New Requirement Hits Passport Offices

Posted By: Marsha Bills

On June 1, 2009, a new U.S. State Department requirement was implemented, requiring all individuals 16 years of age or older crossing by land, as well as by air, to have a valid U. S. passport to re-enter the U.S., creating a crush at offices across Dallas County where applications are accepted to be processed.

The Dallas County District Clerk’s office has been hard hit, with the number of applications accepted in the first week of the month doubling from the same period in May 2009, according to Mike Lindley, supervisor. “Our downtown location accepted 100 applications alone on Monday, June 8, and our East Dallas location accepted 120 on that same day.”

The Downtown location employs three clerks while the North Dallas location, which is open Tuesday through Friday, employs six. The East Dallas, which is also getting double the number of applications from a month ago, also has six clerks.

“We would like the public to know that the U.S. government has eased restriction for children 15 and under, who are not required to have passports, but are required to have proof of U.S. citizenship, such as a birth certificate, to re-enter the country,” says Mike.

“Due to the large Hispanic population in Dallas County, our offices have had long lines since June 1,” continues Mike. “Entire families are appearing, unaware that the original announcement that all U.S. citizens would require passports for land travel into and out of Mexico has been modified. That lack of communications has created even larger crowds than we had anticipated.”

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