of four other secure documents by Dec. 31, 2006.

Travelers crossing land borders, namely from Mexico and Canada, will have to comply with the rules by Dec. 31, 2007.

Department officials also said they will keep working to come up with a cheaper, more widely used alternative document to allow U.S. citizens and other travelers to cross into the country over land borders. Passports cost $97.

After the rules were announced in April, Bush said he was surprised by the passport requirement, which drew sharp criticism from the Canadian government, and said he had ordered a review of the plans. Last December, Bush signed into law an intelligence overhaul that requires tighter border security and was the basis for the passport proposal.

Homeland Security spokesman Jarrod Agen said the administration is looking to use biometric technology in creating an alternative identification card before the 2007 deadline.

"This gives us time to develop the most sensible and secure document which won't stop the flow of traffic at the border," he said.

The Canadian government will continue working with the administration to develop a new document for widespread use on both sides of the northern border, said Jasmine Panthaky, spokeswoman for the Canadian embassy in Washington.

Travel industry officials praised the news.

Earlier this summer, several representatives of industry trade groups met with senior-level Congressional and Bush Administration officials to express their concerns that the deadline would have adverse effects on travel for Americans.