Clear US Customs Fast with Nexus, Global Entry
Trusted Travelers May Avoid Delays as Passport Deadline Looms
Feb 13, 2009
All Americans traveling to or from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean after June 1, 2009, whether by land, sea or air, are subject to new rules as of June 2009. Seniors, newborns and just about anyone else must have a passport or acceptable document, not just a drivers license. To avoid delays travelers are advised to apply six months ahead of time for a passport if they do not have one yet.
For frequent travelers, new documents and systems could help get through US Customs faster. However, there is no guarantee that re-entry will go smoothly the first days that the new regulations are in effect, according to a Feb. 3, 2009 article in the Los Angeles Times.
This is the information US citizens need:.
Nexus and Sentri Designed to Speed Canada and Mexico Trips
Nexus is a new document costing $50 designed for low-risk pre-approved Americans who cross the Canadian/U.S. border frequently, Travelers can apply for it online and it will be accepted in designated “commuter” lanes for entry at certain northern border points as well as designated Canadian airports.
Sentri is a similar document costing $122 designed for pre-approved people who cross the Mexico/U.S. border frequently. Here, too, they get access to dedicated commuter lanes when crossing by car.
Both cards require additional processing, including an interview and fingerprinting.
Global Entry Designed for Frequent International Air Travelers
The Global Entry program, already in place, is for frequent fliers who go abroad.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, frequent international travelers who carry U.S. passports can apply for Global Entry. This new pilot program permits “pre-approved, low-risk travelers to get expedited clearance” into the United States” at certain airports.
Currently Global Entry is installed at John F. Kennedy International (JFK); Washington Dulles International (IAD); Houston Intercontinental (IAH); Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport (ATL), Chicago O’Hare International Airport (ORD), Miami International Airport (MIA), says the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol.
The application fee is $100 per person. Before issuing Global Entry clearance, Customs will schedule an interview through the person’s Global Online Enrollment System (GOES) account. This happens via notification online once that person’s application has been conditionally approved.
At each airport, “trusted travelers” who have thus obtained Global Entry clearance are able to enter the United States by having their fingerprints scanned and a digital photo taken at automated kiosks.
But that’s not all. Each traveler “will be prompted to answer several [customs] declaration questions posted on the kiosk’s touch screen.” Once that is finished, each traveler gets a transaction receipt that they must present to a customs officer as they leave the area.
The government calls this “your express pass through the U.S. international arrivals area” in an ad in the Customs magazine Frontline. For more information, read the instructions at GOES carefully.
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