When it comes to clearing immigration at airports in the United States, a vast majority of people do so upon arrival. However, many people may not be aware that the United States has what’s known as a Preclearance program, whereby you clear immigration prior to boarding your US-bound flight when departing from select airports.
The United States is the only country in the world to have a program like this (probably largely because we also don’t have sterile international transit), so I wanted to take a closer look at the program in this post. I’ve discussed this as it relates to specific airports in the past, but haven’t yet written a general post about it, so I think it’s time.
In this post:
What are US Preclearance facilities at airports?
US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has what’s known as the Preclearance program, whereby passengers departing select airports clear immigration prior to boarding their flight to the United States, so they then land as a domestic passenger. That means they don’t have to clear immigration or security upon arrival, and that’s very convenient if you have a connecting flight.
To briefly go through the logistics, Preclearance facilities are available at select airports, and you’ll find US CBP officers stationed there. You’ll have to leave more time before departure when using these facilities:
- You have to go through a special security check approved by the United States, different from the standard one that a foreign airport may have
- You then have to be screened by a US CBP officer, just as you otherwise would be on arrival; there are typically still Global Entry kiosks and Mobile Passport Control lanes, should you be eligible for one of those programs
- Once you clear immigration, you’re then basically on “US soil,” for all practical purposes, even though you’re in a foreign country
- The plane then lands the same as any domestic flight would; if you have a connecting flight, you don’t have to clear security, while if you’re terminating your travels at that airport, you can collect your bag at a domestic baggage claim carousel
Below is a video outlining the Preclearance process.
Then below is an interesting video about the history of these facilities. As you can see, they date back quite a long time, and were initially used for ferries, and not airplanes.
Which airports have US Preclearance facilities?
Currently there are 15 US Preclearance facilities, spread across six countries:
- Calgary (YYC), Edmonton (YEG), Halifax (YHZ), Montreal (YUL), Ottawa (YOW), Toronto (YYZ), Vancouver (YVR), Victoria (YYJ), and Winnipeg (YWG), in Canada
- Dublin (DUB) & Shannon (SNN), in Ireland
- Abu Dhabi (AUH), in the United Arab Emirates
- Aruba (AUA), Bermuda (BDA), and Nassau (NAS), in the Caribbean
As you can see, the bulk of these facilities are in Canada, though you’ll also find some in other countries. Over time, we’ve seen lots of talk of other countries being interested in opening these facilities, though as far as I know, no finalized contracts have been signed for more to be added.
In the past, we’ve seen interest expressed for these facilities at airports in Bogota (BOG), Brussels (BRU), and Dubai (DXB), among others, though nothing ever came of that.
Who pays for US Preclearance facilities?
As you can tell, the selection of airports where you’ll find US Preclearance facilities seems rather random. How exactly are these decided on? Let me share my understanding, though others correct me if I’m wrong, since obviously not all of this is public.
My understanding is that foreign countries can apply to introduce Preclearance facilities. If a deal is reached, the cost for these facilities is shared between the US government and the country that applied. The US largely pays for the CBP staff, while the applicant country is responsible for providing the space at the airport for the facility, as well as building the facility.
As you can see, there’s a significant investment on the part of the applicant, as it’s not just the US footing the bill.
How do governments benefit from US Preclearance facilities?
What are the pros and cons of these US Preclearance facilities from the perspective of the government?
For the United States, the benefit of Preclearance facilities is that travelers can be screened before they board a flight, which in theory enhances security. After all, it’s better to determine if someone should be eligible to travel to the United States before they get on the plane. Furthermore, this program helps ease congestion upon arrival.
However, even with the foreign government footing part of the bill, I have to imagine that the US is paying more per average person screened through this program than it does at home, purely in terms of scalability. For example, Shannon has a CBP facility, but has a very limited number of flights to the United States. The cost per processed passenger can’t be competitive to what it would be at a major airport in the US.
From the perspective of the foreign country, the benefits are twofold. For one, it’s intended to make an airport more attractive for US-bound passengers, as airlines market the ease of this service, and hope it’s a point of differentiation. Furthermore, these facilities are often part of a larger diplomatic deal, to promote close relationships between the United States and the foreign country.
How do passengers benefit from US Preclearance facilities?
