U.S. border crossing changes postponed

Canadians and Americans entering the United States by car or boat won’t need a passport until at least the summer of 2008, U.S. security officials said June 20. With both countries struggling with an avalanche of passport applications, driver’s licences and birth certificates will be accepted at the U.S. border after the original January 2008 date set for requiring passports for land and sea entries to the United States. The House of Representatives has already passed a measure forcing Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff to wait until mid-2009 at land and sea crossings. (Rules for entering Canada remain the same.)