Appreciate your thoughts…
I’d say do it. That which doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
Other than the cost, $100 for 5 years, and having to go for an interview (loss of 1/2 a day), what could the cons possibly be if you’re not a terrorist?
The interview took me literally 15 minutes. Just schedule it the nearest int’l airport before your next flight there and you don’t have to go out of your way.
I got it about a year ago and it’s been worth multiples of what I’ve paid for it just for the TSA Pre access. However, airports are now marketing TSA Pre membership pretty heavily and some airports (especially JFK) have really streamlined the customs/immigration process, so I suspect the value of Global Entry will continue to diminish over time.
^ yeah, but the cost of pre-check is nearly the same as the cost of Global Entry, so you might as well get GE for the extra benefits.
I have it but can’t fully use all the benefits since whenever I use the kiosk it doesn’t allow me to select the right option due to my visa status and I get the big X on my receipt. I agree though that its worth it just for pre check.
^ Agreed that TSA Pre is amazing - I can’t stress that enough. I once was able to make a 3:30pm flight out of O’Hare by jumping in a cab at 2:30pm from downtown Chicago. (My actual flight was at 4:30pm but I called on my way to the airport to get on standby for the 3:30 and got to the counter just as they were processing the standbys.)
I had NEXUS (GE for Canadians, as we are such good friends). I ended up getting a secondary searched MORE than conventional entry, so I didn’t renew. Also, everyone in your party must be using it which was rarely the case for me.
Worth it just for the security lines. I’ve never had more than maybe 15 people in front of me in line, and when its that busy the normal line is hundreds.
There are some credit cards and airline clubs that reimburse the global entry fees. Its worth checking.
I have a buddy that got the NEXUS and then would try to use it to get into clubs. When they’d say it wasn’t real he’d argue about the legal definition of identification and how it met the highest criteria (or something, I always glazed over during this). He made a few bouncers mad and suprisingly, bouncers were not interested in the legal lesson on IDs.
I have no idea what global entry is but I’m sure I’ve seen a film called that at some point…
Global Entry is a program run by US Customs and Border Protection (part of Homeland Security) that basically lets you cut in line and have reduced screening when re-entering the US. You pay $100 for 5 years of membership in the program, get interviewed by someone from the government to determine if you are a security threat or not, and then get to “breeze through” customs. It also entitles you to use TSA Pre-Check, which is a special line at airport security that is faster and you don’t have to take off shoes, take out laptop, etc.
When I posted my first response, I had no idea whta he was talking about, TBH.
Since I fly only once (maybe twice) per year, it sounds like a waste of time and money for me.
I’d been meaning to sign up for Global Entry or Pre-Check and this tread prompted me to look into each of them a bit more. Global Entry will require me to sign up my kids (4 and 2) if they’re going to be travelling with with. What kind of BS is that? An extra $200 to sign them up as well isn’t going to break me, but the pure money grab really pisses me off. CBP claims the $100 fee is non-refundable because it goes to fund your background check, but what background check is done on a 2 year old? Pre-Check doesn’t charge for kids until they are 13.
^ The 2 year old is fine but we have our eye on that 4 year old… judging by the smell he is going to be the Diaper Bomber.
I was trying to make a cheap porno gag but, to be fair, it was terrible.
Sounds like a good deal though. I’d snap that up if there was an equivalent over here. There’s nothing like a career in finance to make you hate air travel.
My experience in non-USA airports is that pre-check wouldn’t be as valuable. But perhaps my sample is biased, but based on several countries the USA seems like the worst PITA. When I got off in an Italian airport one time, all you had to do is walk past guards with drug sniffing dogs holding some large assault rifle. Seemed like a much more efficient process ha ha
agree