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Global Entry: Expedited Customs plus TSA Precheck

Niamb

International travelers should certainly consider applying for Global Entry. This is a program that allows pre-screened passport holders to access expedited entry through customs when returning to the United States. It also includes TSA precheck status. Additionally, we were able to use Global Entry to speed our way through customs in both Australia and New Zealand.

The cost is $100 per passport and is good for 5 years. It also included TSA trusted traveler status which by itself costs $85.00. So for only $15.00 additional you get all the privileges afforded by TSA precheck, plus expedited entry through customs when returning to the US. I think most who travel abroad, even on an occasional basis, will find Global Entry worthwhile.

You will need to apply and the process takes some time, so don't put applying off till just before your trip. You will need to fill out an application and pay your $100.00 fee in advance. This can be done easily online. Once your application is approved, you must report to a Global Entry Enrollment Center. There you will be interviewed. Your photograph will be taken and they will take an digital copy of your fingerprints. You'll turn in your passport and it will be returned to you stamped with the Global Entry symbol.

When we arrived in Australia travelers with electronic passports (notice showed a picture of the Global Entry symbol) were directed to a set of electronic kiosks where your passport is scanned and a few questions asked. Then you go to another station where your photo is taken and matched to your Global Entry photo. (another hint: very tall passengers may need to duck down a bit so their face is in the photo). With that, you're through, unless you have items to declare.

Coming back to the US, the passport control queue at LAX snaked though the terminal like a line of lost souls on the outer ring of Hell. But we skipped all that. We each walked up to a Global Entry kiosk, inserted our passport, had our faces and fingerprints scanned and picked up the slip the machine generated and retrieved our passports. We showed our passport and slip to the customs officers and whisked right on through.

I will add, that while the TSA had been randomly giving out TSA Pre-check status to airplane ticket holders, those days are at an end. Enhanced security requirements now mean only trusted travelers can now use the pre-check lines. With all the money you've invested in your trip, I think most travelers will find getting Global Entry status well worth the time and cost entailed.

Link to US Customs Global Entry page

I stand corrected. This symbol indicates an electronic passport, not Global Entry. We saw kiosks for electronic passports in Australia and thought that was a further benefit of Global Entry. Other posters have corrected me and it means electronic passport, not Global Entry.

Comments

[Deleted User]

While I agree with everything you've said about Global Entry ("Don't leave home without it") and endorse your suggestion that any serious traveler get it, the symbol on the passport cover appears on all US (and many international) passports issued for several years now. It indicates that the passport contains RFID-readable information (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biometric_passport). I mention this because folks may be looking at their passports, seeing the symbol, and thinking that they are somehow already in Global Entry. Nothing about the program appears in your passport...it's keyed to the passport number.

rabo

Portolan is absolutely correct. The "e-Passport", being issued now by most countries, has nothing to do with Global Access. In the United States, all passports issued after October 2006 are e-Passports (https://www.dhs.gov/e-passports). Some countries, including Australia, have an agreement with the United States to facilitate the use of Global Access. In Australia the system is called SmartGate. I believe to use the SmartGate system you must have both an e-Passport and Global Access.

AlanS

I heartily endorse Global Entry as well! I try to keep my grin to a minimum and avoid gloating when I zip by all those people standing in long in lines waiting for US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) checks! : ~ )

Between TSA Pre-check and Global Entry we spend much less time and have less hassle flying domestic and international in and out of US airports. SkyPriority from Delta (available if you have "medallion" status or are flying business class) and similar programs offered by other airlines, also make for quicker, reduced hassle check-in and priority boarding. It really helps when you don't have much time to catch a connecting flight.

Also, US CBP formalities pre-clearance is now being provided to US travelers returning to the US from a few overseas locations (currently 15 foreign airports in six different countries) and more are coming in the years ahead. For instance, you get all that stuff out of the way in at the Dublin, Ireland airport, and possibly Shannon now, instead of at JFK or other US port of entry!

Correction to Niamb's post- the symbol on newer passports does NOT designate your Global Entry status. It means that you have a biometric passport, also known as an e-passport, ePassport or a digital passport, which is a combined paper and electronic passport that contains biometric information that can be used to authenticate the identity of travelers (via a radio frequency identification (RFID) chip.) Read about it at this link.

A side note about the new US passports with embedded chip (and the majority of credit cards)- contrary to the scare propaganda and blatantly false claims being spread by vendors of "RFID-safe" wallets, purses, etc., about the vulnerability of your passport information, the RFID chip in your passport cannot be read/hacked unless the cover (which is an RFID shield) is open AND the passport is being interrogated by a special code from the CBP secure reader (both exchange encrypted security codes and data).

