This post is for any American citizens planning to visit Canada after June 1 — whether you’ll be coming on vacation or to scout out potential places to live.

If you don’t already have a passport, now is the time to apply for one, before new provisions of the U.S. Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative go into effect.

Americans traveling to Canada by air already need a passport, since the U.S. government requires air travelers returning to the U.S. to present a passport to re-enter the country.

What will change in June is that these rules will apply for land and sea crossings as well.

So if you’re planning to drive over the Canadian border or hop on a cross-border ferry, you’ll need to have a passport, since the U.S. will require you to show that passport when you return.

As an alternative, the new U.S. Passport Card can be used for land and sea travel and is less expensive than a passport (US$45 for first-time adult applicants and $35 for all applicants under age 16). But the passport card is not valid for air travel, which limits its utility.

You can read all the details, including the rules for children, on the U.S. Department of Homeland Security website. The Canadian Tourism Commission has a somewhat clearer explanation on its website as well, as does the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Agency.

For more on the requirements for entering Canada to visit, work, or study, see the Paperwork 101 section of this website or contact Citizenship and Immigration Canada.

Photo by alex-s (flickr)