Passport needed to go to Toronto?

[allie&mattsmom]

Hi everyone. Does anyone know if I will need a passport to fly to Toronto from the U.S.? I've done a bit of on-line research and it kindof looks like I may only need a birth certificate and photo i.d.? Thanks for any info anyone can give me.

 

[damo]

Right now you still only need a birth certificate and photo id.

 

[BethR]

I cannot guarantee this information, but I do believe that the passport for Canada rule is not yet in effect - next year perhaps? I know that one year it is Canada and the next Mexico or visa versa. But I think that this year, you still are safe to enter Canada with just a birth certificate and photo ID.

 

[daisyduck123]

You DO need a passport.

My friend, her DH, & 4 month old son planned to go to her grandmother's in Canada over Christmas break. Well, when they got to the airport, they would not let her board the plane because she DID NOT have a passport for her 4 month old. My friend, her DH, & baby spent the holidays here in Maryland.

 

[allie&mattsmom]

You DO need a passport.

My friend, her DH, & 4 month old son planned to go to her grandmother's in Canada over Christmas break. Well, when they got to the airport, they would not let her board the plane because she DID NOT have a passport for her 4 month old. My friend, her DH, & baby spent the holidays here in Maryland.

We would be taking a private plane. Do you think this would make a difference? Everyone I've been asking has told me we don't need a passport untill 2008 but my friends husband whose company plane it is and travels to Toronto freqently is out of the country so we can't ask him, so I thought I'd try my Dis friends.

 

[daisyduck123]

We would be taking a private plane. Do you think this would make a difference? Everyone I've been asking has told me we don't need a passport untill 2008 but my friends husband whose company plane it is and travels to Toronto freqently is out of the country so we can't ask him, so I thought I'd try my Dis friends.

Hmmmm...I don't really know...if that would make a difference.

I wonder about this 2008 rule...because this really did happen to my friend this past Christmas....I'm not sure if she was flying out of BWI, National, or Dulles. I'll have to ask her tomorrow.

 

[Nancy]

I drive over the border a lot, gotta hit those casinos! We do not need a passport yet. I show my license, no birth certificate. If we drive to Toronto,the kids bring their school ID's (pictures on them) and birth certificates. Plus, it is my understanding that we won't need it to ENTER Canada, we will need it to RE-ENTER the US. We'll be heading to Toronto over Memorial Day weekend.

 

[BethR]

You DO need a passport.

My friend, her DH, & 4 month old son planned to go to her grandmother's in Canada over Christmas break. Well, when they got to the airport, they would not let her board the plane because she DID NOT have a passport for her 4 month old. My friend, her DH, & baby spent the holidays here in Maryland.

I don't understand. I just did a search and ended up at this site:

U.S. Department of State
Bureau of Consular Affairs

http://travel.state.gov/travel/tips/regional/regional_1170.html

and it states this:

Travelers to and from Canada will be required to have a U.S. passport or other secure, accepted document to enter or re-enter the United States. For land border crossings to Canada, other documents that we anticipate will be acceptable are NEXUS and FAST program cards. No other document is currently available that will be an acceptable substitute for a U.S. passport, NEXUS or FAST card. However, we are using new technologies to create other acceptable travel documents. We will make public additional travel document options as they become available.

The travel initiative requirements will be rolled out in phases. The proposed implementation timeline is as follows:

*
December 31, 2006 – Passport required for all air and sea travel to or from Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and Bermuda.
* December 31, 2007 – Passport required for all land border crossings, as well as air and sea travel.

 

[daisyduck123]

Sorry everyone...I can only tell you what happened to my friend at Christmas...maybe the airport wanted a passport for her 4 month old because he didn't have a photo i.d.??

I don't know.

But they were not allowed to board the plane.

 

[Yzma and Kronk]

BethR's information is right.

Currently you DO NOT need a passport to enter Canada. But after Dec 31, 2006 you will need it if entering by air. Not to get into Canada, but actually to get back into the US. See the "enter, re-enter the US" part.

dailyduck123 - sorry about what happened to your friends, but that doesn't sound right. Was it the airline that had a problem? Did the 4month old have a birth certificate?

allie&mattsmom - you will be fine with a photo ID and Birth Certificate.