While the chances are extremely remote, it is possible to read the data, however, but the scammer must (1) be within just a few feet (< 3') of you at the moment your passport is being read by the CBP machine, (2) use sophisticated equipment to intercept and record both sides of the encrypted data exchange, and (3) take the recorded encrypted digital data home and use special electronic equipment, a computer, and a sophisticated program and spend considerable time and effort separating the signals and de-crypting your data. Then, to make any money for his effort, he must use that information to apply (without your knowledge) for a new credit card in your name, etc. It is easier and cheaper for him to just steal your wallet/purse and credit cards.

Also, the chip in most credit cards is not an RFID chip and cannot be read remotely. The only type of credit/debit chip cards that can be read remotely are the "contactless" cards such as "Paypass", "Blink," etc. and similarly named cards; ones where you only need to "wave" them over the surface of a detector. All others cards, including the new EMV cards with "chips" must be physically inserted into a reader machine and cannot be read/hacked remotely.

jnavarro

I also endorse all of the above information, but would like to add...

If one travels at all between the US and Canada, then one should consider the NEXUS program. It provides expedited border crossings between these two countries, AND, FOR US RESIDENTS, ALSO CONFERS TSA PRECHECK AND GLOBAL ENTRY PRIVILEGES AT HALF THE ANNUAL COST ($50) OF THESE PROGRAMS!!!

JannEllen

I also agree with all the above statements.
If you live on the border with Canada or even within 2 hours of the border NEXUS is the way to go. The appointment times were much quicker than Global Entry. Also the cost is half of the Global Entry fee. NEXUS gives you TSA Pre Check and Global Entry. Well worth it!

Patricia Lynch

We've had our Global Entry for a few years now & it's worth every cent! As long as there's a person working the Global Entry exit desk, which at IAD (Dulles) may or may not be the case, it's fast, fast, fast. Only problem we've encountered are the snide comments/stares we get from the other hundreds of passengers waiting in the non- Global Entry exit lines... they think we're "cutting in line"

mapa244

We understand the benefits of Global Entry and have applied for it and been accepted. Our question is what if the airports that you travel through do not have GOES kiosks

We're traveling to Italy and will be going through Atlanta and Charles de Gaulle going and the same 2 coming back - neither is listed as having a GOES kiosk - does that mean we would be standing in the 'long lines' with everyone else ?? If so, the GOES does not seem to be of much value for this trip

Thanks for any responses to this

jack47

GOES is strictly a U.S. program. So there are no GOES kiosks at any non-U.S. airports. You can look on the GOES website for a list of U.S. airports that have GOES kiosks. The list includes Atlanta (but I've never arrived in the U.S. at that airport so I can't say so based on firsthand knowledge). I find GOES more useful for getting TSA Precheck status on domestic flights and the shorter security check lines for that program.

mapa244

Thanks - I did not see Atlanta but will look into it again - if Atlanta is thee, I guess we'll go with it

Claudia Sails

Watching the awful TSA lines lately we finally broke down and applied for GOES 10 days again. As of this morning our applications are still pending. We don't have flight plans til late July so hopefully we still have plenty of time to get our interviews done and Trusted Travel ID numbers before they are needed.

We mostly got it for TSA Pre but since the price difference is only $15 more it seemed silly not to go ahead and get both. The list of US airports is pretty extensive. Link to the customs service list

https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-entry/locations

A few foreign airports. Mmmm, Dublin and Shannon. May need to rethink our plans next year.

mapa244

We're in SC and the closest interview place is Charlotte (3 hrs) but they only had ONE time slot open and it was for September 16th - so, you need to be careful about planning

We would have to fly to Dulles since they had several openings in July - even this is a PITA - depending on where you live

[Deleted User]

Global Entry and TSA Pre are SO WORTH IT! We live about 15 minutes from Dulles. On international returns as recently as this month, our "norm" is 45-60 minutes from wheels down to walking into our house. Yup, that includes taxiing out, deplaning (OK, we were in biz, but since everyone ends up on the same mobile lounge(s), that doesn't have much impact), mobile lounge to the main terminal, clear immigration with GE, get our bags, exit though customs (there's a GE line for that, as well), walk to the taxi stand and taxi home.

Outbound, it is usually 15-20 minutes from arrival at the check-in desk (as United Gold) through TSA Pre and to the gate via train or mobile lounge.

