U.S. to Require Passports at Borders to Boost Security

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.S. citizens will be required to show their passports when they re-enter the United States from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean by 2008 under new federal rules, news services reported Wednesday.

The new rules set by the Departments of State and Homeland Security are designed to prevent potential terrorists from entering the country via other nations in North America, the Washington Post reported.

DHS said on its Web site it anticipated that cards used by frequent travelers — including the FAST, or Free and Secure Trade, cards used by many truckers — would be acceptable for land-border crossings.

The rule's first phase will take effect Dec. 31, requiring U.S. citizens traveling by air or sea to or from the Caribbean, as well as Central and South America, to have passports, the Post said.

The next phase, which will apply the rules to all air and sea travel to or from Mexico and Canada, will start a year later, at the end of 2006.

The final phase, affecting the most people, will take effect Dec. 31, 2007, and will apply the requirement to all air, sea and land border crossings with Mexico and Canada, the Post reported.

The rules also will also apply to citizens from those countries who want to enter the United States, prompting Canadian officials to announce they might reciprocate, the Associated Press reported.

Canada is the United States' largest trading partner, with $1.2 billion worth of goods crossing the border every day, AP said. About 16 million Canadians entered the United States last year, generating an estimated $7.9 billion in travel-related revenues, AP reported.

Currently, U.S. citizens in most cases need to show only driver's licenses to re-enter from Mexico and Canada, though officials said that since 9/11, some border crossing officials have asked for additional documents, the Post reported.

An estimated 60 million Americans — about 20 percent of the population — have passports, AP said.