Global Entry, what a struggle!

Well it can be a struggle but it was worth it to me, just for the pre-check. I’ve never paid (it’s $120) but used a credit card that reimburses in full (United Explorer card has no fee the first year).

You need to check the scheduler multiple times per day to get a cancellation.

https://ttp.cbp.dhs.gov/schedulerui/schedule-interview/location?lang=en&vo=true&returnUrl=ttp-external&service=UP

There’s an opening July 16 but it won’t last long.

If your SIL is really a travel agent she should have ways to get this handled?

Sorry you've had a rough time with this.

The appointments are notoriously inconvenient - high demand, low resources, perhaps not their top priority nowadays. It helps if you can be flexible with locations and/or dates. It's sometimes possible to schedule an appointment when and where you have a long-enough flight connection, or, just widen your search for more locations, check some you might not have considered or known about (not all of them are at airports). While I got mine at my home airport (waited a couple months), my spouse drove 3 hours for an appointment on short notice at a border crossing - nowhere near an airport.

Do double-check everything for accuracy and be very diligent about all the details, since they (ultimately the folks from the State Department and and US Customs & Border protection...you know "ICE") are not known for being loose and easy (especially lately, in case you have not been following the news).

$180 each sounds a bit high to me. It was around $100 for a long time; not long ago (earlier this year?) the cost went up but AFAIK not up to $180 (I thought something like $120?). Worth noting: many credit cards provide full reimbursement for the cost of Global Entry + TSA Precheck, so it's worth checking if any of your cards have that benefit.

Finally - remember, the setup is good for 5 years, so whatever you end up paying for Global Entry (which might be effectively zero), divide that by 5 for your annual cost (OK, never divide by zero, bad things happen...).

In my experience, Global Entry is a nice convenience, worth the required setup. It makes getting through the hoops much easier and quicker, which is always welcome after peeling myself off a long, long flight at the end of a trip.

My husband and I each paid 120.00 and had our interviews at different times and in different locations. The fee was paid by our credit union Visa rewards.

My interview went like this: Officer: "Why do you want Global Entry?" Me: To travel internationally and for TSA Pre-check. Officer: When is your next international trip? Me: In September. Officer: "Look into the camera". End of interview. I received the card in 3 weeks after the interview.

If your SIL is really a travel agent she should have ways to get this
handled?

Yes, of course she is really a travel agent, why would you say that? She's been in the family business (started by her Mom) for more than thirty years. But even she can't make the wheels turn any faster than they do, she can only advise me.

We had no trouble at all getting our Global Entry.
It works well and when re entering the U.S. you pass by the others who don’t have it as they stand on long lines.

$180 each sounds a bit high to me.

Yes, it was $180 and I think maybe my Platinum AMEX will reimburse mine (hubby paid for his on another card before I realized he had done it, so won't get that back.)

I feel your pain. I love my Global Entry, but I did have 2 different experiences at different airports. Originally when I applied I was in TX and my appointment was at DFW. That went well and the office was easy to find, even at DFW. When I needed to update with my new passport number and they had spelled my last name wrong on the card I was in MN. Finding the office was REALLY hard and when I did find it (at MSP) they had closed the office with no warning. I luckily got someone on the phone after several calls and they were able to fix both things over the phone without my having to return to the airport. Once, you get it, you'll love it, but it may be frustrating going through the process.

StellaB, sorry your having such a hassle.

I know the Chicago O'Hare CBP office releases appointment times in batches. They will show completely booked for all dates, then suddenly they will open about 3 weeks of appointment slots at once.

Husband and I applied at different times. We were both approved within a few days. I was able to get an appointment quickly. For husband, I would just check a couple times a day and after about a week I was able to confirm an appointment for him for the following week.

We both appreciate how quickly we are processed through on our return as well as the TSA Pre check benefits.

Our credit cards reimbursed the fee immediately. Current fee should be $120 per application. Did you apply through a third party?

Good luck!

Global entry is $120. Who did you pay $180 to?

Many of the airports allow you to do your global entry interview on arrival (without an appointment). Your husband can just plan to do the interview when you fly home. I think global entry is very convenient, but there is no way that I would drive 3 hours round-trip just to save some time in the immigration line when you fly back to the US.

If you don’t get your global entry approved before your trip, download the mobile passport app and use that to expedite your entry to the U.S.

