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If you’ve never heard of preclearance, you definitely want to know about it. It’s a security process that actually works, and you’re going to start seeing it in more airports around the globe.
Preclearance is a U.S. Customs and Border Patrol program that clears passengers though a U.S. screening facility in foreign airports. So, you go through all the hurdles of customs, BEFORE you get back home. Then, you get on your connecting flight, land in the U.S., get off the plane, and you’re done.
The newest airport to offer this is in Abu Dhabi. Travelers deplane into secure parts of the airports to be screened before getting on their connecting flights.
Preclearance is pretty common in Canadian airports. It’s also at airports in Bermuda, The Bahamas, Aruba, and both Dublin and Shannon, Ireland. It may even come to the airport in Qatar in the Middle East.
My thoughts on the program…if I were running U.S. Customs & Border Protection, I would insist on making it even bigger. It’s better for passengers, better for baggage handling, and a better experience overall.
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