I’ve travelled a decent amount in my life. In my corporate life, I travelled quite a bit. Mostly domestically as that is where our offices were (HR & Payroll company so mostly US) but did do some international work travel. Personally we’ve travelled a good amount with our kids while they were growing up. I remember (pre-9/11) being able to stroll thru security and get to my gate with ease. So much so I had it down to a science that I just needed to arrive a PHL 45-60 mins before my flight to park, get thru security and to my gate in time to board. Of course that was with just carry-on, but even checking a bag was easier and faster back then. I’ve seen the progression of air travel from the pre-9/11 days, post-9/11 days, pandemic, and the current ‘normal’ situation. Getting through security is a huge PITA anymore. Realizing that we want to travel more now that our girls are *almost* done college, we thought it’d be a good time to apply for Global Entry.
My last post discussed the difference of TSA Precheck VS Global Entry. Because we’re planning to travel outside the US, Global Entry seemed the best route.
First you go to the Trusted Traveler Program page on the DHS government site. For the application, you’ll need your passport (a must for Global Entry) and your driver’s license. The application only takes a few minutes to complete. Then you pay the $100 fee (Global Entry membership is good for 5 years). So I applied on July 28th, 2023. On July 29, 2023 I received an email that I was ‘conditionally approved’. YAY!
Now I needed to schedule an in-person interview. This is so a CBP employee can verify you are who you say you are. Well, now I was starting to see why it says 4-6 mo. average to get your approval…while there are a bunch of locations across the country, I couldn’t find any near me with availability. I thought about finding a cheap(er) flight and going to an airport that had availability, but financially that seemed silly once I saw the flight prices. Many locations just said they were fully booked thru XX date and didn’t show any future availability.
⇒ TIP – if you are already travelling internationally, you can walk-in to the CBP Global Entry office in the US airport you arrive to (if they have one) and do your interview on the spot. You may have to wait a bit as a walk-in, but it can be done. Thought about that too…but decided to keep checking the TTP scheduling page for a few weeks then see if making travel plans to go elsewhere made sense.
I checked for about 3 or 4 days, for Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Delaware, Newark NJ, Maryland and Washington DC. I’d see an opening pop up and then it would be taken within a few minutes. Because my husband and I were trying to do this together, I was looking for 2 slots. You can only book your own slot, if anyone else is trying with you, they need their own login to DHS and to schedule their own time slot.
Wouldn’t you know, less than a week after my ‘conditional approval’, I saw some days open up at the Delaware (New Castle – right by the Wilmington airport) location. So we grabbed 2 time slots for Aug. 17th! Woohoo!
Our time slots were 45 mins apart, which was not a big deal. We arrived a half hour early, so we thought we’d see if they’d take us earlier. YES THEY DID! We were literally in and out within 10 minutes. They scanned our passports in, took our photos, fingerprinted us, and sent us on our way. We did bring the required documentation (driver’s license, passport, proof of residency) but they didn’t ask.
Within 15 minutes of leaving the CBP facility, I received an email that I was fully approved! I now have my KTN/PASSID number (which is tied to my passport) and that will get me through TSA Precheck lines too. A physical card will be mailed to me – let’s see how long that takes (USPS is not so great…). My expiration for Global Entry is Spring 2029, so a bit longer than 5 years, but I can renew it starting in Spring 2028.
My Global Entry card arrived in the mail on August 22nd, 2023. From applying online to card in hand was only 25 days!!!
**NOTE: If you get a new passport during your Global Entry membership term, you’ll need to update your account with it. You can do this with no appointment, and simply walk into any Global Entry center, or at any airport, and have them scan in your new passport. This is because – unlike your driver’s license – every time a passport is issued, it has a new number, so that new number needs to be tied to your Global Entry membership.
