REGINA -- Neither U.S. nor Canadian officials seem sure whether aboriginal people wanting to cross the border will eventually require passports or whether they will still be able to use treaty cards to get into the U.S.
Passports will become a requirement for entry into the U.S. by June 2009.
Since 1794, the U.S. and Canada have honoured Article III of the Jay Treaty, which guarantees aboriginal people the right to trade and travel across the border. Status Indians have been able to cross freely by using their certificates of Indian status.
"That is the first time that question has come up," said Mike Milne of U.S. customs and border protection. "I don't have a definitive answer. The word I have gotten is that it will apply to all people."