Flight, customs and immigration questions.

[Olympic1010]

My family and I will fly from Europe by transit in Miami to San Juan (Change airplane in Miami).

 

I would like to know if we need to collect our luggage and go true customs in Miami, or will our luggage be transported direct to San Juan and we go true Puerto Rico customs?

 

My reason for asking is that we may have limited time in Miami for both immigration and handling our luggage?

 

Time in Miami will be 2.5 hours.

 

Our ticket is bought with American Airliners from London to Miami, changing airplane in Miami to San Juan, also with American Airlines. The ticket is purchased as one ticket with transit.

 

I prefer answer from persons that knows, not from those who think they know, or guessing.

 

Thank you for answer

 

We are cruising with Adventure of the Seas 24. March.

[sg1phileshipper]

I am from Belgium, so I connect in the US too. Yes, you will need to go through immigration in Miami and collect your luggage. You will be able to drop it off probably somewhere after going through customs, it's very easy. IT will be labeled all the way to SJU, but you need to pick it up in Miami! Someone knowing Miami will probably know where the bag drop is located for connecting flights.

I have never connected in Miami, only in Atlanta and JFK and I would say that 2.5 hours would be cutting it close in JFK. If AA sold your ticket like that, they think that 2.5 hours in Miami is enough. I think there are less planes landing in Miami from overseas than JFK, so 2.5 hours should be enough, the norm for European flights going to the US is two hours. And if you happen to miss your connection in Miami, because of a delay, the crowds, etc, since it is on one ticket, AA has to put you on another flight. But I wouldn't worry, with the amount of time you have, you will be fine.

When coming back from SJU don't forget to go through Agriculture inspection before checking in, or they will turn you away.

[little britain]

Yes, you always have to collect your luggage and recheck it in when you first land in the USA, they have no concept of being “in transit” like anywhere else.

Once you get your luggage their usually is an AA desk right there to recheck it in.

 

Yes you also have to clear immigration but in Miami they now have self scanner machines which speeds up the process. Once through this you then go back into the shops/ duty free area. (Nothing like T5 as hardly any shops or restaurants)

 

I did this last November to SJU. When you land in SJU you just collect the cases and go.

 

 

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[sg1phileshipper]

Yes, you always have to collect your luggage and recheck it in when you first land in the USA, they have no concept of being “in transit” like anywhere else.

Once you get your luggage their usually is an AA desk right there to recheck it in.

 

Yes you also have to clear immigration but in Miami they now have self scanner machines which speeds up the process.

 

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Just remember that you can't use the machine if you have never been to the USA or if you haven't been in the US after 2008.

[Tin can]

Yes, you always have to collect your luggage and recheck it in when you first land in the USA, they have no concept of being “in transit” like anywhere else.

Once you get your luggage their usually is an AA desk right there to recheck it in.

 

Yes you also have to clear immigration but in Miami they now have self scanner machines which speeds up the process. Once through this you then go back into the shops/ duty free area. (Nothing like T5 as hardly any shops or restaurants)

 

I did this last November to SJU. When you land in SJU you just collect the cases and go.

 

 

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Interesting you mention self scanning machines for clearing immigration.

 

That wasn't available when we landed in Chicago in April to swap to a flight down to Orlando for Oasis.

 

We had a very thorough face to face grilling from an Immigration officer and our Etsa (I think thats what its called from memory) was inspected. As a normal family from the UK on holiday in the States I had no issue with this. Its quite reassuring really.

 

To help the OP we were probably 30 minutes waiting to collect our bag from our international flight and 30 minutes at immigration (including queuing).

[SRF]

I have recently (in the past year) connected through MIA on AA.

 

Once you come out of customs, you follow the signs and "greeter" to the left and there is the bag drop, then you continue on to security (yes again).

 

2.5 hours should be PLENTY of time.

[waterbug123]

 

Once you come out of customs, you follow the signs and "greeter" to the left and there is the bag drop, then you continue on to security (yes again).