Yes, it was $180 and I think maybe my Platinum AMEX will reimburse mine...

I tossed my own Amex Plat years ago, but I believe the Amex Platinum cards do reimburse for Global Entry costs.

The $180 figure seems, um, unusual  though. Hopefully you didn't book this through some third-party "service" that charged you an extra 60 bucks each for the privilege (if that's the case, that could complicate getting the routine expense reimbursed from the card issuer...). Hopefully this starts going more smoothly for you soon.

I was told that the Global Entry App is free and gets you through customs quickly. Has any one tried the app?

there is no way that I would drive 3 hours round-trip just to save some time in the immigration line when you fly back to the US...

Well, she did stop at the huge Factory Outlet Mall on the way back to do some shopping, which could have played a part in her willingness to drive all that way...I wasn't there so can't say for sure (but I wouldn't be shocked if that was the case). Her choice, none of my bizniz.

I was told that the Global Entry App is free and gets you through customs quickly. Has any one tried the app?

Well some APP might be free, but GE seems to cost $120. (App? what app? I've had GE for years and have never seen or heard of a GE app...). You may be thinking of the "Mobile Passport" app? Different thing. I have no personal experience with any app that's involved with entering the country.

And FWIW GE gets you through passport control easily (in my experience), not the "customs" part (customs involves a possible hand inspection of your bags). Customs, as I typically experience it, is just picking the right door to walk through (the one labeled "Nothing to declare"). But one's experience with customs is less predictable generally.

We just used the Mobile Passport App and sailed through the line to clear immigration in Seattle. Priority goes to Global Entry if there's no separate line, but in Seattle we had our own line. It's easy to use.

I have heard that many people do their Global Entry interview when they return from an international trip to avoid the unfortunate scenario you have been dealing with. Global Entry is $120 as others have stated. Is there any chance you went through a third party to apply?

Maybe not helpful for the OP if they’ve already paid, but maybe helpful to others reading and contemplating getting Global Entry. According to the official US government website, cost for Global Entry is $120, as others have stated.

https://ttp.cbp.dhs.gov/

Another recommendation for the Mobile Passport Control app, in case you don’t get yours in time for your next trip. It’s free. You create an account with info for all passengers in your party. When you arrive at the US airport, you start your entry process. Answer a few questions, take selfies of all passengers, then get a qr code. After you collect your luggage, look for the customs line for MPC. It’s usually near Global Entry. It saved us at least an hour wait at Seattle. Only one group in line before us, compared to probably 300 people in the regular line.

phred,

While an excellent travel agent can sometimes work miracles, getting a US federal agency to process a Global Entry application faster would be highly unlikely.

And I see no reason to doubt that OP's SIL is a travel agent.

If you live on the north side of Atlanta, consider a road trip to Chattanooga. Our GE office should open next month.
Personally I continue to successfully use the Mobile Passport app.

I had to get GE because my husband had it and didn't want to have to wait for me. I don't think it's worth the effort-I often get pulled out of line for additional screening(in US airports but not overseas) and I don't have any metal body parts. The good news is, the first time you renew it, you can often do it without another appointment.

My Global Entry expires in 15 months.
I was curious about the comment on this thread... "When I needed to update with my new passport number"
I applied/submitted online to renew my passport on May 28th and received it via priority mail on June 7th. What a shock!
I had not considered a need to update Global Entry/Trusted Traveler of my new passport number. Apparently the new passport number is not automatically updated for GE.
I've now updated my GE account with my new passport number.
This forum is so helpful. Thank you all for keeping me current of important travel information.

If you really paid $180 for Global Entry, then that is a red flag. You may not have applied via the official site. Can you check your application confirmation and see, or check and see how much you paid and who? Though when I google "global entry", the official government site and sub-sites are all the results on the first page.

I am in Atlanta too. It took ten months for me to receive my approval. This was at the end of 2023. There are paid apps out there that will scan your airport(s) of choice for available appointments and notifiy you, then you immediately go and sign up for it. I don't remember the name - Thrifty Traveler has written about it several times. It may have been called Appointment Scanner. However, before I paid for the app I checked the appointment scheduling website and there were several appointments available the following week, so I was able to get one. I think the key is checking several times a day for availability.

In the meantime, Mobile Passport is free and works well. One caveat is that an airport may say they accept Mobile Passport but then not have any Mobile Passport lanes open. But it doesn't hurt to have it until you get approved.

