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Global Entry & Regular Queue Both Get Upgrades For Faster Entry Into U.S.

SharonKurheg
a woman standing behind a counter with a camera

Through the years, the government has embraced technology to make entry into the United States easier and faster. Chips on passports. The use of biometrics. Digital passports.

To that end, Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently announced two new technologically enhanced screening options that it says will make passport processing faster at several checkpoints.

Enhanced Passenger Processing (EPP)

Enhanced Passenger Processing, or EPP, involves photographing travelers using auto capture technology to provide a complete customs assessment (biometric confirmation, eligibility, enforcement) before they reach the CBP officer. That profile speeds up the screening process.

It’s now available as an option for U.S. passengers at the following airports:

It’s also available at:

Seamless Border Entry for Global Entry

When Global Entry debuted in 2008, it was a game changer. Instead of having to stand on long queues to enter the U.S., pre-approved, low-risk travelers (at first just from the U.S., but eventually from over 20 other countries as well) received expedited clearance through automatic kiosks.

My husband and I were relatively early adopters in 2013. That was 5 years after the program started, but it was only in a small handful of airports initially; it didn’t make sense to get it if it wasn’t in airports that we frequently visited. Nowadays, it’s at 78 locations.

And it is SUCH a time saver! Passengers with Global Entry briefly stop at a kiosk for a biometric facial scan to verify their identity. They are then quickly double-checked by a CBP officer, and you’re done.

But apparently they’re introducing something called “Seamless Border Entry” to make the already fast process even quicker

The new process combines “On the Move” technology with the current Trusted Traveler systems that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) uses. With this system, travelers can move through the Global Entry checkpoint with “minimal interaction with a CBP officer, depending on officer discretion,” according to CBP. The technology scans and verifies travelers’ identities as they move, so they don’t even have to stop at a kiosk.

Dubbed the Seamless Border Entry program, it combines those two steps into one smooth process, completed as the traveler walks through the checkpoint.

The new technology has so far been launched at 7 airports across North America:

“CBP is committed to enhancing national security while streamlining lawful travel,” said CBP’s Acting Executive Assistant Commissioner Diane J. Sabatino. “By leveraging advanced technologies and mobile applications, we are transforming inspections at airports into a seamless, touchless process, enabling faster risk identification and efficient processing of legitimate visitors.”

Feature Photo: cbp.gov

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