Welcome to Luxury Travel Docs!: FREE Mobile Passport, TSA Pre-Check and Global Entry Make Cruising and Traveling Easier

Tuesday, January 1, 2019

FREE Mobile Passport, TSA Pre-Check and Global Entry Make Cruising and Traveling Easier

Save Time Going Through Customs When Traveling for Your Next Cruise (and many flights!)

Mobile Passport app is authorized by Customs and Border Protection for US citizens and Canadian visitors to expedite their entry into the USA

April 2019 Update!!

MOBILE PASSPORT UPDATE! There are two versions of this app. If you want to store your passport information and have it be ad free, you will need to pay $15 per year. If you want the free version of the app, you will need to enter your passport information every time you use it and of course will have to endure some advertisements!

If you read our blog, you know that LuxuryTravelDocs love to cruise! We have used our American Express Platinum to sign up for GlobalEntry, which allows us to enter the US when flying and at some cruise ports at lightning speeds compared to most travelers. Recently, we were delayed at Port Everglades after arriving from a 15 day transatlantic cruise. The immigration computer system crashed and luckily rather than standing in line for the two hours it took to recover, we were allowed to wait on the ship). But once the system was functioning, we disembarked to encounter a line of hundreds of persons waiting to be cleared by immigration. Fortunately, we buzzed through immigration and customs using our Global Entry Cards making a few jokes that the computer crash was from the election vote recount! (TIP: always make sure you have the physical identification Global Entry Card at Port Everglades because the staff will not let you in line without it! Even though the Global Entry Clearance is embedded in your passport, the staff need to see the physical card. Frustrating but true! There were probably too many passengers sneaking into the line!) The other passengers that were able to disembark as quickly as us used the Mobile Passport App. There were even some Canadian residents who used it. Obviously we asked our fellow passengers many questions while waiting!

Here is a description of the Mobile Passport App:

Mobile Passport app is authorized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for U.S. citizens and Canadian visitors to expedite their entry process into the United States. There is no charge and it takes just a few steps:
Set up your profile by entering information as it appears on your valid, official passport. You can set up profiles for your entire family. Your information will be encrypted and shared only with CBP.

Answer CBP’s five brief questions about your trip. Then carefully review all of your information for the trip.

Once you are at your port of entry (airport or sea port), connect to wireless or wi-fi and submit your data to CBP. When you submit, you are confirming under penalty of law that your information is correct.

Within a few seconds, you will receive a CBP receipt with an encrypted barcode. Your receipt will be valid for 4 hours.

Follow the Mobile Passport Control signs to the designated Mobile Passport Control line. Show your passport to the CBP officer and scan the barcode on the CBP receipt.

Mobile Passport only works at three cruise ports nationwide so far: Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale), Miami and West Palm Beach - but these are very active cruise ports! In December 2018, we cruised through Los Angeles and there was no opportunity to use Global Entry or Mobile Passport.

Check ahead for specifics that apply where you are traveling. For example, according to Port Everglades, only U.S. citizens with a valid passport and Canadian citizens traveling with both a valid passport and a B1 or B2 visa are eligible to use Mobile Passport.

Mobile Passport is FREE! So there is no excuse to miss this opportunity!

By the way, Mobile Passport so far works at 25 Airports as well, some of which are the busiest in the USA: Newark, Chicago O'Hare, and Atlanta just to name a few. While we prefer Global Entry, which gives you access to TSA Pre-check as well, it does cost $100 every 5 years and can take more effort to apply and renew. Most travel credit cards reimburse the fee for the initial application and renewals for all cardholders in your family.

For your international vacations, be very careful of pickpockets! This anti-theft bag has great features and is very roomy! It is good for men and women!