How do international travelers feel about these US Preclearance facilities? Well, it depends entirely on who you ask. For that matter, a person may have a different opinion depending on the type of trip they’re on.
Let me start by acknowledging that immigration can be a stressful for travelers, so there’s something to be said for getting that out of the way prior to a long flight, and then being able to relax.
That being said, it’s also important to acknowledge that for many travelers, immigration isn’t nearly as stressful as it used to be. Admittedly not everyone is eligible for these programs, but if you use Global Entry or Mobile Passport Control, then immigration is usually a painless process.
The way I view it, these are the travelers that benefit most from these facilities:
- If you’re not eligible for US expedited traveler programs, then US Preclearance is probably pretty desirable
- If you’re connecting after an international flight from the same terminal (and especially if you’re checking a bag), then it’s great to not have to clear security again or to have to collect your bag, as that saves quite a bit of time and hassle
I think it’s also important to acknowledge that clearing immigration has become so much more efficient over the years thanks to programs like Global Entry. So for those of us who are eligible for Global Entry and who are terminating our travels at our US point of entry, I don’t consider this to be much of a value add.
It’s also important to at least mention the downside to these facilities. If you’re connecting from another flight onto your US-bound flight (like if you’re flying from Delhi to Abu Dhabi to New York), you’re more likely to misconnect, because you can’t just make your connection if you have very limited time. Clearing the facility takes time, and you often have to be through there an hour or so before departure.
I guess what I’m most curious about is to what extent these facilities actually impact consumer behavior. Does Etihad actually pick up any US-bound traffic that would otherwise go to Emirates due to having a US Preclearance facility? I’m not saying it’s a bad thing, I just feel like it’s a significant investment, and I wonder if there’s actually a return on it.
Bottom line
US CBP has Preclearance facilities at 15 foreign airports, whereby you can clear immigration prior to boarding your US-bound flight. It’s great to be able to deal with the stress of immigration prior to boarding a flight, and it potentially makes connections easier, both for the passenger and their bags.
Just how valuable the program is really depends on the type of passenger you are, though. If you have Global Entry, you’ll probably find this less useful than if you’re a foreigner who usually deals with long immigration lines on arrival.
What’s your take on US Preclearance facilities? Would you like to see the program expand?
Very convenient but comes at a great cost to the U.S. taxpayers. In addition to what the CBP agent would be earning back home, the U.S. government needs to provide housing, educational allowances for the agents' children if applicable, and other additional allowances (employees in Dubai would, for example, receive a "hardship" allowance of 10 percent of their base pay). And, of course, you need to move the CBP agent and his family to their...
Very convenient but comes at a great cost to the U.S. taxpayers. In addition to what the CBP agent would be earning back home, the U.S. government needs to provide housing, educational allowances for the agents' children if applicable, and other additional allowances (employees in Dubai would, for example, receive a "hardship" allowance of 10 percent of their base pay). And, of course, you need to move the CBP agent and his family to their country of assignment (yet another cost).
Brussels should be coming at some point, the treaty is signed, just the practical implementation hasn't happened yet.
Two hours to get through immigration at Newark last weekend so I'm not seeing an improvement there and Mobile Passport Control was only available to US passport holders (as was the case in DFW).
It really is a disincentive to traveling to the US particularly when many other countries provide a more streamlined immigration clearance.
That came after a United flight which was overbooked and the delayed by an offloading auction at the gate in Quebec.
Had to go through US pre clearance in DUB and I've never seen a longer line in any airport in my life. Would have been so much faster to clear immigration after landing with MBP. Horrible experience. Not to mention, you can't relax in a lounge because you just don't know how much time you have to give yourself to go through pre clearance.
You forgot to list FPO, which has preclearance!
The Dublin pre-clearance saved my butt as did Global Entry. I was cleared with barely one hour before departure from Dublin to Atlanta. I cleared Irish customs and dodged all of the duty free shops and got to the US CBP (which I didn't know was there!). There was a LONG line and the watch is ticking! I noted the Global Entry logo and dashed over to the machine, verified everything and turned around to...
