Why you should get a CBP Global Entry membership
You might have seen these lines before. If you’ve ever flown anywhere, you’ve seen the lines for TSA PreCheck and Clear in the U.S., or NEXUS in Canada, and if you’ve ever flown in from an international flight, you’ve seen the lines for Global Entry or NEXUS in Canada. You’re waiting in line (sometimes even 2-3 hours, like when clearing immigration at JFK, for example) and see these others zooming past and consider looking into it. Then you just get lazy and kick the can for a later date.
I ended up applying for NEXUS back in August and got my membership, and I also had the chance to use virtually every perk that it provides. I’ve used the NEXUS lanes driving into Canada and the U.S., TSA PreCheck when clearing airport security, and Global Entry when arriving into the U.S. from an international flight. It’s so worth it.
Brief recap on these programs
With the exception of Clear, these are all trusted traveler programs run by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency that allow frequent, low-risk travelers to skip a ton of the annoying parts of flying.
TSA PreCheck costs $78 and allows you to skip lines at airport security while going on any flight (domestic or int’l). Your jacket, belt, and shoes can stay on, and your laptop, and liquids and aerosols under 3.4 oz (100 ml) can remain in your bag. You need to be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident to be eligible.
Global Entry costs $120 and allows you to save time at the border. When you enter the U.S. by air, you complete your inspection at a kiosk rather than a border officer. When you enter the U.S. by land, you get access to a faster lane with less questions. Global Entry also comes with TSA PreCheck. You need to be a U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or a citizen of a handful countries (including India) with a U.S. visa in order to be eligible.
NEXUS costs $120 and includes Global Entry. In addition to all those perks you get with Global Entry, you get faster lanes at the land border and kiosks at airports when entering Canada, and you also get a faster line at airport security (it’s not like TSA PreCheck though where you get to leave things in your bag or leave clothing on you. You still follow the same security protocols, but it’s just a separate line). You need to be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, or a Canadian citizen or permanent resident, in order to be eligible. Everyone except for Canadian permanent residents get TSA PreCheck in the U.S. (as it’s included through Global Entry).
All of these memberships will need to be renewed every 5 years.
Which one to get
First of all, you’d be dumb to apply for TSA PreCheck. It costs almost the same as Global Entry / NEXUS. The only advantage of applying for TSA PreCheck alone is that the processing time is a lot quicker, but it’s a dumb move in every other way.
Between Global Entry and NEXUS, it really just depends on how often you travel to Canada. Previously, there was a financial incentive to apply for NEXUS as it cost $50 and Global Entry was $120, but now they cost the same. NEXUS also has a harder interview process as you need to appear at an enrollment center near the border to be interviewed by both CBP and CBSA officers, or appear at two separate interviews in the U.S. and Canada which need to be scheduled. With Global Entry, interviews can be scheduled at any int’l airport in the U.S. or done on your next int’l trip.