Roberto
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New Mexican passport rule won't affect border crossings
By Sandra Dibble, UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER Monday, February 15, 2010 at 6:40 p.m.
TIJUANA — A new Mexican government rule that U.S. visitors present passports when entering Mexico by land, sea and air will not be enforced at Baja California’s border crossings, authorities said Monday in Tijuana.
Francisco Javier Reynoso Nuño, the top federal immigration official in Baja California, said Mexico lacks the infrastructure to enforce the regulations at busy ports such as San Ysidro and Otay Mesa.
“We’re going to stay the same,” Reynoso said following a meeting with state officials worried about how the regulations could affect travel to Baja California.
The rules, set to go into effect March 1 in other parts of Mexico, will not be applied to short-term visitors along the northern border, Reynoso said. Likewise, cruise ship passengers who briefly disembark at Ensenada won’t be required to present a passport, he said.
The announcement of the new rules has come as Mexico has worked to increase security at its ports of entry. The federal government is in the process of installing a new electronic inspection system, known as SIAVE, at its land border crossings as a means of detecting illegal weapons and other contraband.
Southbound border waits have been growing longer in recent months as a result of SIAVE. Business groups in both Baja California and San Diego complained that the additional immigration inspection would create even longer delays, and further stifle commerce and tourism on both sides.
“We were very concerned,” said Oscar Escobedo Carignan, Baja California’s tourism secretary. “Things are going to continue the same. It’s good news for us.”
The regulations, announced earlier this month by Mexico’s National Migration Institute, state that U.S. citizens traveling to Mexico “by air, land or sea” must present either a valid U.S. passport or passport card. U.S. permanent residents must also present documents proving their status.
Because of U.S. travel document requirements, most U.S. visitors to Mexico already carry passports or passport cards or trusted traveler documents such as SENTRI passes when crossing at the border.
“We recognize Mexico’s right to secure its borders, but they should be secured with the minimum interruption of commerce in both directions,” said James Clark, director of the Mexico Business Center of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.
