If you’re a frequent traveler, you’ve
undoubtedly had the near-universal experience of enduring a TSA security
line or an immigration line upon re-entry to your home country.
What if you could bypass these lines for good?
You may have heard of Global Entry, a U.S. Customs and
Border Protection (CBP) program that allows expedited clearance for
pre-approved, low-risk travelers upon arrival in the United States. You
fill out a (fairly lengthy) application, pay $100, and if your
application passes the initial phase, you’re invited to an in-person
interview/screening at a participating airport. If you pass that phase of
the application, you are granted a Global Entry ID. In a nutshell, this
is how it works:
At airports, program participants proceed
to Global Entry kiosks, present their machine-readable passport or U.S.
permanent resident card, place their fingertips on the scanner for
fingerprint verification, and make a customs declaration. The kiosk
issues the traveler a transaction receipt and directs the traveler to
baggage claim and the exit. (www.globalentry.gov)
In addition, people who are approved via the Global Entry program can
also participate in TSA Pre-Check, which allows people to
skip regular TSA security lines at participating airports and go through
an expedited line —without having to remove shoes or other clothing
items, open laptops, or do any of the other things that take up time in
line.
Global Entry (and the accompanying TSA Pre-Check) is a good fit for your
flying needs if:
- You plan to travel
internationally any time in the next five years. The more you
travel, of course, the more worthwhile it will be —but many
reviewers indicated that Global Entry is worth the time savings even
if you travel internationally once a year or less.
- You have the Amex
Platinum card, as the $100 fee is refunded to you as a
statement credit. Other
cards may also offer this reimbursement —check with your credit
card company to be sure.
- You live within a
reasonable distance of and use any of the airports listed here. The GE
program requires the in-person interview, so if the nearest
participating airport is several hundred miles from you, it might
not be worth it, unless you are a very frequent flier. Participating
TSA Pre-Check airlines and airports can be found here.
- If you are a Canadian
resident, the news is even better! If you qualify for
Canada’s expedited-traveler program, called Nexus (which
only costs $50), you get Global Entry for free.
Finally, if you travel through Texas' largest airports you might
also be wondering about the CLEAR
kiosk popping up. Click HERE
to find out more about how it works.
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