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It'd be nice if there was an actual global version of the American Global Entry/Nexus/Sentri system. I know coordinating between many countries would be a pain,

It'd be nice if there was an actual global version of the American Global Entry/Nexus/Sentri system. I know coordinating between many countries would be a pain, and a lot of people don't like the idea of being added to a government registry and having biometric scans and a background check run, so such a system is probably not feasible for everyone. However, I have zero regrets signing up for Nexus due to frequent travel to Canada. Nexus includes Global Entry and TSA Precheck for less than the price of Precheck alone. Flying between the US and Canada usually just requires a couple of taps on a screen and you're done with customs, and often times driving over the border I don't get any questions at all. I do understand that we shouldn't have to pay for this expedited service and it should be available to everyone, but I'm constantly surprised by how many frequent US/Canadian travelers don't even know it's an option.

simonbyrne 8y ago
Agreed. The costs vary a lot too: the US is pretty good ($100/5 years, includes precheck), but you would have to travel a fair bit to make it worthwhile in the UK (£50/1 year + £20 registration).
- ghaff 8y ago
  Yeah. I have Global Entry and actually fly to London semi-regularly (a few times a year) which qualifies for the UK system but I don't travel enough for it to be worthwhile.
- iamatworknow 8y ago
  Nexus for me was $50/5 years, while Precheck alone was $80/5 years, so it was a no-brainer. Prices may have changed since then, though, because I believe I signed up in 2016. The only difficult part was setting an afternoon aside to go get scanned/interviewed (if you even want to call it an interview, as I believe I was asked only one question: Why do you want this?).
kevinkimball 8y ago
There's some options, for example business travelers can get the APEC business travel card, which allows the use of e-gates.[1] Similarly, if you travel to Hong Kong more than a few times a year, you can enroll in the frequent visitor program which allows use of e-gates.[2] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APEC_Business_Travel_Card https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APEC_Business_Travel_Card [2] https://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/services/echannel_visitors.html https://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/services/echannel_visitors.html
- iamatworknow 8y ago
  Interesting. It does seem like there's a smattering of other national programs that work in part with Global Entry (many at an additional cost). https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-entry/international-arrangements https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-...
  - chimeracoder 8y ago
    > Interesting. It does seem like there's a smattering of other national programs that work in part with Global Entry (many at an additional cost). It looks like Germany is the only Schengen country on that list. Does anyone with Global Entry have experience applying for EasyPass-RTP with a US passport?
    - cmurf 8y ago
      I can't tell from the description that Global Entry is a requirement or enhances approval chances. From the description U.S. ePassport holders can apply and if approved it's good for the duration of the ePassport. I guess the next time I'm in Germany I'll find out!
travelbuffoon 8y ago
No, thanks. Countries should serve people by making border crossing fast for everyone. GE is an ugly workaround, and shouldn't be needed in any civilised country (and yes, my country has an efficient border, the absolute longest I've seen or even heard of on the news is a 15 minute wait due to unlucky arrival timing - EU/EFTA still had no wait on that occasion due to automatic border gates).
- iamatworknow 8y ago
  >I do understand that we shouldn't have to pay for this expedited service and it should be available to everyone
- monksy 8y ago
  I think it should only be used to get back into your host country. When I'm travelling part of the nice thing of going there is to get a stamp in your passport.
  - KSS42 8y ago
    You can choose to go through the long line, talk to an agent and get a stamp.
  - saryant 8y ago
    Stamps are going away. Lots of countries no longer stamp passports, at least in some situations. Hong Kong, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, South Korea. The US will generally not stamp their own passports. Frankly, I'm fine with it now that the US no longer lets you add pages to an existing passport.
  - dawnerd 8y ago
    I must be lucky? but I never get any stamps. Then again I'm never asked more than a few basic questions.
redisman 8y ago
The systems in EU are much better than the weird amalgamation that TSA has cooked up for us. With a EU passport traveling from the US I can sometimes just go through a gate that scans my passport and takes a photo and does a biometric verification in 10 minutes total. When traveling back to the US I always get to stand in a line for at least 30 minutes no matter what things I use and then talk to the friendly CBP officer
- chimeracoder 8y ago
  > The systems in EU are much better than the weird amalgamation that TSA has cooked up for us. With a EU passport traveling from the US I can sometimes just go through a gate that scans my passport and takes a photo and does a biometric verification in 10 minutes total. When traveling back to the US I always get to stand in a line for at least 30 minutes no matter what things I use and then talk to the friendly CBP officer Huh? We're talking about passport control, which is completely separate from TSA. The experience you're describing, by the way, is exactly reversed for people traveling on a US passport. When traveling with a US passport to Europe, I have to stand in the longer, non-EU line. When traveling back to the US, I go straight to an electronic kiosk that scans my passport, and it takes about five minutes.
  - qw 8y ago
    I spent almost 3 hours in line at JFK, with an European passport. That is actually one of the main reasons why I probably won't come back anytime soon.
    - chimeracoder 8y ago
      > I spent almost 3 hours in line at JFK, with an European passport. That is actually one of the main reasons why I probably won't come back anytime soon. Right, we've established that queues for people traveling on foreign passports are longer and more frustrating than queues for people traveling with the local passports. That's the problem this article is talking about: queues for people traveling with foreign passports.
  - 8y ago
grecy 8y ago
> It'd be nice if there was an actual global version of the American Global Entry/Nexus/Sentri system You know when invented, that was the purpose of a passport! Of course, it today's world you have to now pay extra for what used to be include.
- garmaine 8y ago
  No, they're not the same thing. GE/NEXUS is a trusted traveller program where they do a full background check on you to see if you are a risk. Passports never provided that; a passport is just a travel document saying who you are, not a bilateral authorization from the security services of both countries that you're not and will not be a security risk.
  - grkvlt 8y ago
    I don't know, mine contains a request from Her Brittanic Majesty's Secretary of State, in the name of Her Majesty, that I should be allowed 'to pass freely without let or hindrance' and says nothing about requiring me to be inconvenienced and held up...

