<p>My son is planning a weekend road trip to Canada with other college friends next week, but he just discovered his passport is expired. </p>
<p>Apparently he can get into Canada with his expired passport, a driver’s license, and his birth certificate, but he can’t re-enter the US. Is that right? Does anyone have ANY experience with this dilemma?</p>
<p>BTW: the kids are planning on leaving next weekend, July 16th-18th, so there’s not even enough time to take advantage of their rush service. The rush service still needs 2-3 weeks, not 7 days.</p>
<p>Technically, if you’re a US citizen, you cannot be refused entry into the country. But if you’re trying to enter without the required documents, you’re probably going to be spending some time at the point of entry trying to prove your citizenship status.
I can’t imagine you’d have too much trouble with an expired passport + drivers license + birth certificate, but who knows. You could always call CBP and see what they say.</p>
<p>Also, if you live near a regional passport center ([Passport</a> Agencies](<a href=“U.S. Passports”>U.S. Passports)), you can go there and get your passport very quickly (i’ve heard stories of same-day or just a few days wait!). Some of them also offer same-day “passport card” service.</p>
<p>When I visited Toronto 3 weeks ago (drove up from NY), I had to show a valid passport to LEAVE the US and cross into Canada. </p>
<p>There are regional passport offices that can do emergency replacements. (D has a friend who lost/had his passport stolen 2 days before he was scheduled to leave on a 3 week trip to Europe. Instead of coming home and then leaving for London, he spent 2 days in Chicago getting his passport replaced. It was quite expensive.)</p>
<p>Not looking good or positive. So after my son did lots of research, including a more firm idea of who is going and how much it costs, he decided to skip the trip. I guess he figured he should be home making $$$ this summer and save those road trips to a weekend in college. Whew! We live in New Canaan, CT which is probably close to one of those Passport agencies, so who knows?! Just the same, he’s going to get his passport renewed tomorrow.</p>
<p>Not according to US Customs and Border Protection - did you look at the site I cited?</p>
<p>And Canada just wants to make sure you have proper documentation to get back into the US, so entering canada isn’t a problem eith an EDL either.</p>
<p>So you’re saying if you live in one of 4 states that borders Canada. That makes sense, but the vast majority of us need a passport or passport card.</p>
<p>A friend thinking it still just required a DL was tuned back last month.</p>
<p>I was involved in a situation like this where I actually wound up using ff miles to fly to Seattle and hand deliver a passport to the traveling companion of someone stuck in Canada – the person got into Canada but couldn’t get out!</p>
<p>While you only need the passport/passport card/enhanced ID to enter the US, the Canadian border agent is going to ask for one of them because they don’t want you to be stuck in Canada. A family friend went to an event at the Peace Arch where the US relaxed the reentry requirement for the day, but that is a rare event.</p>
<p>If you son wanted to technically be in Canada this summer, he might be able to walk around the area on the Canadian side of the border before customs.</p>
<p>LimaBeans … I think there is still the passport agency at 50 Washington Street in SoNo. Haven’t checked in awhile … but think positive and start there! He might be able to get his passport in a day.</p>
<p>One of my sons got his passport very quickly (a couple of days) by making an appt. at the regional office and going in in person – once you make the appt., I think you can get it in a day – you have to have proof of your travel plans (copies of airline ticket purchase, for instance) in order to do it. My other son got his quickly too, by using a company suggested on another thread – he sent the docs to them and they got them to the regional office and got the passport – took about a week total, including mailing things to them, and them mailing the passport to us (Fed Ex). Oh, it was suspenseful, but it worked out.</p>
<p>I just spent today completing my Nexus Card so I can drive over the US/Canadian border, but my impression is that I was eligible because I live in NY State. It creates real economic hardship in many near-border cities and towns to require passports of everyone who crosses the border daily for school or work. </p>
<p>I applied online a week ago, describing relevant documents and was invited for an interview to show them in person today; all went smoothly. I hope to have the Nexus card in hand within the coming week. They mail it out from Vermont. All this is helpful because I have to drive to Toronto later this month and had no time to chase after a passport. The NEXUS card costs $60 instead of the $100 passport fee. I don’t have a passport, however, so can only go to Canada, and not other cool places. </p>
<p>While at the interview I learned if anyone else in the car has a passport, not a Nexus card, we all have to sit in the long, slow (sometimes) border crossing line instead of whizzing through the Nexus lane. Or I can kick my H out of the car with his retro-passport if he’s holding me back this way. Or smuggle him in (declared worth “priceless”). Actually the Nexus guys told me he should get one, too, if we cross the border often and with tight schedules, which is the case.</p>
<p>I don’t know the terms and wouldn’t want to misdirect you by saying “nexus card = passport card.” I found the entire process and numerous choices confusing at times, but slogged through.</p>
<p>You didn’t ask this but I’ll add: I do know that a Nexus card is NOT the same as an “enhanced driver’s license”, which one can get at a Dept of Motor Vehicles and then always travel with that plus one’s birth certificate. (Mine happens to be from the U.S.). I didn’t want to go to the DMV and always have to carry my Birth Certificate over the border, but some living in upstate NY do it that way. I also don’t know what I’m able to do because of living in New York State so am trying to choose words carefully lest I generalize beyond my own experience here today as a US citizen living in upstate NY.</p>
<p>cpn55: my son did most of this research, including finding the regional office in Norwalk. He tried to make an appt with them, but apparently was told the first available appt was 7/19. Well, given that his plans were to be back by 7/18, that appointment would not work. He spoke to someone, but that person connected him to an automated service, so he also couldn’t explain his timing. So much for that effort. He went to a post office today, and she was quite surprised. However, after all this inconvenience, he concluded he wouldn’t bother.</p>
<p>One piece of news to anyone whose passport is expired or soon to be expired, the rates are increasing significantly as of 7/13. I think that’s the date. The cost goes from $75 to $110 (now it’s $75 to govt + $25 to processor like the post office), plus whatever rush factor gets added on. There are two steps. One expedited and another ultra-expedited where they actually hand you the passport in person. (My husband got this service once, and I thought he was being subpoena’d. His company paid for that. Apparently this is a familial dilemma!)</p>
<p>Thx for your info paying3tuitions. If I lived in Buffalo, that Nexus card sounds like the way to go, especially to avoid those longer lines.</p>
<p>I had to do this, too. I got to the airport for a school trip, got to the counter and was told my passport was expired…so we booked the same flights for the next day and started to figure out how to get a passport fast. </p>
<p>We called to make an appointment at the passport agency, but all the appointments were filled. But we then called one of our state representatives, who called the passport agency and got me an appointment for the next day. </p>
<p>I had to bring proof of travel and we had to wait in a bunch of lines, I didn’t technically have an “appointment” because all the appointments were full, but since my state rep had called, I got a pass that let me slip into the line anyways. I waited in line for about two hours and got my passport about two hours later, I’m guessing it went so fast since I had airline tickets for that afternoon. So it is possible to get an appointment even when the appointments are full if its super urgent, there was one other guy there that day who had also had his state rep call in to get him in.</p>
<p>I second hj0519’s advice in contacting your congressperson if you have issues getting a passport. Back in 2007 when passports were taking forever to get processed (18+ weeks in my case), I contacted my senator’s office and they helped get my passport sent in time for my trip. It arrived on Friday and I left for Europe the following Monday.</p>