Anyone who travels internationally dreads the return to the United States through Customs & Immigration. Often long waits and grumpy agents make the experience unpleasant and scary. Even the new Automated Passport Control (APC) kiosks can take a while, because everyone still has to use them.
What if there was none of that?
There’s a little-known FREE service that was recently launched by the U.S. Customs & Border Protection in many international airports in the US (and even one cruise port!)
It’s called Mobile Passport Control and it allows you to breeze through customs, usually even faster and less complicated than using Global Entry, just by using a mobile app to check in at a kiosk. You don’t have to fill out that blue slip of paper anymore. The lines in the airports for the MPC queue are usually short or non-existent!
Here’s How It Works:
Just download the “Mobile Passport Control” app on your phone from your favorite app store. Then,
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SET UP YOUR PROFILE
Enter your profile information as it appears on your passport. You can set up profiles for your entire family. Your information will be encrypted and shared only with CBP.
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ANSWER A FEW QUESTIONS
Answer CBP’s five brief questions about your trip.
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SUBMIT TO CBP
Once you are at your port of entry (airport or sea port), submit your request on the app. Within a few seconds, you will receive a CBP receipt with an encrypted barcode. Your receipt will be valid for 4 hours.
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BREEZE THROUGH CUSTOMS & SAVE TIME!
Follow the Mobile Passport Control signs to the designated Mobile Passport Control line. Show your passport to the CBP officer and scan the barcode on the CBP receipt. And that’s it!
This service is so much faster than anything else because nobody knows about it (yet).
There is one slight catch, of course. It’s small though: It’s only open to U.S. & Canadian Passport holders. If you are a “Legal Resident” or visa holder, you aren’t eligible to use this yet. Also, it’s only available at 25 airports, and 1 cruise terminal so far, but they are expanding soon. You can find out all you need to know about the service at https://mobilepassport.us/