I do love my GE and think it's 100% worth it. I got it when it was still $100 and my UA Chase visa paid for it.

If you live on the north side of Atlanta, consider a road trip to
Chattanooga. Our GE office should open next month

Thanks for the tip! Yes, I'm on the northwest side, right off I-75. Chattanooga is about 100 miles so a good bit further than Hartsfield, but it is somewhere that might make a nice day trip. So I'll check into that.

PS...Oh, and WHOOPSIE, I was wrong it was $120. Maybe I paid $180 for something else recently and got them confused.

.

Mobile Passport Control is free and easy. No need for Global Entry. In my last 3 trips with friends who have Global Entry, I was through immigration with MPC before they got through with Global Entry.

Ah, but with Global Entry, TSA Pre-check is included every time you fly within the US, too. So hang in there.

So sorry for the saga you are experiencing. On the plus side, once you are approved, and it comes to renewal time, it's $120 again but NO interview in most cases. My husband just renewed his on-line and was approved in three days.

Another vote for Mobile Passport. That being said, ATL is participating in GE Enrollment on Departure. You should check it out.
Edited to say that EOD only works if you've been approved. I should have read your initial post more carefully.

That being said, ATL is participating in GE Enrollment on Departure.
You should check it out.

I'm a little vague on that - can you explain how it works?

We love Global Entry. In 2022 we were trying to schedule appointments for our family of four and our two kids were in college and the closest Global Entry location for them was Atlanta.

As someone posted above, keep checking the appointment calendar daily. We live on the northern gulf coast and have 3 different Global Entry offices within 120 miles. I was able to get my daughter an appointment while she was home for a doctor visit, son and husband had their’s during son’s spring break about 60 miles away, and I was randomly checking the calendar and found an appointment for the next day. Again, I was able to schedule all these appointment by randomly checking the appointment calendar (granted for three different locations.)

Most international airports have an interview upon arrival option. Two of my children did this and it worked great for them. It only took about 10 additional minutes going through passport control.

The other thing is to put a specific date that is within a few months as your travel date on the application. Those applications tend to get processed faster.

Stella, when you arrive at passport control you simply tell them that you would like to do interview upon arrival for global entry. They take you to the side and the interview takes about 10 minutes.

Stella, when you arrive at passport control you simply tell them that
you would like to do interview upon arrival for global entry. They
take you to the side and the interview takes about 10 minutes.

Really? So when I'm leaving for Italy, I just ask to be interviewed then and there with NO appointment and NO pre-approval?

My husband has gotten pre-approval, but I haven't.

If you are conditionally approved you can use Global Entry on Arrival.

Atlanta was trialing an Enrollment on Departure late last year. I do not know if it has been extended. You'll have to research that.

In either case, you must be conditionally approved first.

@ David, apparently there is a new Global Entry app. I have read about it but haven’t checked it out.

@ jeanm okay, I see. Then my husband could do the interview them - since he's been pre-approved, but not me unless my approval happens before then. We applied the same day, and his came through the next day, mine is still "Pending" after two months. Sigh...

The $180 figure seems, um, unusual though.

No, I was mistaken, it was $120. I think I paid $180 for something else recently so got that number stuck in my head. I applied directly through the Dept of Homeland Security .

I would call my Congressman's office and see if they can do something about it not being conditionally approved after 2 months.

I agree with the above. The stuck in pending status is odd or possibly a commuter glitch. All of ours went to conditionally approved or the like within 48 hours.

I don't think it's that unusual for conditional approval to take a long time. There is a whole Reddit page devoted to Global Entry and many people there have the same experience as OP - one person approved instantly, another person not approved for months. I posted above that my conditional approval took ten months. Who knows what factors are considered? In fact I received my conditional approval while I was out of the country. I had read anectdotal evidence that sometimes traveling out of the country can trigger conditional approval. It wasn't my first trip out of the country since applying, so who knows.

It's easy enough for one person in a couple to use GE and one person to use Mobile Passport. That's what my husband and I do - I have GE but he does not; he hasn't applied due to a, shall we say, youthful indiscretion (forty years ago, but probably not worth the hassle of applying for GE anyway.)

