I thought I had to have a passport to get in and out of Mexico, but according to the Team MX page it says, under what to pack, "State issued photo ID and original certified copy of your birth certificate if you have no passport."

So do I not need a passport after all? I'd love to not have to have another expense on top of everything else.

When I went to Mexico I didn't need a passport going from San Diego to Tijuana but coming back into the US it was definitely required. I think you'd be safer having a passport - but best to double check with whatever surgeon's office you use. They should know the latest requirements.

According to the government web site, yes...you do need one. According to other people I know that have been there recently, no...you only need a state issued ID or driver's license and a birth certificate. I can tell you with all certainty that if you don't have one, you do not qualify to travel through the medical lane. In other words, your wait at the border can literally take several hours (and caused them to miss their plane). My wait was 10 minutes with a passport card. A passport card is not that expensive and is acceptable when traveling over the border by land.

Passport cards are about $30 to $45, I believe. I sucked it up and got my passport last minute (after apparently losing my original).

It is less time consuming and guaranteed that you are fine with a passport or passport card. However, you can get back in with the ID/birth certificate. I even called the border patrol office before we went to Mexico and asked them, and they said yes.

Thanks for all the info. I don't even know how to go about getting a passport, but I suppose, for sake of ease, I should figure it out.

You go to your local post office..

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When I went to Mexico I didn't need a passport going from San Diego to Tijuana but coming back into the US it was definitely required. I think you'd be safer having a passport - but best to double check with whatever surgeon's office you use. They should know the latest requirements.

You do not check with your Mexico surgeons office, you check the CBP (customs and border protection) website for the most accurate info. Yes, you need a passport. Years ago you could get by with a govt. issued ID for border crossing but no more and if for some reason you would need to be medevac out by plane you always need a passport.

Technically speaking, you only need an enhanced license to enter the US from a land border crossing. So you could just get an enhanced licence to get back into the US from Mexico. However, Mexico now claims to require a passport or passport card for entry. That being said, last time I was there (in 2014), they didn't even ask me for ANY form of ID to enter Mexico.

I needed a passport to go to Canada so I'd suggest better to have one than not. Getting one is easy. You can download the form online and almost any bigt box store can do your passport photo.

Just as an aside..my passport photo is from 2010 and believe me...the officers at the border always have to take a long look as the picture no longer looks like me. I went to London last summer and it was my first trip oversees since I lost the weight and oh boy, do I look different.

Just

Sorry. Just got back from Mexicali two weeks ago. Had to have it, even in the medical lane. Really quizzed us, even looked thru the meds sent with us from the hospital.

Must be getting tougher. My friend and I had our surgeries done in Tijuana in July 2015 and didn't need passports.

Hi everyone,

I addressed this issue on another post back in December.

Since I do work at BP's Offices in Tijuana and deal with patients coming and going every day, I would like to mention 2 things:

1 By Mexican Law any and all foreign nationals are required to have a valid passport to enter Mexico. The way Mexican Inmigration work is that they search cars randomly and most people are lucky not to be asked to present a passport. If by any chance you have the bad luck and are asked to present your passport and don't have one, believe it or not, you can be deported, and the driver imprisoned for trafficking illegals.

2 To reenter the U.S. you do need your passport or passport card (the latter is preferable). Even if Mexico does border the U.S., it is still international travel and you are subject to secondary inspection that could be time-consuming and could cause you to lose your flight.

Please avoid any unnecessary problems and apply for your passport card.

Thank you

When I came back from Mexico there were 2 men riding with me that had no passport. The driver spoke to the officials at the border ( just thru the car window) and they showed an ID and birth certificate and went back into the US no problem.

There are always changes in ease of access to border especially when coming into the US. You should look at website and since the card is just a little less the passport you might want to just get the real thing.

So answer is yes, if you want to return quickly and easily.

There are different lanes to drive across the border, at least in Tijuana, depending on the documentation you have.

Sentri Lane

Ready Lane

All Lanes

Sentri lane (the quickest way to cross into the U.S.)

https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/sentri

Ready Lane (not as fast as Sentri, but way faster than All Lanes)

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/detail/a_id/1210/~/ready-lane---radio-frequency-identification-(rfid)

All lanes

If you do not have a passport, you have to go thru these lanes. No exception! The wait to get across is at least twice as long and you run the risk that the agent is in a bad mood, sends you to secondary inspection and you lose half an hour, or more.

Do you want to miss your flight and have to pay hundreds of dollars to reschedule?

Or, pay the $55 dollars to get the passport card and go across with time to spare?

One other thing, with BariatricPal, if you have a passport card, you are taken to the airport 4 hours prior to your flight and we use a special medical lane to get you across quicker than the regular Ready Lane.

If you do not have a passport card, you are taken to the airport 6 hours prior to your flight and go thru All Lanes.

Please consider applying for the Passport Card.

https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/passports/information/card.html

Thank you