Passports
Most temporary visits to the United States require passports valid for the period of the intended stay. For visitors from certain countries, passports must be valid for six months beyond that time. Go to www.cbp.gov/ rip travel and click on For International Visitors for more information.
All travelers under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP), including infants, must have either:
1) a machine-readable passport or
2) an e-passport if the passport was issued on or after October 26, 2006. See Visa Waiver Program Visitors on page 5.
Traveling with Children
• All children, including infants, must have their own passport or Trusted Traveler Program document for U.S. entry. See page 11 for more information on Trusted Traveler Programs.
• All children must have their own visa or, if a resident of a Visa Waiver Program country, their own Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA). See page 5 for more information on Visa
Waiver Program Visitors.
• A third party, such as a relative or travel agent, may apply for a visa or ESTA on behalf of a child.
• If you are escorting a minor child without the parents, have a letter from both parents indicating that you have permission to travel with the minor.
• If the child is accompanied by only one parent, the parent should have a note from the child's other parent. For example, "I acknowledge that my wife/ husband is traveling out of the country with my son/ daughter. He/She/ has my permission to do so."
• If a single parent has sole custody, a copy of the court custody document can replace a letter from the other parent.
• Canadian citizen children under age 16, and those age 16 to 18 traveling with a school group, religious group, social or cultural organization, or sports team, may present an original or copy of his or her birth certificate, a Consular Report of Birth Abroad, a Naturalization Certificate, or a Canadian Citizenship Card, when arriving in the United States by land or sea from contiguous territory.
• The adult leader of the group of Canadian children should have a letter on organizational letterhead with: the names of the group and supervising adult; a list of the children on the trip; the primary address, phone number, date and place of birth, and name of at least one parent or legal guardian for each child; a written and signed statement of the supervising adult certifying that he or she has parental or legal-guardian consent for each child.