LOVE our Global Entry….so worth it and am now reading that 8 chosen airports are being used to test an even quicker turn through it now……they say” we want you to walk through customs and never break your stride”!!! When you see those mile long lines and you get to whip through it is WONDERFUL…….

love my free Mobile Passport. T8 & T1 @ JFK we used the same line as GE; same at EWR. My kid has used it at ATL as well, he also loves it.

oh and remember this - GE will be revoked not only if you lie on a return (or fail to declare) but they WILL revoke if you import things via the mail/DHL/FX and misdeclare as well..

Worth considering (or at least worth being aware of):

We all are referring to this as "Global Entry" (since that's how it is marketed to us). But once you start looking at it, you will soon notice this is also called the "Trusted Traveler" program (I suspect that's how it's referred to internally). Before you are considered "trusted" you are going to get a cursory background check (or maybe more than a cursory one, depending on what their first sniff turns up). Finger-printed, too (at least both me and my spouse were). You need to list all the countries that you have traveled to during the past (I think) 5 or 10 years (my list was long, longer than I would have thought). Also need to list all your employers for (IIRC) much longer. Hope you have good records or a flawless memory.

Most of us also get "TSA Precheck" as part of the Global Entry package. That lets you go through (some) security screenings with slightly less scrutiny. Because they "trust" you. But by default, their job is to not trust you at all. So by going through this process, you are incrementally demonstrating your trustworthiness by some metric, in exchange for more streamlined experiences.

The agencies that run this program take this very seriously (which should not really surprise anyone - since 9/11/2001, by most accounts it appears they take things extremely seriously). So yes, once you have GE, if you do something that they regard as untrustworthy, your status may (often will) be revoked. So think twice before buying some Cuban cigars to bring home from Cancun or committing other transgressions.

Yes Jane, that is correct! Returning through Chicago ORD, with Global Entry four times in the last few months, the queue never paused... you keep walking and the camera takes a photo while the TSA agent keeps repeating "please keep walking through, face the camera and continue to the exit"... Twice there was no line of people walking through Global Entry because the camera system is so fast.

Note: Applications for global entry are placed into separate piles and analyzed differently. Some get a cursory investigation and are conditionally approved in 1-3 days.

Another pile gets a thorough investigation that can take 10+ months. It is normal and even expected that for a married couple one spouse is conditionally approved in 48 hours, the other spouse takes 10 months.

I don't have global entry. But when I returned from CDG to LAX I just looked into the camera and walked right in. No line.

love my free Mobile Passport. T8 & T1 @ JFK we used the same line as GE; same at EWR.

I don't have global entry. But when I returned from CDG to LAX I just looked into the camera and walked right in. No line.

With the advancements in technology, is the Mobil Passport Control app pushing Global Entry toward obsolescence - especially when you consider the cost and hoops you must jump through to obtain GE - with the entries in this thread being relevant examples?

I've re-entered the States three times in the past 18 months - twice at LAX and once at Boston - in none of those cases was the wait at immigration anything near unreasonable. I have PreCheck and can see the value, especially as it's also helpful for domestic flights. But life is too short to contemplate driving 100 miles each way for a GE interview.

When I first applied for GE, the earliest available interview was 7 months wait. I called and talked to a local office agent and got this valuable suggestion:

Go ahead and select any available date for interview; then check back periodically for an earlier opening (usually due to cancellation).

Sure enough I was able to reschedule for a new interview date, a date less than one month from my initial submission.

StellaB, those with dubious backgrounds always take longer.

My son got turned down because he confessed to throwing up on a police officer's foot when he was 17. That also kept him out of Canada.

StellaB, those with dubious backgrounds always take longer.

Are you implying I have a dubious background? Why would you even say something like that?

In fact I am the most "boring" law-abiding citizen you ever met and always have been.

Stella B, please excuse Mr E. He's a troublemaker! Always joking.

Good luck in resolving getting Global Entry!

StellaB, my apologies. Inappropriate humor. David, thank you sir.

Mr Ë, I thought the humor in your post was obvious. And, wow, steep price your son is paying.

Jeanm. He didn't have to, the only record is in a county Justice of the Peace file cabinet, but G-d bless him, he's honest and told the truth. Im proud of him.

And my humor is often an issue. Today the waitress asked if I liked the Fish & Chips; like she does about every 10 days when I order the same. This time, I said that they were terrible .... but with a smile. Number Seven hit me and began apologizing for me.