simonbyrne 8y ago

Agreed. The costs vary a lot too: the US is pretty good ($100/5 years, includes precheck), but you would have to travel a fair bit to make it worthwhile in the UK (£50/1 year + £20 registration).

ghaff 8y ago
Yeah. I have Global Entry and actually fly to London semi-regularly (a few times a year) which qualifies for the UK system but I don't travel enough for it to be worthwhile.
iamatworknow 8y ago
Nexus for me was $50/5 years, while Precheck alone was $80/5 years, so it was a no-brainer. Prices may have changed since then, though, because I believe I signed up in 2016. The only difficult part was setting an afternoon aside to go get scanned/interviewed (if you even want to call it an interview, as I believe I was asked only one question: Why do you want this?).

kevinkimball 8y ago

There's some options, for example business travelers can get the APEC business travel card, which allows the use of e-gates.[1] Similarly, if you travel to Hong Kong more than a few times a year, you can enroll in the frequent visitor program which allows use of e-gates.[2] [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APEC_Business_Travel_Card https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/APEC_Business_Travel_Card [2] https://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/services/echannel_visitors.html https://www.immd.gov.hk/eng/services/echannel_visitors.html

iamatworknow 8y ago
Interesting. It does seem like there's a smattering of other national programs that work in part with Global Entry (many at an additional cost). https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-entry/international-arrangements https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-...
- chimeracoder 8y ago
  > Interesting. It does seem like there's a smattering of other national programs that work in part with Global Entry (many at an additional cost). It looks like Germany is the only Schengen country on that list. Does anyone with Global Entry have experience applying for EasyPass-RTP with a US passport?
  - cmurf 8y ago
    I can't tell from the description that Global Entry is a requirement or enhances approval chances. From the description U.S. ePassport holders can apply and if approved it's good for the duration of the ePassport. I guess the next time I'm in Germany I'll find out!

travelbuffoon 8y ago

No, thanks. Countries should serve people by making border crossing fast for everyone. GE is an ugly workaround, and shouldn't be needed in any civilised country (and yes, my country has an efficient border, the absolute longest I've seen or even heard of on the news is a 15 minute wait due to unlucky arrival timing - EU/EFTA still had no wait on that occasion due to automatic border gates).

iamatworknow 8y ago
>I do understand that we shouldn't have to pay for this expedited service and it should be available to everyone
monksy 8y ago
I think it should only be used to get back into your host country. When I'm travelling part of the nice thing of going there is to get a stamp in your passport.
- KSS42 8y ago
  You can choose to go through the long line, talk to an agent and get a stamp.
- saryant 8y ago
  Stamps are going away. Lots of countries no longer stamp passports, at least in some situations. Hong Kong, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, South Korea. The US will generally not stamp their own passports. Frankly, I'm fine with it now that the US no longer lets you add pages to an existing passport.
- dawnerd 8y ago
  I must be lucky? but I never get any stamps. Then again I'm never asked more than a few basic questions.

redisman 8y ago

The systems in EU are much better than the weird amalgamation that TSA has cooked up for us. With a EU passport traveling from the US I can sometimes just go through a gate that scans my passport and takes a photo and does a biometric verification in 10 minutes total. When traveling back to the US I always get to stand in a line for at least 30 minutes no matter what things I use and then talk to the friendly CBP officer

chimeracoder 8y ago
> The systems in EU are much better than the weird amalgamation that TSA has cooked up for us. With a EU passport traveling from the US I can sometimes just go through a gate that scans my passport and takes a photo and does a biometric verification in 10 minutes total. When traveling back to the US I always get to stand in a line for at least 30 minutes no matter what things I use and then talk to the friendly CBP officer Huh? We're talking about passport control, which is completely separate from TSA. The experience you're describing, by the way, is exactly reversed for people traveling on a US passport. When traveling with a US passport to Europe, I have to stand in the longer, non-EU line. When traveling back to the US, I go straight to an electronic kiosk that scans my passport, and it takes about five minutes.
- qw 8y ago
  I spent almost 3 hours in line at JFK, with an European passport. That is actually one of the main reasons why I probably won't come back anytime soon.
  - chimeracoder 8y ago
    > I spent almost 3 hours in line at JFK, with an European passport. That is actually one of the main reasons why I probably won't come back anytime soon. Right, we've established that queues for people traveling on foreign passports are longer and more frustrating than queues for people traveling with the local passports. That's the problem this article is talking about: queues for people traveling with foreign passports.
- 8y ago

grecy 8y ago

> It'd be nice if there was an actual global version of the American Global Entry/Nexus/Sentri system You know when invented, that was the purpose of a passport! Of course, it today's world you have to now pay extra for what used to be include.

garmaine 8y ago
No, they're not the same thing. GE/NEXUS is a trusted traveller program where they do a full background check on you to see if you are a risk. Passports never provided that; a passport is just a travel document saying who you are, not a bilateral authorization from the security services of both countries that you're not and will not be a security risk.
- grkvlt 8y ago
  I don't know, mine contains a request from Her Brittanic Majesty's Secretary of State, in the name of Her Majesty, that I should be allowed 'to pass freely without let or hindrance' and says nothing about requiring me to be inconvenienced and held up...