The Dublin pre-clearance saved my butt as did Global Entry. I was cleared with barely one hour before departure from Dublin to Atlanta. I cleared Irish customs and dodged all of the duty free shops and got to the US CBP (which I didn't know was there!). There was a LONG line and the watch is ticking! I noted the Global Entry logo and dashed over to the machine, verified everything and turned around to the US agent. She pointed at me "NEXT!" The lady in the other line, "Hey, wait..." "No ma'am, he's next, Global Entry!" WHEW. The TSA check was not so fast BUT...I got to the gate just in the nick of time. "Mr. Whitmire, we knew you were on the way and hoping you'd make it." I scurried down the aisle, found my seat and the push started while I was buckling my seat belt. I've used the same privileges in Calgary, Montreal and Toronto. Saves a bunch of time!
More than the downsides listed: "oh hey, I want to check out xyz lounge in YVR airport. Oh, just kidding, I'm stuck in the US-bound terminal with stale Timbits."
That was the last time I transited US-bound on AC. So, at least in my case, it does affect consumer behavior.
Not correct that "the US is the only country" with such a program. France has a similar program in the UK, covering all passengers from Dover ferry port (a very busy international border point) and from St. Pancras station in London covering all Eurostar trains (also very busy). My guess is that both of these are significantly busier than any of the US locations mentioned.
Also I've been refused entry to the Global Entry lane...
Not correct that "the US is the only country" with such a program. France has a similar program in the UK, covering all passengers from Dover ferry port (a very busy international border point) and from St. Pancras station in London covering all Eurostar trains (also very busy). My guess is that both of these are significantly busier than any of the US locations mentioned.
Also I've been refused entry to the Global Entry lane in Canada because I wasn't carrying my GE card (which CBP says you absolutely don't have to carry) by a zealous, if misinformed, airport employees. Beware!
I've heard that before. I carry the GE "credit card" in my passport wallet! WHEW
I'm aware of two and possibly three UK Airports currently working through the process to set up US CBP Pre-Clearance. None of those three are LHR, unless they have since tacked on to the process.
There is now a wait for the US election to clear before the talks and plans to set it up continue.
To talk about the comment relating to who pays for it, well it is the Airport and Government which hosts the facility.
LGW with Pre-Clearance to JFK could be a very handy option with Norse. Good for the struggling airline and pax alike.
There's also some territorial one-direction-only "preclearance" operations done by the USCBP, such as:
* USVI to US50+PR: Customs only
* CNMI to Guam: Immigration admissibility check only
* Guam to Honolulu: Immigration admissibility check only
For me preclearance is a negative. It adds cost to foreign airports, which is often passed on as an increase in fees. As well it creates tiny congested areas in foreign airports with fewer services - often no lounges or limited lounge offerings. When departing Canada for example I prefer airports without pre-clearance.
PS I don't believe YYJ has a preclearance facility.
Dublin was very slow a couple weeks ago. Would have been quicker with Global Entry. Long, slow moving line. I didn't see any provision for using Mobile Passport. Fine once you get through.
MPC lists DUB as a location where they exist. Still, I convinced a friend to use it at DAL. He was told they didn't have that, and poof! DAL was no longer listed on the app.
Please bring this to Mexico.
Uruguay has/had preclearance at the ferry terminal in Buenos Aires for Buquebus. When you board the boat in Argentina, an Uruguayan immigration officer stamps you in, you do not go through immigration in Uruguay. Not sure if its still like that, but was several years ago.
Canada has a huge benefit because you can fly from most Canadian cities to smaller cities in the US that may not have a customs facility.
I can't see this being a benefit to 'Canada'. The benefit is to passengers who want to travel non-stop from one of the Canadian cities with a facility to one of those minor US airports and arguably the US cities concerned.
"If you’re connecting from another flight onto your US-bound flight (like if you’re flying from Delhi to Abu Dhabi to New York), you’re more likely to misconnect, because you can’t just make your connection if you have very limited time. "
How is this any different than clearing customs in the US? Connecting flights post-customs have problems regardless of where they're at.
Regardless, preclearance means better flights since many airports don't have customs. It's made...
"If you’re connecting from another flight onto your US-bound flight (like if you’re flying from Delhi to Abu Dhabi to New York), you’re more likely to misconnect, because you can’t just make your connection if you have very limited time. "
How is this any different than clearing customs in the US? Connecting flights post-customs have problems regardless of where they're at.
