There are ways to enjoy your cruises and related travel even more. “If you don’t already participate in one or all of these programs for expediting travel through checkpoints, consider signing up and make your travel more convenient and enjoyable,” says Bob Levinstein, CEO of CruiseCompete.com.
At the Cruise Port
Mobile Passport app is authorized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for U.S. citizens and Canadian visitors to expedite their entry process into the United States. There is no charge and it takes just a few steps:
- Set up your profile by entering information as it appears on your valid, official passport. You can set up profiles for your entire family. Your information will be encrypted and shared only with CBP.
- Answer CBP’s five brief questions about your trip. Then carefully review all of your information for the trip.
- Once you are at your port of entry (airport or sea port), connect to wireless or wi-fi and submit your data to CBP. When you submit, you are confirming under penalty of law that your information is correct.
- Within a few seconds, you will receive a CBP receipt with an encrypted barcode. Your receipt will be valid for 4 hours.
- 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.
Check ahead for specifics that apply where you are traveling. For example, according to Port Everglades, only U.S. citizens with a valid passport and Canadian citizens traveling with both a valid passport and a B1 or B2 visa are eligible to use Mobile Passport.
At the Airport
The Transportation Security Administration’s TSA Pre✓® can save you time and stress. Time can be money and stress can be avoidable. With a 5-year, $85 membership, you can speed through security and don’t need to remove your shoes, laptops, liquids, belts and light jackets. Available to U.S. citizens, nationals and LPRs. TSA uses unpredictable security measures, both seen and unseen.
- Submit an online application in 5 minutes and schedule an appointment at any of 380+ enrollment centers.
- A 10-minute, in-person appointment that includes a background check and fingerprinting.
- Add your Known Traveler Number to your ticket and enjoy the benefits of TSA Pre✓® when you follow the signs for TSA Pre✓®
Global Entry is 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. Members enter the United States through automatic kiosks at select airports.
- At airports, program members proceed to Global Entry kiosks, present their machine-readable passport or U.S. permanent resident card, place their fingerprints on the scanner for fingerprint verification and complete a customs declaration. The kiosk issues the traveler a transaction receipt and directs the traveler to baggage claim and the exit.
- Travelers must be pre-approved for the Global Entry program. All applicants undergo a rigorous background check and in-person interview before enrollment.
- While Global Entry’s goal is to speed travelers through the process, members may still be selected for further examination when entering the United States. Any violation of the program’s terms and conditions will result in the appropriate enforcement action and termination of the traveler’s membership privileges.
- A $100 one-time fee is required with your Global Entry application and must be paid at time of application submission through the Trusted Traveler Program (TTP) System. You can pay by credit card or through an electronic bank transfer. The fee is non-refundable, even if an application is denied.
CruiseCompete member-agents are the most well-educated, forward-thinking and trusted cruise specialists in the industry. If you’d like more information or assistance planning a future cruise, please visit CruiseCompete.com. Find CruiseCompete’s “Sea Tales 2018 Family Cruise Travel Planner” at www.cruisecompete.com/
This article is brought to by Cruise Compete. CruiseCompete.com allows you to easily compare multiple offers from Cruise Experts.
