Departing from YVR to US?

[6rugrats]

If you have a US address, your card is mailed to you.  If not, you can have it sent to a Global Entry Enrollment Center or to your designated US point of contact.

[FlaMariner]

On 8/29/2023 at 10:33 PM, em-sk said:

 You don't "enter Canada"  when you get off your flight you follow signs for US transfers.  You will be routed through a separate US border control line just for connecting passengers. 

 

But I "assume" this line is the USA border control and thus I will not be able to use the Global Entry lane because I do not have my Global Entry card even though Global Entry is on my passport and I'm able to use other USA Global Entry points (Miami, JFK, ATL) with just my passport?

 

or maybe this is a useless concern because, like many times with the TSA line, the other line is just as fast or not a big deal?

 

(Thinking that our 2x a year international trips are not worth the hassle of TSA Pre Check/Global Entry or whatever other scheme is created to get us across the border quicker.....LOL..maybe I'll just head to Mexico and just walk in.  Seems much easier from watching it on TV. LOL)

 

 

[FlaMariner]

FWIW

 

We are USA citizens.

 

We flew Tokyo to Montreal to Orlando Friday (10/21/23) and this is our real life experience doing the Montreal connection (International arrival to USA connecting)

 

Our flight from Tokyo to Montreal was great (on time departure, early arrival).

 

At Montreal, we followed the signs (and the folks directing us) to "connections to USA".  We waited in a slow moving line for 1 hour and 50 minutes.  

 

As time would tick, Air Canada officials would shout out a soon to depart flight and would pull folks out of the line.

 

We were pulled out of the snail's pace line after 1 hour and 50 minutes.

 

We then were brought to the front of a security checkpoint line (one of two security checkpoint lines open).  

 

After that, we then proceeded to USA entry.

 

We have global entry.  Before entering the USA border control line, we were able to visit a face recognition kiosk that looked at our face and scanned our passport.  We were then given a green light to enter the Global Entry line and we were done  (we do not have global entry ID cards and did not need them).

 

We then ran at breakneck speed to arrive at our connecting flight that was boarding.  

 

This was not a pleasant experience....but....the fare was low....($480 one way Tokyo to Orlando) the flights were fine....I think Air Canada is trying to fill their flights with enticing fares to USA folks and it is working.....but agonizing. Would I book this flight again?  Absolutely....if the price is right.

 

Question for the air wise:  If I arrived from an international flight (having completed security screening in Tokyo) and did not leave the "secure area", why did I have to go thru security screening again before boarding the connecting (to USA) flight?

 

 

 

 

[Globaliser]

12 minutes ago, FlaMariner said:

Question for the air wise:  If I arrived from an international flight (having completed security screening in Tokyo) and did not leave the "secure area", why did I have to go thru security screening again before boarding the connecting (to USA) flight?

 

There are at least three possible reasons:

1. The default is that the origin country won't accept earlier security screening done by a different country. There are exceptions, but this is the default. So it may be that Canada won't accept security screening done by Japan, so Canada will re-screen a connecting passenger arriving from Japan.
2. Occasionally, the destination country imposes additional rules not required by the origin country, and also won't accept earlier security screening done by a different country. The effect in this scenario is also that the connecting passenger has to be re-screened in Canada.
3. If the connecting passenger has any contact with checked baggage during the connection process, by definition that negates any security screening that has already taken place. Your description suggests that you didn't have any contact, but an international-to-international connection in the US almost always requires contact with checked baggage and hence re-screening, even if that's not required for any other reason.

[CruiserBruce]

Just flew out of Montreal (to the US) last month. "International" and "Trans border" is two different things there (and at many Canadian airports). Could it be you changed terminals, and thus left the secure zone?

 

Global Entry was very easy there when we were there...a quick visit to the biometric kiosk...maybe 1 minute per person, then a short line for an agent, and a couple questions from the agent. Total time, less than 15 minutes.