Regardless, preclearance means better flights since many airports don't have customs. It's made my life much easier as a frequent business traveler to Canada
And it’s a common misconception that US law is in effect in the preclearance areas in Canada. Any rights that US preclearance officers are given on Canadian soil is through Canadian law:
https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/P-19.32/FullText.html
I recently went through pre-clearance in Abu Dhabi for the first time and the process overall was straightforward. The one downside is that pre-clearance is still in the old airport, so it takes time to take a shuttle from the new terminal. I hope that changes in the future.
"if you use Global Entry or Mobile Passport Control"
But what is the percentage of people arriving in the US who have access to these programs?
All US citizens, permanent residents, Canadian B1/B2 visa holders, and visa waiver program entrants (excluding first entry) are eligible to use MPC. So it's not everyone that can use it, but it's surely a significant number.
An advantage for both Americans and the foreign country would the ability to have nonstop service to and from US cities without international flights. As an example, I could see airlines offering flights from secondary cities to high traffic leisure destinations like Cancún.
If you are caught with contraband who gets to prosecute? Can CBP force you on the plane back to America without a hearing?
Probably. You would have entered the US via passport control already pre-customs, and therefore could be detained.
You have not entered foreign soil just because you e entered a preclearance area. CBP can’t arrest in Canada nor can they carry weapons. It is merely advanced immigration processing and does not cede sovereignty to a foreign government
“An alien who is denied entry into the United States at a preclearance facility may not board the U.S.-bound flight, so CBP does not need to deal with making deportation arrangements. The passenger may exit the airport and return home (unless the passenger arrived at the preclearance airport from an earlier flight).”
Another benefit of US preclearance from Canada is that flights are available to airports that don’t have passenger immigration facilities (e.g. YYZ to LGA or DCA)
I love the AC LGA-YUL flight and then YUL-TLS and back to visit family in south of France instead of dealing with JFK, CDG, etc.
Yes they do. No US airport is allowed to accept a scheduled international flight (precleared or not) unless they have the facilities necessary to process the entirety of that flight (passengers and cargo); or can call upon a mobile CBP unit within a set amount of time, with sufficient resources to do so.
Alaska Airlines found this out the hard way when they tried to offer Canadian service to John Wayne airport, before that airport's facilities were functional.
What happens when you misconnect due to preclearance wait time (or for that matter due to immigration in general)? As the segments are usually „bundled“ by the issuing airline I would assume they would rebook you for free? Can you also claim the EU-compensation in such a case?
Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (YTZ) is very close to getting a preclearance facility.
Damn! I wish they'd had it last year after our YYZ-LGA was cancelled. We spent over an hour at EWR clearing immigration.
There was some talk to introduce preclearance at ZRH a couple of years ago and I understand there were some early stage discussions between the governments. However, the project was abandoned by ZRH airport, basically for two reasons: Cost - which I believe is more than just facilities - and gate utilization.
For preclearance you need to have dedicated gates. If you have too few of them, it is not worthwile, if you have too...
There was some talk to introduce preclearance at ZRH a couple of years ago and I understand there were some early stage discussions between the governments. However, the project was abandoned by ZRH airport, basically for two reasons: Cost - which I believe is more than just facilities - and gate utilization.
For preclearance you need to have dedicated gates. If you have too few of them, it is not worthwile, if you have too many, they tend to be underutilized some part of the day.
Clearly this isn’t the US, but Britain and France have each others pre clearance facilities at the Eurostar railway terminals and the ferry ports. So at London St Pancras you go through French customs before you board the train.
There was talk about adding AMS. I don't know where that stands. Since anything international to my home airport (other than YYZ) requires a connection, it is a great stress reliever to get cleared up front.
Another valuable benefit is you can now have your Global Entry Interview/Enrolment at the Pre-Clearance locations.
Given the GE interviews are (at least were) difficult to get in some locations, some found it worthwhile to fly to Canada for a weekend and just arrive early for the return flight and interview. You need to be pre-cleared for GE, but you need not (cannot) schedule the interview. Just make sure of hours and line to enter from the CBP website.
Pre-clearance in Canada is a major advantage for the airlines as they can use domestic gates at US airports simplifying both scheduling and onward connections.
Sorry, Victoria (YYJ) does not have a U.S. Preclearance facility. I believe there might be some sort of ferry service operating between Victoria and the U.S. that offers it, but the airport does not. I flew the Alaska Airlines service from YYJ to SEA a few years ago, and you do go through customs and immigration after arriving into Seattle/Tacoma. This turned out to be an absolute breeze upon arrival on the morning flight, since...
