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Skip the Customs Line with this App

If you’re a US or Canadian citizen, you can skip those long customs lines at the airport with an app..

When travelling into the United States, there are few things more frustrating than a long customs check-in line at the airport. These lines can take anywhere from 45 minutes to 4 hours just to get through, putting a massive time block on your day. Not to mention, people tend to get pretty cranky when standing around that long, wouldn’t you?

The Mobile Passport App

The Mobile Passport App is the first app authorized by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) for eligible travelers with a smartphone or tablet to submit their passport information and answer inspection-related questions prior to actual inspection. Much like Automated Passport Control (APC), this app does not require pre-approval and is free to use. The app streamlines the traveler inspection process and enables CBP officers to focus more on the inspection and less on administrative functions.

Here's how it works. After downloading the app, you create a user profile which includes information from your passport. This includes your name, gender, date of birth, and country of citizenship. When you land in the US, you will complete a “new trip” section by selecting your arrival airport and airline. You then have to take a self photo as well as answer a series of CBP related security questions within the app.

Once completed, the app will give you a QR code, which you can then present to a CBP officer for entry into the US. The great part? You can show this to the CBP officer at the entrance to the line and they will send you straight to the front. Being tech savvy pays off after all.

You can download the Mobile Passport app on iTunes and the Google Play Store. For a full list of which air/sea ports accept this form of identification, please refer to this guide on the GBP website.

If you found this app useful, you might also like to learn about these 5 apps that are making our world a better place. Please also consider sharing this article using the social media icons below!

Tagged in : LifeTravel

Aleksey Weyman

Aleksey Weyman is a web designer, music artist and creator of Millennial Moderator