Yassal2017

Looks like applications submitted on the first week on November are now being processed. Mine was submitted 12/20, so i'm looking at at lease 4 more weeks before I hear anything.

xhemp

Yes, at least. I've done mine on the 01st December so I'd say at least another 3 weeks.

breiec

Applied December 12th and still waiting. Will be going on second over seas trip since applying soon (at the end of Feb). Pretty much have given up hope that anything will happen by then. Seems strange that I can walk in and buy a firearm and have a background check done anywhere from 2 hours to 3 days and this takes months.

Komaeda

Applied Dec 19th - Approved Dec 23 - Finally did my interview last night and got approved in less then 30 m

ellette

Hi! Applied November 18th and got approved today. Too late to get an interview schedule with limited availability! My flight is on Thursday. I applied GE because of this trip. Too bad that I would not be able to use it for this purpose.

Yassal2017

Same here. I came back from my international travel and still hasn't gotten my approval.

1KChinito

You have several options:

1. Search for availability a few times everyday especially when your preferred center is open. Cancellation occurs frequently.
2. If your arrival U.S. airport has Global Entry Enrollment on Arrival, try it.
3. Global Entry Walk-In Interviews
4. Mobile passport app if 1, 2 & 3 are not available, US CBP Mobile Passport Control App (MPC)

Good luck.

elc2414

Encouraging to see late November applications now being approved. My application is still "Pending Review" and have a trip coming up in 2 weeks. I know it's too late to schedule an interview should approval come through soon, but as we are returning to an airport that has interview on entry available and we will have a 4 hour connection keeping fingers crossed approval comes through before our return.

elc2414

Are there any data points as to why some people get approved in 2 or 3 days (as my wife did) and others are waiting and waiting and waiting (as I am even though my wife's application was submitted after mine!)?????? This seems to be the case long before the government shutdown, so that has nothing to do with it other than delaying approval even further.

Can't really blame the government shutdown for anything other than delaying further. Many posts on here say they applied in early November (long before the shutdown) and are just not starting to receive approvals. I applied December 1st and still Pending Review. My wife was approved in 3 days despite applying after I did. Doesn't seem to be any coherent reason why some get approved almost immediately and others are still waiting.

mnbp

The only explanation that makes sense to me is that GE applications are not handled by one centralized site, but rather are dispatched into queues which are individually processed by ports of entry / CBP offices across the country. Each of these offices has a different backlog, ranging from practically none to months. That's my theory for what it's worth.

tamara1

It's really strange how this happens. I put mine and hubby's in the same day. Mine was submitted first but he was through the entire process within 2 weeks. Mine took months, even without the shutdown.

xhemp

Is there any difference between your travel patterns? Or maybe something else in your background checks needed a human intervention?
I believe that's why it takes some time for some people and that was the best explanation why but again, just speculation

nickyhere

Just a data point for this thread:

Applied: Nov 5, 2018
Conditionally approved: Feb 1, 2019
Officially approved: Feb 4, 2019 (I was given my KTN at the conclusion of my interview)

The interview itself was super efficient, the officers very professional and friendly. Good luck to those who are still waiting on their conditional approvals!

VegasGambler

Who knows? These things require a background check. Maybe some complete instantaneously for whatever reason, and other don't?

I applied in early December FWIW. The FBI has already done more than one background check on me (most recently when I got my green card) but I'm not sure if that makes things faster or slower. It will be approved eventually; I really don't see what the big rush is. I've done several international trips as a green card holder (and thus able to go through the citizen line) without global entry and it's only taken me more than 5 minutes to get through the line once (and that was during the shutdown, when they appeared to be short-staffed). And even that was only about a 30 min wait.

elc2414

I have gone through several FBI background checks in my life for various job requirements as well as federal firearms background checks. My wife has never gone through any of these, yet hers was approved in 3 days and mine is still pending since December 1st. Next trip is next week and I never imagined I wouldn't be approved before leaving. Of course, the government shutdown just added to the wait time, but still.....

You've been very fortunate on your re-entry experiences. What airports are you flying in to? What kind of plane? All my international trips except for one have been on wide body jets with hundreds of people on board into major gateways like LAX, DFW, ORD, JFK, BOS - no way are you getting through border control in 5 minutes even if you are sitting in the front of the plane. My average entry time is 20 - 30 minutes even with mobile passport.

FWIW, there is a new notice on the CBP website (at least I just now noticed it):

"The extended partial government shutdown has resulted in a substantial backlog of CBP's Trusted Traveler Programs (TTP) applications and renewals.
Applicants for Global Entry (GE), SENTRI, NEXUS and FAST should expect significant delays in application processing times and limited appointment availability at TTP enrollment centers.
Conditionally approved GE members should seek to complete their GE interviews without an appointment upon arrival from an international flight at any of the 49 airports participating in CBP's Enrollment on Arrival (EoA) program."

Not very encouraging.

Just curious - how did you get an interview 3 days after approval? Did you do enrollment on entry or were you just lucky to be able to schedule an interview that quickly?