Foo - What do I need to cross the border from Canada to the U.S.

I've never been out of country and some friends and I are making a day trip tomorrow to go down into Washington for a few hours. The down side is I don't have my birth certificate right now because it got sent off so I can get a passport and it wont be back till November.

So, my question is what do I need to crossover? Just a drivers license? Drivers license and Care Card? Drivers license and photocopied birth certificate? or am I just **** out of luck.

My brother crosses the bridge to get plastered all the time. I think he uses his social security card and his drivers license, although next year passports will be required I believe.

Do they have voters' regisration cards in Canada? Voting is the one thing only citizens can do, so it is one way to prove citizenship. If you have one of those and a government-issued picture ID (like a drivers' license), you should be ok.

Catapult

An invincible super-tank.

And ammo for said super-tank.

And lasers.

You "can"do it with your birth cert.

However, border crossing is sucking bigger monkey nuts than ever, so I would recommend getting a passport. Passport is almost like an e-ticket, gets you through the rcmp (on the way home) a lot faster.

You "can"do it with your birth cert.

However, border crossing is sucking bigger monkey nuts than ever, so I would recommend getting a passport. Passport is almost like an e-ticket, gets you through the rcmp (on the way home) a lot faster.

Thats the problem, I cant do it with my birth certificate because I sent that away to get a passport.

No voters' regisration card?

No voters' regisration card?

No...we don't have that here. Besdies, I don't know if We is old enough, I am not sure of his age

we do have drinking cards that work for ID though

We,

You need a passport and/or Birth cert...mimimum. I would be shocked and awed if they let you across the border, and would be even more shocked if you were able to get back. You are stuck

I've never been out of country and some friends and I are making a day trip tomorrow to go down into Washington for a few hours. The down side is I don't have my birth certificate right now because it got sent off so I can get a passport and it wont be back till November.


Wow...feeling lazy? You could have filled out an e-pass online, taken a trip to the passport office, you have been priority in line so it would have been a 20minute visit and your passport would have gotten to you in two weeks.

Dang. 'Fraid Maelstrom is correct. On the plus side, you'll be getting a passport soon. You have to come visit Portland. Something tells me you'd enjoy Zoobombing. :)

if you we are small child preferably a girl(for size) you could hide under the back row of seats:
2 problems we is a 20 or 21 year old male, and i doubt you have a 13 seater van. My brother was at camp and thats what they did

Wow...feeling lazy? You could have filled out an e-pass online, taken a trip to the passport office, you have been priority in line so it would have been a 20minute visit and your passport would have gotten to you in two weeks.

My parents doing, not mine. Also, I'm 19, just turned it a week ago.

Also:
http://help.cbp.gov/cgi-bin/customs.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=619&p_created=1056630853&p_sid=mo*5cOLi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPSZwX3NvcnRfYnk9JnBfZ3JpZHNvcnQ9JnBfcm93X2NudD01NzgsNTc4JnBfcHJvZHM9JnBfY2F0cz0mcF9wdj1 _YW55fiZwX2N2PX5hbnl_JnBfc2VhcmNoX3R5cGU9YW5zd2Vycy5zZWFyY2hfbmwmcF9wYWdlPTE*&p_li=&p_topview=1

Apparently I'm still good, no need for a Birth Certificate till January, but to be safe I'm bringing A) Care Card B) SIN card C) Drivers License D) Receipt for passport stating that my birth certificate has been sent away.

Trebuchet

Fixed it for you. :D

Do they have voters' regisration cards in Canada? Voting is the one thing only citizens can do, so it is one way to prove citizenship. If you have one of those and a government-issued picture ID (like a drivers' license), you should be ok.

do they have them in the US?

My parents doing, not mine. Also, I'm 19, just turned it a week ago.

Also:
http://help.cbp.gov/cgi-bin/customs.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=619&p_created=1056630853&p_sid=mo*5cOLi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPSZwX3NvcnRfYnk9JnBfZ3JpZHNvcnQ9JnBfcm93X2NudD01NzgsNTc4JnBfcHJvZHM9JnBfY2F0cz0mcF9wdj1 _YW55fiZwX2N2PX5hbnl_JnBfc2VhcmNoX3R5cGU9YW5zd2Vycy5zZWFyY2hfbmwmcF9wYWdlPTE*&p_li=&p_topview=1

Apparently I'm still good, no need for a Birth Certificate till January, but to be safe I'm bringing A) Care Card B) SIN card C) Drivers License D) Receipt for passport stating that my birth certificate has been sent away.

Good idea. The more proof you have the better. Good luck and enjoy washington.

do they have them in the US?

Yes. A new one is sent to me every year towards the end of August.

do they have them in the US?
Yes.

Apparently I'm still good, no need for a Birth Certificate till January, but to be safe I'm bringing A) Care Card B) SIN card C) Drivers License D) Receipt for passport stating that my birth certificate has been sent away.
Sounds like you'll be ok. Have fun. :)

Several hours if Washington is anything like Vermont.

Birth certificate and photo ID.

i go over there all the time. my home base in MI is 45 mins away.

gov't photo id & birth certificate. make it easier & have your social security card, too.

Yes.

i don't recall ever needing one in NY or CT. then again, i've been doing absentee balllots for most of my voting age.

I never had to have it on me to vote in Michigan. They always found my name on a list at the voting precinct. It was nice to keep in my wallet instead of having to carry a ratty copy of my birth certificate when going to Canada. I have an Oregon one somewhere. I've been voting by mail ever since moving here, so no real need for it now that I don't live so close to Canada. I guess I should get around to getting a passport...

I don't think I ever had to show proof of citizenship at the border, either. All you had to do is look truthful and sound like you were from Michigan, and they believed you. My best friend was a Canadian citizen and resident alien in the US since she was 8. She'd forget her green card all the time and the worst that would happen was that she'd get chewed out by the border guard. 18 years ago was like another world back then.

i don't recall ever needing one in NY or CT. then again, i've been doing absentee balllots for most of my voting age.

No, you don't need one to vote, but they send it to you anyway as sort of a confirmation. At least around here.

All you had to do is look truthful and sound like you were from Michigan, and they believed you.

Ain't that the truth. I've been crossing regularly since 1962. There's no disguising a Rochester accent (without years of speech therapy or perhaps having a motorcycle run over your head (http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/09/14/czech_biker/)). All we'd have to do is open our mouths and they wouldn't even have to ask the question.

These days, a passport makes a world of difference. And it completely eliminates the stern looks. Unless you're in a car with three other guys, one of whom is an adventure traveler. Dude had stamps in his passport from Turkey, Iran and Cuba. One look at that and the US Customs agent rested one hand on his gun while pointing us to the office with the other.

It seems to be really easy to go from Canada to the US, but from US to Canada ... that's a completely different story. If you are going for vacation, or something like that, it's fine. But don't ever ever ever tell them you're on business trip. It's easier to go through Korea than it is through Canada!

If memory serves me right and I have seen and heard of this in the news (TV) and radio news becfore on a few different channels that if you show up at the passport office you can pay a 'expidited fee' which basically shoots you up to the top of the line for processing. Don't quote me as my memory on this fee is fuzzy but I think it's ~$150-175 CDN. I /could/ be wrong on the fee amount but I know for fact they do have the priority fees if you want to speed things up. However the last time I heard about this was during the passport rush around March Break time and the passport offices started reducing the amount of people that could use that expidited service as they're getting swamped with requests and work overload. Yeahi t's a cash cow grab for sure but the fact that you're at the passport office already will save you ~3 days already instead of mailing it in the mail and waiting like a day before your application lands into the hands of someone starting the process then the ~3day mail back out.