Sorry, Victoria (YYJ) does not have a U.S. Preclearance facility. I believe there might be some sort of ferry service operating between Victoria and the U.S. that offers it, but the airport does not. I flew the Alaska Airlines service from YYJ to SEA a few years ago, and you do go through customs and immigration after arriving into Seattle/Tacoma. This turned out to be an absolute breeze upon arrival on the morning flight, since there were no transatlantic or transpacific flights arriving at that hour - just our little Q400.
As those AS puddle jumper flights are in fact the *only* transborder flights operating at daily year round frequency, I think we can all agree that YYJ hardly needs Preclearance. Canadian airports like YTZ (Toronto City Center Island Airport) and YQB (Quebec City) tend to have quite a bit more service to the U.S., and as such are likely to get Preclearance facilities next.
All that said, Victoria is an absolutely beautiful city and area to visit. Highly, highly recommend it - even if you do have to connect to get there!
Victorian here, this is correct, and I agree a preclearance facility here would be totally overkill.
The ferry service you refer to is the FRS Clipper, which connects downtown Victoria at Belleville Terminal to downtown Seattle. You do go through preclearance with US CBP prior to boarding the ship. I believe there is a separate line for NEXUS holders as well.
Cheers for the shoutout, Victoria is beautiful (in addition to the rest of Vancouver...
Victorian here, this is correct, and I agree a preclearance facility here would be totally overkill.
The ferry service you refer to is the FRS Clipper, which connects downtown Victoria at Belleville Terminal to downtown Seattle. You do go through preclearance with US CBP prior to boarding the ship. I believe there is a separate line for NEXUS holders as well.
Cheers for the shoutout, Victoria is beautiful (in addition to the rest of Vancouver Island) and very grateful to call it home.
For the Red Ball Ferry (M.V. Coho) from Victoria to Port Angeles, you go through U.S. Immigration at the terminal in Victoria before boarding and then you go through U.S. Customs upon arrival in Port Angeles. It's not called "pre-clearance" but it's similar. In the opposite direction, all formalities are done upon arrival in Victoria.
Whoops. Black Ball Ferry, not Red Ball.
Preclearance is great, even for passengers who already have Global Entry. International arrival facilities in the U.S. are often outdated and slow to process passengers — and everyone, regardless of status, has to wait for checked luggage, even if they got through immigration control more quickly.
Preclearance minimizes most of these hassles and delays. Check-in, security, and preclearance processing are completed right after each other, with no long walks between checkpoints. Checked baggage is screened...
Preclearance is great, even for passengers who already have Global Entry. International arrival facilities in the U.S. are often outdated and slow to process passengers — and everyone, regardless of status, has to wait for checked luggage, even if they got through immigration control more quickly.
Preclearance minimizes most of these hassles and delays. Check-in, security, and preclearance processing are completed right after each other, with no long walks between checkpoints. Checked baggage is screened and inspected behind the scenes, so there’s no need to lug large bags through customs halls upon arrival.
I’ve used it in Montreal and Vancouver. It’s so nice to be able to walk to baggage claim or a connecting flight after arrival without waiting in line and going through security screening again.
The U.S. should focus on upgrading its existing international arrivals halls in domestic airports. Drab hallways and lengthy lines need fixing.
In the meantime, preclearance serves as a crucial relief valve that makes international travel easier for everyone involved.
My question on the Etihad Preclearance forum was what about baggage claim, how would that work if a terminal arrivals area is completely sterile and the the baggage carousels are completely sealed off? Would there be an X number of carousels that are not sterile? Sure, as someone mentioned, the gates can be dual use where arriving domestic flights lead you to the departures level.
Etihad will be using JFKs new Terminal One while Aer...
My question on the Etihad Preclearance forum was what about baggage claim, how would that work if a terminal arrivals area is completely sterile and the the baggage carousels are completely sealed off? Would there be an X number of carousels that are not sterile? Sure, as someone mentioned, the gates can be dual use where arriving domestic flights lead you to the departures level.
Etihad will be using JFKs new Terminal One while Aer Lingus will be using Terminal 6.
