TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin about US Pre clearance in SXM

We have used pre clearance in Dublin, Ireland and in Aruba.Ifeel the pros out number the cons - arriving in the States as a domestic arrivals is well worth the extended processing at the place of departure.

I agree, BC. It was great in Aruba and we can all hope it happens in SXM and soon!! <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Joy.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/Joy.gif" alt="" />

When you went through was Global Entry a factor to facilitate that?

Very little time was saved on Aruba as much of the processing is handled by Aruba personnel, at the very end US agents take over the last few steps of the process.

In Ireland this was before GE.

We've been to Aruba half a dozen times and clearing US customs there is great. You have to be at the airport hours early so why not take care of customs before leaving? We once had a delay getting into CLT on a flight originating in Europe and US customs was short staffed after midnight. Took well over an hour to clear. We'd rather deal with that on the departing end. We now have Global Entry, so it might not be much of a problem, but you never know. Can't remember who reported the comment from TSA about precheck, but it went something like "if we're really busy we close the precheck line." <img src="http://www.traveltalkonline.com/forums/images/graemlins/duh.gif" alt="" />

Weekdays it can be as little as 30 minutes +/- - weekends can be 2.5 to 3 hours, I have seen the line out the door and on to the street caused by the timeshare folks departing on Saturday and Sunday.

What about global entry? Any benefit for that in Aruba

Not much - see fifth post .

I remember them talking about this back in 2005. Doh.

We did it from Aruba and I agree.

Most, if not all, pre-clearance facilities have GE Kiosk.

We went through it in Toranto and it was a snap! Very fast and efficient.

Over the last few years, the combination of Global Entry and carry-on only has made customs a non-issue for me entering in Boston. I think I prefer that to "island efficiency">

Scubaman - this is a general idea of what pre-clearance is like on Aruba
=================
1. Check-in with your airline in the U.S. Airline Terminal. Have your passport ready to show the Airline Agent. It is not necessary to show the Agent your airline ticket/E-Ticket – the Ticket Agent only needs to see your passport to check you in. After the ticket agent confirms your reservation and seat assignment, you receive your Boarding Pass The “U.S. Customs Form” (one form per family) is done electronically at the Immigrations point. The Agent will take your luggage and put them on a conveyer belt. Note: This is NOT the last time you will see your luggage (see #7).


2. Proceed outside to the Departure Building (left when facing the Departure Terminal).


3. Outside the Departure Terminal, an Aruban Inspector will check your boarding pass and passport.


4. Inside the Departure Building, proceed to the booth where you clear Aruban Immigration. The Agent will check your passport and boarding pass.


5. Proceed to Aruba’s X-ray security.


6. Pass through an area of Duty-Free shops and food eateries.


7. Enter the “Baggage Claim Area”. Retrieve the luggage that you checked at the Airline Ticket Counter. There are free luggage carts in this area.


8. With luggage, proceed to the next room to the U.S. Immigration and Customs booth. The U.S. Agent will check your passport and boarding pass, the “U.S. Customs Form” is completed at this point.


9. In the next room, place your luggage on the conveyer belt. You may/or may not have your luggage inspected. At this point, you will not see your luggage again until you arrive in the U.S.


10. Next area is U.S. X-ray security.


11. Take the escalator/elevator upstairs to the gate departure area where there are more dining options and duty free.

Thanks

In areas with new redesigned pre-clearance areas, the process is a little bit different. After you drop your bags off with the airline after check in, you don't see your bags again until arrival in the US. When you are at the Customs and Immigration Booth, they will scan your boarding pass and an x-ray of your bags comes up on the screen for the officer to review. I have experienced this with pre-clearing in to the US from Winnipeg and Montreal in Canada. I would expect something similar if and when preclearance is setup in SXM.

If the agent wishes to examine the contents of the luggage what is the next step? I assume a long wait while the bags are located.

I've never had that happen, but I would assume they would take you to a room and have the bag delivered there. I would bet the bag is flagged before the person gets to the C&I booth.

This seems to be the logical and sensible way that this should be handled however in the case of Aruba there is only one US Customs agent on duty to handle every person or groups declaration. This process can be time consuming or not as the case dictates and this without inspection of luggage. I assume other agents are available in the follow-up room?