 

[BethR]

Sorry everyone

No need to apologize! You are only telling an experience that you were familiar with.

By any chance - was your friend born in Canada? I am wondering if THAT is the reason that she might have needed a US Passport if she was going over the border since a Canadian birth certificate could not prove US citizenship.

 

[daisyduck123]

dailyduck123 - sorry about what happened to your friends, but that doesn't sound right. Was it the airline that had a problem? Did the 4month old have a birth certificate?

I don't know if they had the birth certificate with them. I'm going to ask her when I talk to her this week.

All I remember is that on Christmas Day they called us to say they were still in town because they weren't allowed to board the plane because they did not have a passport for Josh. We couldn't believe it!!

I'm guessing maybe they didn't have his birth certificate either...sounds like that must be it.

allie&matt'smom....sorry for giving you bad information.

 

[daisyduck123]

No need to apologize! You are only telling an experience that you were familiar with.

By any chance - was your friend born in Canada? I am wondering if THAT is the reason that she might have needed a US Passport if she was going over the border since a Canadian birth certificate could not prove US citizenship.

No, she was born here in Maryland. And she had her passport, so did DH....just didn't have one for the baby.

 

[Nancy]

I don't know if they had the birth certificate with them. I'm going to ask her when I talk to her this week.

All I remember is that on Christmas Day they called us to say they were still in town because they weren't allowed to board the plane because they did not have a passport for Josh. We couldn't believe it!!

I'm guessing maybe they didn't have his birth certificate either...sounds like that must be it.

allie&matt'smom....sorry for giving you bad information.

Well, you technically didn't give bad information...you gave what info you had. Luckily we drive over the border, Toronto takes me at the most 1 1/2 hours to get to, so we don't have to get ours for a bit yet.

 

[allie&mattsmom]

Thanks everyone. It sounds as if it will work out fine. It's just a quick day trip but I'd really love to go since I've never been to Canada before (I need to get myself a passport regardless as my mom said!). Daisyduck123, that is terrible that that happened to your friends. I do wonder if it was just the airlines or what? Thanks for all the info and help guys. I love the fact that I know I can always hop on the DIS boards and pretty much learn anything I need to know!

 

[BethR]

No, she was born here in Maryland. And she had her passport, so did DH....just didn't have one for the baby.

I thought that perhaps since the grandma was in Canada that perhaps she had been born in Canada.

That had to have been a real bummer for your friend and family. I know that I would have been so upset!

I will be interested in hearing the details from your friend.

Another thought. If they did not have the baby's BC with them, then it could very well have been that they were not permitted to cross the border since there was no way to prove the that baby was THEIRS. So customs might have been trying to prevent baby-napping.

And the more that I think about it, I'll bet that was it since they are VERY strict about children crossing the border without proper identification. It is to protect the children more than anything.

Again, it had to have been terribly upsetting.

 

[allie&mattsmom]

allie&matt'smom....sorry for giving you bad information.

OMG, please, I just saw your post and please don't feel that way! I do not feel like you gave me bad information! Seriously, everyone has different experences and your friends may have just got unlucky and had a bad one with the airline or whatever. Believe me, I've had my share of bad experiences with airlines. Thanks for your help!

 

[daisyduck123]

You're welcome...

 

[Yzma and Kronk]

daisyduck123 - Don't worry about it! You were giving good information for what you had, which I'm sure will help someone when crossing with infants.

I think it might have been ID for the baby. They are really particular about crossing with kids sometimes. Customs asked our kids specifically once who DH and I were, and asked us to keep quiet. It just about freaked them out, but thankfully they gave the correct answers. You never know with kids under 6!!

 

[golfgal]

You DO need a passport.

My friend, her DH, & 4 month old son planned to go to her grandmother's in Canada over Christmas break. Well, when they got to the airport, they would not let her board the plane because she DID NOT have a passport for her 4 month old. My friend, her DH, & baby spent the holidays here in Maryland.

There must have been something else going on here because since you didn't need a passport to go to Canada and children don't need a photo ID to board a plane they must have had something else that prevented them from boarding the plane.