If you are a U.S. citizen traveling to/from another country, you are required to have certain documents.
The United States now requires that citizens returning from other countries have a valid, unexpired Passport (or in some cases — see below — a Passport Card).
- If you are traveling by air, to/from any country, you must have a U.S. Passport.
- If you are traveling by boat, automobile, bus, train or foot to/from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda or the Caribbean Islands, you must have either a U.S. Passport or a U.S. Passport Card.
- If you are traveling by any means, to/from a U.S. Territory, you must have a valid photo ID.
Other countries have their own rules regarding entry and exit – the list is too long (and changes too frequently) for us to maintain the requirements for other countries, but the State Department website is a good place to start researching what you’ll need.
This is the U.S. Department of State website for information on international travel:
http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/country.html
This is the U.S. Department of State website for information on obtaining a US Passport:
http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english.html
NOTE: It’s critical to pay attention to the expiration date on your current Passport – some countries enforce rules regarding a minimum length of time before your Passport expiration date within which you can visit their country (for example, Mexico requires that your Passport not expire within 6 months of the date you plan to return home from visiting Mexico).