 

Security is a necessity at this point. Since you collect your baggage to go through customs, it means you have access to anything prohibited in the passenger cabin that might be in your checked bag, and theoretically could put it in your carry on bag before rechecking your bag...knives, liquids, etc. So after handling your checked baggage you must go through security again.

[Havingfun2010]

Although I have never connected in Miami, I have connected in 5 other airports. You will always need to go through customs, bag check etc at the point of entry into the country which is Miami in your case. Miami to San Juan is a domestic flight.

[hallasm]

My family and I will fly from Europe by transit in Miami to San Juan (Change airplane in Miami).

 

 

 

I would like to know if we need to collect our luggage and go true customs in Miami, or will our luggage be transported direct to San Juan and we go true Puerto Rico customs?

 

 

 

My reason for asking is that we may have limited time in Miami for both immigration and handling our luggage?

 

 

 

Time in Miami will be 2.5 hours.

 

 

 

Our ticket is bought with American Airliners from London to Miami, changing airplane in Miami to San Juan, also with American Airlines. The ticket is purchased as one ticket with transit.

 

 

Do not forget ESTA. Also required when entering US for transit.

2.5 hours will be sufficient for immigration check, pick- up of luggage and customs.

After customs you hand you luggage to American Airlines and go to the departure terminal for your SJU flight.

 

 

 

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[geomancer]

Looks like everyone got you your answers so I'll just leave a little more info here as an FYI.

 

The reason you go through all this in Miami is because Puerto Rico is indeed part of the United States. So your Miami to San Juan flight is actually a domestic US flight. Not an international flight. In the US, you must go through immigration & customs at your port of entry. This actually makes sense really since there are over 5,000 public airports here, it would be crazy to staff immigration at all of them.

 

If this is your first time here in the last decade (or ever) you will not be allowed to use the automated kiosks, you'll have to go to a normal immigration station where an officer will inspect your passport and ask the usual basic questions (why are you here, how long, etc etc).

 

As others have mentioned, it's very important that you do your ESTA before you leave. The ESTA is what allows you to enter without a Visa. Your profile says Norway, so your country does qualify for ESTA.

 

After your first visit to the US, you can then use the automated kiosks on future visits and you'll actually go through the exact same lines as US Citizens. Oddly enough, the US does not give priority access to their own citizens like almost every other country I've visited.

 

Enjoy your cruise, and once again don't forget to get your ESTA approval!

[SRF]

The reason you go through all this in Miami is because Puerto Rico is indeed part of the United States. So your Miami to San Juan flight is actually a domestic US flight. Not an international flight. In the US, you must go through immigration & customs at your port of entry. This actually makes sense really since there are over 5,000 public airports here, it would be crazy to staff immigration at all of them.

 

It doesn't matter if you transit a US airport from international to domestic or international to international. You still need to clear immigration and customs.

 

US airports do not have transit zones like most outside US airports. To get to your next flight, you have to "enter" the US. Once you clear immigration and customs at any US international airport, you could walk out of the terminal without anyone paying attention.

 

Most airports outside the US have a transit zone, where you have not entered their country, but can still get to the gates. The difference is, when leaving those countries, you go through immigration and possibly customs before you enter those zones. So everyone leaving from that airport has already "left that country." And to get out of that zone, you have to pass immigration and customs to enter or re-enter that country.

 

Part of the issue is, in the US you to do not clear immigration outbound.

 

In ALL countries I have been too (which is only 138), you must clear immigration and customs at your first port of entry. So international to domestic is always this way. Even if you are going international to domestic to another international flight. This tripped me up one time transiting Australia. I did not register I would enter at Sydney (port of entry), then transit to Brisbane (domestic flight) to a flight to Papua New Guinea (international).

 

In Europe, if you are going to a Schengen State, you will clear immigration and customs at your first Shengen port of entry. If you are going to/from other EU countries, you will not clear immigration and customs until that country or your first Schengen destination.

