I had put off getting Global Entry for some time. But, I had a trip to Mexico scheduled the end of April and thought now is as good a time as any. Might as well get it before my next international trip. Right?
It’s a two-step process. The first is the “pre-approval” and the second is the in-person interview. The pre-approval happens (or doesn’t) based on your initial application and background check. If you pass this portion, you are invited for an interview to complete the process.
I submitted my application on-line with my payment ($100 for five years) in early March. About a week or 10 days later, I received a “pre-approval” letter with an invitation to schedule an interview with a list of offices and available appointments. So far, so good. The closest interview center, for me, was SFO. Bummer. I was thinking I’d be able to do it in San Jose, but oh well. I went on-line and the first available appointment was October! Oops. So much for having my Global Entry pass before my trip to Cancun!
Did a little research and found a couple of things:
- Many offices, including SFO, will accept walk-ins.
- Different offices have different wait times. Turns out SFO is one of the busiest offices in the country and the most back-logged.
Moving forward with my saga. A conflict arose for the day of my appointment, so I went back on-line to reschedule. It’s now May and if 6-7 months is the normal window, I’m thinking to myself that I’ll be lucky to get Global Entry before next year. Behold! There were earlier appointments available. I don’t know if they added staff or if cancellations are frequent. But, there were a lot of available appointments in June. I grabbed June 28.
Appointment Day. Oh goody – government sponsored lines. Let's see, TSA, customs, immigration - all well-known for their efficiency. How long is this going to take? Surprisingly, not long at all. I showed up at the office about 15 minutes before my appointment. The door was closed (locked, I presume) with a large sign saying do not knock, interviews in progress. There were maybe a dozen people waiting outside the door; there didn’t appear to be a line. About 5 minutes after I arrived, an agent appeared with clipboard inquiring who had appointments. Three of us volunteered and he checked our names off and went back inside. He then appeared with another clipboard and asked who was a walk-in. A few people volunteered and he wrote their names down.
A few minutes later, he showed up and called my name (and a few others), directed me to a desk with another agent for my interview. I provided my passport and driver’s license (the DL was for proof of residence) and answered a few questions. The agent was very friendly and professional. He took my fingerprints and a photograph and then he told me I was approved and he gave me verbal and written instructions. My number was valid that day if I needed to use in air reservations for TSA pre-check. The photo ID card, I’ll get in a week or two.
I was in and out in 20 minutes. All in all a painless process and now I have TSA pre-check and Global Entry for 5 years.
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