www.CostaRicaTicas.com

New International Trusted Traveler Program

Apply for the Global Entryâ„¢ pilot program
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently launched the Global Entryâ„¢ pilot program designed to expedite the screening and processing of low-risk, frequent international "trusted" travelers entering the United States. The pilot program will be conducted at Houston (IAH-Intercontinental); New York (JFK); Washington, DC (IAD - Dulles).

Upon returning from international travel, Global Entryâ„¢-enrolled travelers may bypass the regular passport control line and proceed directly to the Global Entryâ„¢ kiosk. At the kiosk, the Global Entryâ„¢ traveler will activate the system by inserting his or her passport or U.S. permanent resident card into the document reader. Once the Global Entryâ„¢ kiosk process is successfully completed, the traveler will be issued a transaction receipt.

Applications for enrollment in the Global Entryâ„¢ program are available at the Global On-Line Enrollment System (GOES). The Global Entryâ„¢ application process consists of three steps.
Applicants must complete and submit an on-line application through GOES and pay a $100 fee.
CBP officers will review the applicant's information and a background investigation will be conducted.
Applicants will undergo an interview with CBP officers at an Enrollment Center at one of the three pilot airports.
For detailed information visit the U.S. Customs and Border Protection site.

I gotta get me this!

Between the clear card, and this, perhaps us customs won't be such a pain anymore!

I'm not sure i like the idea of a "background investigation" and an "interview". Sounds kind of McCarthyesque. What if they find something they don't like and put you on some watchlist?

The Global Entry program has now expanded to LAX and MIA. For those of you that hate the wait at MIA and/or are always hassled because you have a lot of stamps from one country (CR, COL, THAI…) this is a no-brainer. I have applied in anticipation of SFO going on line this spring.
The comments on the FF boards from those who have signed up are extremely positive. The requirements are pretty tough; you have to have no criminal record and no record of customs infractions
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/trust ... bal_entry/

Mendo

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"It takes a lot of good beer to make a great wine"

I hope they get this for Det, coming back from SEA is a pain there. almost always get a second look

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"Ward, you were a little hard on the beaver last night." ... June Cleaver ----------------------------

Who is John Galt?

the statement below is true
the statement above is false

From Seattle? Yeah I know you mean Southeast Asia but your post might confuse some since SEA is the airport code for Seattle. BTW, Detroit's is DTW for their main international airport in Romulus or DTT for all Detroit airports.

I've never had a problem with long wait times at IAH, it's usually a 5 minute deal. I don't see much value in this and see lots of potential downsides. What happens if you get turned down, for instance, are you flagged permanently when you go through normal immigration?

I applied online for this in Dec 2008. Within a day or two, I got an email approving me for an "interview". So they may have done a quick background check online. I heard you can't have any criminal record or Customs violations. I've been given warnings at Cusoms before, and even had to fill out a form when I told them that I had some fruit that I wanted to throw away. Didn't affect my application.

I then picked an interview time at O'Hare (my choice of airport). Almost all times were available. On the day of the interview, I was running late, I called, they said come in any time before 6pm.

The interview had me a little worried. I thought they might be asking about my travel habits and checking my choice of countries. Not the case. It wasn't an interview at all. They took my fingerprints and showed me how to use the kiosk. Maybe 15 minutes.

Haven't used it yet, but I'll report soon. I was told that if I arrive at a US airport that has the system, I bypass all lines and go to a kiosk, provide a finger print, fill in the typical customs form at the kiosk, and go on my way. This could save a lot of time!

I have it but have not used it yet. My interview was about 5 minutes and it was just reconfirming what I put on the form. They take a picture of you and scan your finger prints. Customs guys were great to deal with, they walk you through on how to use the kiosk and you are on your way.

If the airport has the kiosk you don't have to fill out a blue customs forms however the guys recommend you do just incase you are pulled for a random search. If you are required to talk to a agent you can go through the crew line and not wait with the rest of the passengers.

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[url=http://www.amishrakefight.org/gfy/]

Can you still have your bags searched? I'm a little confused here. If you check in at a kiosk, is there no one there to check you?

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El Gringo

Random search is what the guy said. Instead of a human deciding that you look like a degenerate monger, a computer will run an algorithm through it to make the call. Beats the hell out of me just going by what the dude in customs told me.

My passport is full of known monger destinations and the customs guy never blinked so I doubt it will happen all. My own passport is almost full and I have never been pulled for a search and I just cleared after coming back from the Philippines and Thailand. Hell, the guy asked me what I was declaring and I could not read my own writing. I finally figured it out, he just laughed and waved me through. Not saying it always works but if you treat the guys nice they tend to be nice back.

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[url=http://www.amishrakefight.org/gfy/]

Thanks for the information on the interview!

I was a bit worried about questioning pertaining to where and why …

Mendo

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"It takes a lot of good beer to make a great wine"

i am curious who have signed up for this program