 

Example - if you fly to Paris via London, you will clear immigration and customs in Paris, not London, as UK is not a Schengen State. If you fly to Germany through Paris, you will clear immigration and customs in Paris as it is your first Shengen State port of entry.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schengen_Area

 

And yes, I do this WAY too much. :D

[little britain]

And the airline staff do not always give you the correct information - my friend flew recently from LHR to SJU via MIA with BA - she knew that you had to collect the luggage etc at MIA but the check in girl was insistent that the luggage would go all they way through; despite my friend questioning this, the check in girl was so insistent and adamant that she thought that perhaps the rules had changed very recently.

Guess what....

When she got off the plane in SJU .......no luggage.....got on the cruise.....no luggage......

 

Motto of story: the folks on Cruise Critic are always right!

[hallasm]

In Europe, if you are going to a Schengen State, you will clear immigration and customs at your first Shengen port of entry. If you are going to/from other EU countries, you will not clear immigration and customs until that country or your first Schengen destination.

 

 

 

Example - if you fly to Paris via London, you will clear immigration and customs in Paris, not London, as UK is not a Schengen State. If you fly to Germany through Paris, you will clear immigration and customs in Paris as it is your first Shengen State port of entry. :D

 

To my knowledge this is not true. Customs will be at your final destination if your luggage is checked through to the final destination. Normal when you have all legs of the flight on same reservation. if Flying Lufthansa from MIA to CPH via FRA custom will be CPH. If you fly to a domestic airport in Denmark via CPH customs will still be at final destination, not in CPH.. This might not be the case in all Schengen countries.

 

 

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[waterbug123]

 

In Europe, if you are going to a Schengen State, you will clear immigration and customs at your first Shengen port of entry.

 

Almost true. You clear immigration at your first port of entry into the Schengen zone, but you don't clear customs until your final Schengen destination. That said, clearing customs is generally a non-issue in the Schengen zone. Most people have nothing to declare, so just go through the door marked "nothing to declare" and leave.

[SRF]

To my knowledge this is not true. Customs will be at your final destination if your luggage is checked through to the final destination. Normal when you have all legs of the flight on same reservation. if Flying Lufthansa from MIA to CPH via FRA custom will be CPH. If you fly to a domestic airport in Denmark via CPH customs will still be at final destination, not in CPH.. This might not be the case in all Schengen countries.

 

Sorry, true customs MAY be at your final destination, you will clear immigration first entry to Schengen and again at departure.

 

I did Africa - Belgium - Austria - Bulgaria. I cleared immigration in Belgium, (Shengen entry), Austria (Schengen exit), Bulgaria (EU non-Schengen entry).

 

But I have had to clear customs at first Schengen entry also. As you said, it depends.

[SRF]

That said, clearing customs is generally a non-issue in the Schengen zone. Most people have nothing to declare, so just go through the door marked "nothing to declare" and leave.

 

True in most EU, and many other countries. US is more intense. Australia is very intense (NO food items). And some places seem to be just nosy. :D

[Flymia]

Although I have never connected in Miami, I have connected in 5 other airports. You will always need to go through customs, bag check etc at the point of entry into the country which is Miami in your case. Miami to San Juan is a domestic flight.

 

If connecting to another international flight they will check your checked bags straight through. Say LHR-MIA-MEX your checked bags don't go through customs.

 

Yes, you always have to collect your luggage and recheck it in when you first land in the USA, they have no concept of being “in transit” like anywhere else.

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Well in this situation the OP is not in transit. MIA is the OP's U.S. arrival point and the OP will be continuing on to another airport in the U.S. MIA-SJU is a domestic flight.

 

To the OP 2.5hours should be enough time, if your flight is delayed speak to someone in London or a flight attendant about getting a pass that helps you skip the lines at immigration. Its one ticket, so if for some reason the lines are immigration are long you will be put on the next possible flight. You will also need to re-clear security before going back into the terminal.

 

Depending on where your flight is leaving from take the Sky-Train system in the terminal to get to your gate quicker. Same with arriving from LHR you might want to take the sky-train to save time.