AlanS

We went through RDU (and CDG) last week enroute Naples (for Classic Italy*). Between TSA pre-check and Sky Priority it was a snap- from car park, check-in, and thru security, to having a drink in the Delta Lounge all in 15 min,!! We expect our return to be just as quick and easy with Global Entry.

I'm typing this in our room at the Hotel d' Inghilterra in Rome:). We are heading to Tuscany tomorrow to visit Torgiano, Asissi, and San Gimignano.

Merlin321

We have Global Entry. We travel to Ireland 3-4 times a year (3 grandkids there). There are Global Entry kiosks at both Shannon and Dublin and they do save time. However, we are often frustrated with the TSA Pre-check piece. You only get TSA Pre-check access when you're traveling on a participating US carrier, and since we usually travel with AerLingus, the Pre-check doesn't do us any good. We depart from JFK. AerLingus uses JetBlue's terminal. So while all the JetBlue passengers are whizzing through the Pre-check line, even with our Trusted Traveler cards and numbers and Global Entry, we still have to wait in the regular, slow security line. Next month we are going to Germany on Lufthansa. Even though it's a code-share with United, because it's a Lufthansa plane, we don't have access to TSA Pre-check. On our return, we will be able to use the Global Entry. That is not restricted by carrier. But I've been watching the news and dreading the security lines on our departure. We'll be getting to the airport at least 3 hrs. early.

British

I got Global Entry earlier this year, think I may have used it once. My husband has had it for a while.
As regards to getting to the airport 3 hours ahead, we have always allowed 3 hours at the airport before flights, even pre 9/11. We would rather know we are there than risk delay in traffic getting to the airport. Sometimes we have even encountered being behind people who are having a dispute at the check-in desk that goes on forever, yes forever. We have been delayed by all manner of other people's problems before we even get to security lines. As son as we have checked in, we head for security without delay, just in case someone ahead causes an unforeseen slow down. We prefer the airports in other major countries because they have more things to see amd do than US airports if you find yourself with plenty of time on your hands. i'm dreading a trip I have to do to England in the middle of August. Not my choice of time of year to go, especially when we do the part to London. But at least England has the stream -lines security process seen on the TV tonight and it does work well.

Claudia Sails

We applied for GOES 17 May and got our preliminary approval today (17 days wait including weekends). Our interviews are scheduled for tomorrow at Albuquerque Intl. Phew. After mapa244's comments I was starting to worry. Guess there is a certain luck of the draw depending on where you live. Since our next flight out leaves at 6am this takes a little worry off my mind.

Will be interesting to see how GOES and TSA Pre go this summer.

Travelcrazy

A tip if you apply and it says there are virtually no appointments available when you need one. I applied for Global Entry last year before my Christmas Markets trip and thought I should have enough time to get it before I left. However, at SFO where I live, there weren't appointments available until Jan. 19...way too late for my trip to Germany. There were a ton of appointments available at JFK however, on my return, which wasn't really helpful, but I made one there anyway so I wouldn't have to go back to the airport at home.

A friend mentioned that she knew someone who just got to the airport early and took their approval letter, etc. and they were able to be seen on a stand-by basis. So that's what I did. I got to the airport three hours early since it was an international flight anyway, and I went to the office and waited. They called me within a half hour and I was able to get it taken care of before I left on my trip and I used it when I came back through JFK with its long customs lines. It was a snap. I don't travel that much and sometimes I used to get TSA pre and sometimes not, so I figured it was worth it since I am going on another Tauck cruise this fall, plus I can use TSA pre for domestic flights.

I would have never thought to just show up if someone hadn't told me about it...

Claudia Sails

After our experience yesterday at the customs office, I'm not surprised at your experience Travelcrazy. We had appts at 1215, 1230 but got there about 40 minutes early. We weren't sure how long it would take to park at the airport and find the customs office.

Sat down in the waiting room and there was 1 man waiting. About a minute later an officer came out and called the man in. The officer then looked at us and asked when our appts were. He took us both right then. It was a small office with 2 desks and officers. The first one started processing my husbands acct. The second finished with the other man and started mine. We were out of there in about 15 minutes. The next appt wouldn't have been for about 45 minutes.

Was told it would take 24 hours to get our final ok/trusted traveler number (which would be enough to update our profile with the airline) and up to a month to get the actual ID card.

So it's not totally unreasonable that you could just go and hope for the best if you really have to get this done. Make sure to bring your passport, drivers license and the printout from when you initially applied and paid for GOES.