And as an aside, you were not able to preclear when taking CXs shuttle flight back in the day between YVR and JFK; I'm not sure how jetBlue's setup works.
Interesting point... JFK T1 is all international flights, correct? That would require an entirely separate arrival process (hallways, baggage claim) for pre-clearance flights. Wonder if there are enough of them to justify that much infrastructure, even for only a few gates. Or perhaps pre-clearance arrivals will use a different terminal? God forbid they bus...
@JustinB Arrivals would be basically fed through the departures area and led through a non-sterile baggage carousel which was also used for United, and now Alaska. (Think BAs JFK-London-City flight on the A318 at Terminal 7).
I'm not sure how the setup at the new Terminal One would work if all the baggage carousels are sterile and sealed off.
I was also asking earlier if all the carousels at LAXs B are sterile and sealed...
@JustinB Arrivals would be basically fed through the departures area and led through a non-sterile baggage carousel which was also used for United, and now Alaska. (Think BAs JFK-London-City flight on the A318 at Terminal 7).
I'm not sure how the setup at the new Terminal One would work if all the baggage carousels are sterile and sealed off.
I was also asking earlier if all the carousels at LAXs B are sterile and sealed off as well, or you pick up your bags at the airline's departure terminal or what am I missing?
All of the carousels at LAX TBIT are sterile. If you arrive domestic there (most commonly AA due the ongoing construction at T4, but I have seen DL planes on the other side occasionally) you have to go to the relevant terminal to collect your bags.
Like most other airports in the US, they simply direct the flow of traffic on the plane into the departures area and you are free to go, or hike...
All of the carousels at LAX TBIT are sterile. If you arrive domestic there (most commonly AA due the ongoing construction at T4, but I have seen DL planes on the other side occasionally) you have to go to the relevant terminal to collect your bags.
Like most other airports in the US, they simply direct the flow of traffic on the plane into the departures area and you are free to go, or hike to T4 if you have a checked bag.
On the other side, in the past if you arrived on United or Delta late in the evening, the C&I at their respective terminals was closed. You’d go to a normal gate at their terminal and get bussed to TBIT for processing. Not sure if that’s still the case but it was miserable.
The HKG-YVR-JFK flights left YVR several hours after CBP closed. Up until this most recent summer preclearance closed at 8pm leaving all the redeyes to clear at their arrival city
Actually Ben, China has a pre clearance center in Hong Kong at the Kowloon fast train station. You clear Chinese customs in HK and walk off the train in China.
What's with the 'actually'? Lots of "pre-clearance" facilities exist around the world with international trains. This article is about US CBP pre-clearance, nothing to do with entering china.
"The United States is the only country in the world to have a program like this"
You would hope the foreign country picks up well more than their share of the cost of this, because I can imagine the extra expense the US Govt. has to pay to station a person overseas. Extra duty pay, local living costs, etc.
I hope this doesn't rack up as extra pay to pad their retirement calculation. Honestly I'm surprised at some of the smaller airports having this, because you would expect that the...
You would hope the foreign country picks up well more than their share of the cost of this, because I can imagine the extra expense the US Govt. has to pay to station a person overseas. Extra duty pay, local living costs, etc.
I hope this doesn't rack up as extra pay to pad their retirement calculation. Honestly I'm surprised at some of the smaller airports having this, because you would expect that the only place it makes sense is where the aggregated number of flights going to the US would be similar (or better) to the average that those same agents could handle if they were working back in the US as normal.
I'm not sure that most foreign governments would want to pay for the US to run its arrival formalities, either in a US airport or at theirs before departure. It seems to me the main beneficiaries are airlines, US airports, and US customs and immigration as they don't have to provide any service at small airports. Sure, it can be more convenient for some travellers (having grown old on arrival at LAX, I can see...
I'm not sure that most foreign governments would want to pay for the US to run its arrival formalities, either in a US airport or at theirs before departure. It seems to me the main beneficiaries are airlines, US airports, and US customs and immigration as they don't have to provide any service at small airports. Sure, it can be more convenient for some travellers (having grown old on arrival at LAX, I can see some benefit!), but not that much of a direct benefit to the host country. Needing separate facilities for departing US travellers in addition to other international departures and domestic passengers seems like it would be more than their share of providing for the cost of US pre-clearance.