[FlaMariner]

1 hour ago, CruiserBruce said:

Could it be you changed terminals, and thus left the secure zone?

 

Never left the secure area....

 

Went from debarking an International flight (Tokyo to Montreal) to the area for "connecting passengers to USA".....never an exit area.  

 

Steps:

 

1) debarked flight from Tokyo

2) followed signs and direction of employees herding us USA cats to "connecting to USA"...all in same area, sterile world with limited bathrooms, walls, escalators and peeps with ID badges around their necks. 

3) waited 1 hour and 50 minutes in slow moving line

4) pulled out of line to front because our fight was coming up

5) went thru security (shoes off, liquids confiscated, the usual hassles)

6) next was face recognition kiosk for folks with global entry

7) to USA border/passport check agent

8).   to flight boarding for USA

[FlaMariner]

2 hours ago, Globaliser said:

If the connecting passenger has any contact with checked baggage during the connection process, by definition that negates any security screening that has already taken place.

 

never touched, saw or had possession of my luggage in Montreal.  

[d9704011]

11 minutes ago, FlaMariner said:

 

Never left the secure area....

 

Went from debarking an International flight (Tokyo to Montreal) to the area for "connecting passengers to USA".....never an exit area.  

 

Steps:

 

1) debarked flight from Tokyo

2) followed signs and direction of employees herding us USA cats to "connecting to USA"...all in same area, sterile world with limited bathrooms, walls, escalators and peeps with ID badges around their necks. 

3) waited 1 hour and 50 minutes in slow moving line

4) pulled out of line to front because our fight was coming up

5) went thru security (shoes off, liquids confiscated, the usual hassles)

6) next was face recognition kiosk for folks with global entry

7) to USA border/passport check agent

8).   to flight boarding for USA

Step 5 always happens when going to US from Canadian airports with US CBP pre-screening i.e. YUL.   I have to go through same rigamarole if I fly from YOW to US through YYZ ..Not a Canadian requirement.

Edited October 23, 2023 by d9704011

[em-sk]

8 hours ago, FlaMariner said:

Question for the air wise:  If I arrived from an international flight (having completed security screening in Tokyo) and did not leave the "secure area", why did I have to go thru security screening again before boarding the connecting (to USA) flight?

 

Shoes. 

 

If you were connecting to Canada (or most any other country at a major Canadian airline like Montreal), you would have likely not passed through security again.   

 

Going the US is the exception.  While I am certain there are some other differences in screen the key difference is going to the US they want you take your shoes and belts off.  

 

[CruiserBruce]

1 hour ago, em-sk said:

 

Shoes. 

 

Not true. I can't recall the last time I, or DW, removed our shoes. Just this year we flew home to SFO from Paris and Montreal. Neither time we removed our shoes. I automatically remove my belt every time, so can't comment on belts.

 

On our flight home from Montreal,  there was a " Known Traveler " security line. Only a few people in line...it was an early morning flight. Took no time at all. And we didn't remove our shoes.

[FlaMariner]

11 hours ago, em-sk said:

Going the US is the exception.  While I am certain there are some other differences in screen the key difference is going to the US they want you take your shoes and belts off.  

 

I confirm this.....

 

Friday evening.....I was going to the USA (in the "arrive from international and proceed to connections to USA" sterile area at Montreal airport....I was required to take off my shoes.  

 

10 hours ago, CruiserBruce said:

On our flight home from Montreal,  there was a " Known Traveler " security line

 

No such "known traveler" line in Montreal Friday evening for folks going to the USA (in the "arrive from international and proceed to connections to USA" sterile area at Montreal airport).

 

I was able to use Global Entry after the security check to get in front of around 12 folks in the USA passport check line. 

 

And there were only two security lines open......my entire 2.5 hour Montreal airport experience (after a 12 hour trans-Pacific flight) consisted of standing in a slow moving line and then after clearance, running to my already boarding flight (with one quick trip to the one seater bathroom while Her Majesty held my place in the snails pace line).