Mobile Passport Control App

Thanks, just downloaded it.

YES! Do it. I came back from Rome through JFK last month and I was able to walk right up to the counter - no line - because I used the Mobile App. I'm a big fan. It's faster and the bonus is that. you don't have to find a pen to fill out the paperwork. :)

Do you all have Global Entry? Is there a difference? Thx so much .

No, we do not have Global Entry. The processing time to be vetted for Global Entry is 4-6 months. Portland which is the closest office to us is 3 1/2 hours away and is at 291 days. The MPC App was downloaded in minutes. Is there a difference? I suppose but even at passport control they were advising people to download the app to get through the long lines quicker.

Used it Nov 22, MXP to SFO. Worked perfectly. Global Entry is inconvenient for me as I don’t live near an airport where I could enroll.

When we used in Portland (most recently in May) we walked right up to the front of the line and were through passport control right behind the flight crew. The bonus was that our luggage came through quickly, so we were out of the airport in record time.

It worked beautifully for me in late June at JFK. There was still a bit of a line, but many times shorter than the regular one.

We used it at Seattle on July 8. We do not have global entry. The regular line had hundreds of people. The lines for global entry and MPC were right next to each other. There were about 10 people in the global entry line. MPC had two people in line before us when we entered. We waited maybe a minute or two for the next agent. It was brilliant. Saved us at least an hour, and it was free!

Just a reminder to check the list of airports where you can use it.

It's a great tool for those (many) airports where it is in use !

There is a difference.....

Not all airports with international arrivals have Mobile Passport. They all have GE.

Some airports have one agent processing both GE and MP. Two separate lines. GE gets priority. Or as they were saying..."Global before Mobile."

Should the computers go down, prople who can prove they have GE get escorted to the front of the line. With no computers, no MP.

However, in most cases, MP is better than nothing.

Atlanta’s Hartsfield Jackson International Airport now offers Mobile Passport Control. Scroll down to Mobile Passport Control to see the list of airports now offering this service.

https://www.cbp.gov/about/mobile-apps-directory

Global entry is still better than Mobile Passport. But Mobile passport is better than nothing.

Though the last time I went though Dulles, the Global Entry was longer than the regular line.

That said, TSA Pre-Check/Global Entry are offered together. I always tell people to get the pre-check.

and also as a reminder, not everyone can pass the GE background check (yes, felons can travel, but can't get GE), so MPC is also a great alternative to that.

Curious Frank, how often do the computers actually go down and do they go down enough for one to go thru the expense and time to get Global Entry? By the way, my airport is Seattle and I use Mobile Passport which works great there. Personally, I wouldn't get Global Entry since why? Not one to spend money unnecessarily for something I can get for free. And Seattle Airport has spot saver, also free, so precheck doesn't make sense either.

I guess I just don't understand why Global Entry is better than Mobile Passport for those of us who have the option to use Mobile Passport at our airports. Except for perhaps it costs money, therefore must be better?

If the only reason that anyone can come up with for Global Entry being better than MPC is because of a possibility of airport computers being down than I’ll stick with the MPC and save myself the time and expense it would take to obtain GE. I do have TSA precheck for domestic flights but then registration for that is usually offered a couple times a year at our Redmond airport. And if on the rare chance that the airport computers were down wouldn’t that stop “everything” from being processed?

Great update, raymonelee ! I swear, just a few weeks ago when I checked it, Atlanta still wasn't on the list !

I will delete my earlier post.

If MPC works for you, then go for it.

But as someone pointed out in an article about MPC...the more people that know about it and use it, the longer the lines.