Business Government Regs
IRS, TSA, WHTI, etc.
New Visa Requirements for Bolivia
Beginning December 1, 2007, U.S. tourists to Bolivia will be required to purchase a visa to enter the country. As with most visa requirements for U.S. citizens, this move is in reciprocity for visa requirements Bolivian citizens are obligated to pay to enter the United States. I really wish the government would quit screwing with my travel plans. Visa payments can get costly when you travel often.
Foreign Minister David Choquehuanca said U.S. citizens would fall under Bolivia’s most highly regulated migratory category. A 30-day tourist visa will cost $134, an amount similar to fees paid by …
Date: September 13th, 2007 |
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WHTI Passport Rule Postponed
The recently enacted rule requiring travelers to use passports for travel between the U.S. and other Western Hemisphere countries, including Mexico and Canada, has been temporarily lifted. Why? Because the amount of time it is taking to process a passport has gotten out of hand. So that means if you want to squeeze in a quick trip to a Caribbean island or shoot up to Vancouver, you have another shot without needing your passport.
Although I think it’s a good idea to have a passport anyway. You never know when a great travel abroad opportunity …
Date: June 10th, 2007 |
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New York Waterway Ferry Accepts Commuter Check
The New York Waterway Ferry is now accepting Commuter Check vouchers from Accor Services USA, a leader in innovative employee benefits solutions. Commuters can redeem Commuter Check vouchers to pay for NY Waterway commuter ferry tickets at all NY Waterway and BillyBey Ferry Company terminals in New Jersey and New York.
What is Commuter Check? Commuter Check is a nationwide transit and parking voucher program offered by Accor Services USA. The Commuter Check program allows companies to take advantage of the Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefit, also known as IRS …
Date: April 25th, 2007 |
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NEXUS Program Expands to Montral Trudeau International Airport
Montreal’s Trudeau International just became the third airport in Canada equipped with kiosks to speed the customs and immigration process for frequent travelers between the United States and Canada with the NEXUS Trusted Traveler Program. The NEXUS program was developed to expedite border crossing for citizens of the U.S. and Canada who are members. In the next few months, enrollment centers in Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Halifax will
open in anticipation of NEXUS kiosks expanding to those airports.
There are dedicated NEXUS lanes currently in operation at eleven land …
Date: April 18th, 2007 |
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I-Pod Bans in New York Cross Walks
New York is considering banning the use of iPods in the crosswalks of New York, as a result of several traffic accidents that were caused as a result of pedestrians listening to iPods. Wow. That’s got to be the second greatest dream of a marketing department (after brand recognition such as any soda is a Coke in the south or any cotton swab is a Q-Tip), having major companies such as airlines alter their product to accomodate yours and having legislation set in place regarding your product. The airlines don’t …
Date: February 8th, 2007 |
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The Business Travel Widget
Can’t get enough of the Business Travel Logue? Well, now you can have your very own BTL widget on YOUR website! Thanks to the brains behind the operation, a Business Travel Logue widget is now available. This handy tool will allow you (and others) to keep up to date on all of the latest business travel news.
Get it here and feel free to plaster me all over the web.
Date: June 30th, 2007 |
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US-VISIT’s Biometric Exit Procedures
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has announced it intends to integrate biometric exit procedures into the existing international visitor departure process for people leaving the United States. The change will supposedly “make the process of departing the United States more convenient and accessible for international visitors.” Make departing more accessible? I didn’t think getting OUT of the country was the problem. Whatever.
In the next year, the DHS intends to implement biometric exit procedures at all airports. The first step will be the completion of the three-year pilot program that required …
Date: May 12th, 2007 |
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Limosa: Belgium’s New Advance Registration for Business Travel
Business travelers to Belgium who intend to work more than 5 consecutive days in a one month period are now required to register with the country prior to entry. International business travelers working more than five consecutive days during a single month in Belgium now are required to register with the country prior to entry. For those who want to skip the registration process, be aware the Belgian government will enforce penalties for noncompliance of $8,000 or imprisonment. Goodness.
The ACTE is asking government officials to suspend the program’s penalties until May 1, 2007 to tell the people …
Date: April 23rd, 2007 |
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Nexus Trusted Traveler Program Expands
U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner W. Ralph Basham announced today the enrollment
center at Montreal’s Pierre Trudeau International Airport is open for travelers interested in applying for the NEXUS program, which expedites travel for members between the United States and Canada. Passage kiosks will be operational in the coming weeks.
An enrollment center in Toronto opened earlier this month where a NEXUS kiosk is also operational. Expansion to the Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Ottawa, and Halifax airports is expected by the end of 2007.
NEXUS in the air mode …
Date: February 27th, 2007 |
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Department of Homeland Security Traveler Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will launch the much needed Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (DHS TRIP) on February 20, 2007. What is TRIP? A consolidated point of inquiry for travel-related issues. TRIP is intended to provide travelers with a “central gateway” to address issues such as watch list misidentification, situations in which individuals believe they have faced screening problems at immigration points of entry, have been unfairly or incorrectly delayed, denied boarding or identified for additional screening at our nation’s transportation hubs. A lot like the people Northwest Airlines profiled in Germany.
Date: January 24th, 2007 |
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