I used an app called global entry spotter. It cost me 25.00 but it is good for a year. I put in my info and I got to add 3 locations that I would want to go to for the interview. Within 24 hours I was being notified of appointments. My husband and I both needed an interview, so when I was alerted about an appointment time I took it. The way it worked out, I had an interview on one day and he had one on a different day. Then within 48 hours I received an alert that there was going to be several appointments on a Saturday, and I changed my husband and my appointments to be on that day at the same time. It was very easy to switch the day and time. I would absolutely recommend the global entery spotter app. I hated that I had to pay 25.00 but I was so tired of having to check to find a date that I could get an appointment that it was worth it to just pay it and be done. I hope this helps anyone trying to get an interview appointment.

StellaB, my apologies. Inappropriate humor.

Oh, okay. Sorry, I'm kind of new here and don't "get" who's joking around and who's being serious!

But I still need to reign it in.

@ plwilds

Thank you for the tip on the app, I will definitely do that!

StellaB,

Atlanta has over 1000 appointments slots available first 2 weeks in August as I type this.

Atlanta has over 1000 appointments slots available first 2 weeks in
August as I type this.

Really? I'll have to take a look - are they different times of day? Last I looked they only had early mornings.

I guess I could get my DH to go ahead and schedule his, I hope they don't ding him for not having shown up for the appt in Detroit (we could NOT find the Global Entry office, not being familiar with that airport.) But all that will accomplish is having him breeze on through security and customs and then waiting for me because I'll be in the lines!

StellaB, I honestly don't know how to help you. I wish you the best.

@ jeanm

Thanks, I guess I'm just venting here. Government agencies move at a glacial pace, and there is nothing we can do to speed it up.

At this point, though, I think my DH and I have spent more time in this process than we would have just waiting in the lines - we've wasted more time than we would have saved!

Government agencies move at a glacial pace

I was able to go from application to approval in 9 days, 6 years back when it was harder to get an appointment than today. As someone noted August opened up in Atlanta and there are many spots, 6 years ago it was much harder to get anything in less than 6 months. I checked the scheduler every few hours to get a cancellation in a very short time frame.

FYI: the walk up Global Entry application interviews tend to be a door near domestic baggage claim. You should have been notified which carousel the door is near when the appointment was made.

FYI: the walk up Global Entry application interviews tend to be a door
near domestic baggage claim. You should have been notified which
carousel the door is near when the appointment was made.

In Atlanta the GE office is located in the international terminal which is completely separate from the domestic terminal.

As for the one in Detroit, we just never found it. It was NOT located in the main terminal building, we had some other address and the GPS had us going in circles around and around the airport and we just never were able to find it. (Something about GPS I've noticed is that the closer you get to something, the less helpful it is.)

It’s too late but here are directions at DTW, near the top. If you were flying Delta it would mean going to the North Terminal, not the McNamara Terminal Delta uses.

https://www.globalentrytexts.com/location/detroit-metro-airport

“Does the Atlanta Location Accept Walk-Ins?
No, the Atlanta Airport Global Entry enrollment center does not accept walk-ins for interviews.”

I think this policy is unusual. I have heard of people getting walk in interviews elsewhere.

“Does the Atlanta Location Accept Walk-Ins? No, the Atlanta Airport
Global Entry enrollment center does not accept walk-ins for
interviews.”

I think this policy is unusual. I have heard of people getting walk in
interviews elsewhere.

Maybe, but definitely NOT in Atlanta. When I accompanied my DH to the interview he "thought" he had scheduled in Atlanta, they had a sign on the window.

"We do NOT accept walk-in interviews. NEVER, under any circumstances whatsoever. This means YOU. Don't even ASK, the answer is NO! If you insist on an interview without an appointment, you will be escorted from this office by Security."

(Not word for word, but that's pretty much what it said!)

Not surprised that Atlanta doesn't take walk ins.. we go out of our way to make sure that you know that the border patrol would rather you NOT return to the USA. I once watched on of those agents drill a Delta flight attendant who was in uniform about the fact that her passport had too many stamps in it and that was "suspicious" Gee, I wonder what she does for a living.... One of them once asked me if I was a communist because I had a Russian visa. If I didn't live here, I'd try hard to return through another US city.

At my last international arrival in Chicago, Global Entry interviews were being done at a booth just down from where the agent was clearing arrivals who already had Global Entry.