Technology Helps Speed Up Tourist Entry into US
2024-04-15
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1Piet De Staercke of Belgium, his wife and their two sons worried about how long it would take to get through passport control at Dulles Airport in Virginia.
2They were just beginning their fourth visit to the United States.
3"It was always a long row," he said about the wait they experienced on earlier visits.
4But this time, the De Staerckes had downloaded a new app to their phones.
5The app was designed to make the entry process faster.
6It worked. The family passed through passport control quickly.
7"...With the app, it's amazing," Piet De Staercke said.
8U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released the app called Mobile Passport Control to improve the entry process.
9In the past, many solo travelers to the U.S. came for business events, so they could move through quickly.
10However, families with children were not so lucky.
11But things are changing. Families are a growing group of travelers and video meetings have reduced the need for business travel.
12CBP officials recently gave reporters a look at the new technology.
13In 2023, the agency processed over 394 million travelers coming into the U.S., an increase of 24 percent over 2022.
14At the same time, waiting time is going down at most airports.
15For airports that are very busy, the wait time is up a small amount, but customs officers are seeing 30 percent more passports than before.
16The app is available for Americans, permanent U.S. residents, Canadians and travelers from other countries that have agreements with the U.S. Travelers upload their information and photos to the app.
17People who have the app go to a separate line for processing.
18An officer then will take a picture of one member of the family.
19A computer recognizes the image and provides all the necessary information to process the whole group.
20CBP launched the app in 2021 but is now trying to get more people to use it.
21About 4.1 million people did so last year.
22The CBP said it is working with airlines to help people download the app while on their way to the U.S.
23Marc Calixte is the top CBP official at Dulles Airport.
24He said any second helps to save time.
25"It adds up eventually," he said.
26There is another app for people who use Global Entry, a CBP program to ease entry for travelers it considers low-risk.
27The next step for CBP may be to make an internal change that will help passengers register for Global Entry.
28About 3.2 million people sought to join last year, but it is a long wait for the required interview with the agency.
29The agency says it takes as long as six months to process requests.
30This year, C.B.P. will offer about 4 million interviews.
31Earlier this year, American lawmakers wrote the agency to ask about the slowness of the process.
32They noted that the citizens they represent had been complaining about it.
33Brendan Blackmer is a chief for CBP's programs that include Global Entry.
34He said the agency is working to make more appointments available, to hold interviews at airports, and to make it easier for those who already have Global Entry to renew their membership.
35Some travelers will face increased costs connected to the programs for easing the entry process.
36Global Entry for example, will rise by $20.
37Other tech changes are ahead. Calixte said E-Gates will be added to some airports.
38That will permit those with Global Entry to move through the airport without meeting with a border agent.
39Down the road, Blackmer said, the app will permit the agency to sort travelers into groups ahead of time.
40For example, if they say they do not have anything to show an agent, they will be placed into a line that would move faster.
41I'm Dan Friedell.
1Piet De Staercke of Belgium, his wife and their two sons worried about how long it would take to get through passport control at Dulles Airport in Virginia. They were just beginning their fourth visit to the United States. 2"It was always a long row," he said about the wait they experienced on earlier visits. 3But this time, the De Staerckes had downloaded a new app to their phones. The app was designed to make the entry process faster. 4It worked. The family passed through passport control quickly. 5"...With the app, it's amazing," Piet De Staercke said. 6U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) released the app called Mobile Passport Control to improve the entry process. In the past, many solo travelers to the U.S. came for business events, so they could move through quickly. However, families with children were not so lucky. 7But things are changing. Families are a growing group of travelers and video meetings have reduced the need for business travel. 8CBP officials recently gave reporters a look at the new technology. 9In 2023, the agency processed over 394 million travelers coming into the U.S., an increase of 24 percent over 2022. At the same time, waiting time is going down at most airports. For airports that are very busy, the wait time is up a small amount, but customs officers are seeing 30 percent more passports than before. 10The app is available for Americans, permanent U.S. residents, Canadians and travelers from other countries that have agreements with the U.S. Travelers upload their information and photos to the app. 11People who have the app go to a separate line for processing. An officer then will take a picture of one member of the family. A computer recognizes the image and provides all the necessary information to process the whole group. 12CBP launched the app in 2021 but is now trying to get more people to use it. About 4.1 million people did so last year. The CBP said it is working with airlines to help people download the app while on their way to the U.S. 13Marc Calixte is the top CBP official at Dulles Airport. He said any second helps to save time. "It adds up eventually," he said. 14There is another app for people who use Global Entry, a CBP program to ease entry for travelers it considers low-risk. 15The next step for CBP may be to make an internal change that will help passengers register for Global Entry. About 3.2 million people sought to join last year, but it is a long wait for the required interview with the agency. The agency says it takes as long as six months to process requests. 16This year, C.B.P. will offer about 4 million interviews. Earlier this year, American lawmakers wrote the agency to ask about the slowness of the process. They noted that the citizens they represent had been complaining about it. 17Brendan Blackmer is a chief for CBP's programs that include Global Entry. He said the agency is working to make more appointments available, to hold interviews at airports, and to make it easier for those who already have Global Entry to renew their membership. 18Some travelers will face increased costs connected to the programs for easing the entry process. Global Entry for example, will rise by $20. 19Other tech changes are ahead. Calixte said E-Gates will be added to some airports. That will permit those with Global Entry to move through the airport without meeting with a border agent. Down the road, Blackmer said, the app will permit the agency to sort travelers into groups ahead of time. For example, if they say they do not have anything to show an agent, they will be placed into a line that would move faster. 20I'm Dan Friedell. 21Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on a report by the Associated Press. 22_____________________________________________ 23Words in This Story 24row -n. a line or section of a group of people waiting for something 25app -n. a small computer program that runs on a mobile device 26resident -n. a person who lives in a place mentioned in the story 27eventually -adv. something that will happen after a period of time 28internal -adj. happening inside of an organization 29complain -v. to speak about a problem or a perceived problem 30We want to hear from you. What have your experiences been while traveling to the U.S. and going through customs?