October 19, 06

NEWS / New passport regulations going into effect

Vacationers flying to Canada for skiing or Mexico for some sunshine later this winter will need passports due to new rules made to combat terrorism.
Because getting a passport takes up to eight weeks, citizens should start applying for passports now if they plan trips early in 2007.
???It??™s better to do it when you have time, not when you want to go somewhere and are panicking,??? Katrina Lennartz of Katrina??™s Travel Agency in Hazleton said.
The new rules that the State Department set will take effect Jan. 8, 2007, and apply to United States citizens traveling by air or water within in the Western Hemisphere.
Americans can still drive to Canada through the end of 2007, but by 2008, they probably will need a passport to cross the border in motor vehicles, too.
Obtaining a passport costs $97 plus the price of two photographs, but passports are good for 10 years so the cost averages $10 a year, Lennartz said.
Vacationers who need passports in a rush, however, pay extra fees and even then might wait two weeks.
???My son needed one quick last year. He ended up paying $200,??? Lennartz said.
To obtain a passport, citizens must apply in person.
In the Hazleton area, they can apply at the Luzerne County Prothonotary??™s Office in the courthouse in Wilkes-Barre or the courthouse annex, 123 N. Warren St., West Hazleton. The Hazleton Post Office also accepts applications by appointment.
When arriving at a passport facility, citizens need to have two photographs measuring 2 inches on a side, an original copy of their birth certificate with the raised seal of a notary, and a valid Pennsylvania driver??™s license or Pennsylvania identification card. They also have to know their Social Security numbers and complete questions on an application form.
???Parents??™ birthday and birthplace ??“ that??™s the only one that really stumps people,??? Dave Roberts, the Luzerne County passport agent, said.
Roberts said applicants also need to write checks to the State Department for $67 for adults or $52 for children younger than 16 and $30 to the county for processing.
Forms are available in the Prothonotary??™s Office, the post office, and the Web site of the State Department (www.travel.state.gov)
AAA offices also have forms and offer passport photo to members for $7.99 or $11 for non-members. The Prothontary??™s Office charges $10 and the post office $15 for photos.
Expediting the application costs $60 extra plus $28.80 for Express Mail. Even then the passport might not arrive for two weeks, although some services tout faster service.
Lennartz said one company ??“ SuperClubs ??“ reimburses travelers for the cost of obtaining a passport if they book a trip by a certain date.
She said customers seem to accept the new rules.
???They know in today??™s world extra security measures are in place,??? she said.
The State Department has not set the date when drivers will need passports when crossing from the United States into Mexico or Canada, but the Web site anticipates the date of Jan. 1, 2008.
???A lot of people are going fishing or to Niagara Falls and so forth,??? Lennartz said. ???Naturally, it??™s going to affect people who didn??™t use it before.???
By KENT JACKSON
Standard-Speaker

Tags: notary, birth certificate, birth certificat,