lxjoss

Non-US citizen arriving at IAD from PUJ at 8pm on Sunday.

Does anyone know what wait time we might expect at that time?

Thanks!

BLTO

Whenever I came back from Istanbul last November, the non-citizen line was shorter and more efficient than the US line...it was probably about a ~15 minute wait.

Alpha Golf

By 8 pm the Europe rush should have cleared, so wait shou;dn't be too long. I'd guess no more than 15 minutes or so.

But of course depends on staffing etc.

Hint -- you're presumably on United. When they put you on the mobile lounge don't go to the back, even though they will try to get you to. If its fairly empty, squeeze into the little space in the middle behind the driver. About four people can fit in there

First off = first in line.

CmmC

Hi there, I'm a non US citizen and will be travelling from Cancun to IAD, with just a 2 hour connecting time before a 10pm transatlantic flight home. Any idea how long the wait at immigration is? I hear it's quite long at IAD and I'm a little worried. Huge thanks.

Alpha Golf

That time of night you should be fine, if your inbound flight is on time.

Annandaler

OP doesn't mention whether IAD is final destination or a transfer point. If final destination be sure and follow the ARRIVALS signs, onto a mobile lounge, to the CBP facility in the Terminal building. If transferring at Dulles follow the TRANSFERS signs to the CBP facility right inside the C Concourse (where your flight arrives).

I was inside the CBP facility in the Terminal last evening as the PUJ travelers arrived there. No significant lines for citizens or non-citizens at that moment. Obviously, your experience might differ a bit depending on whether LH414 arrives a bit late, or BA293 arrives a bit early, or TK7 is very late, etc.

Annandaler

If your flight arrives on-time (right about 8PM), the CBP facility for Transfer passengers should be pretty smooth. TSA security immediately after CBP can take another 5-15 minutes. Once through TSA screening, you go up into the C Concourse across from gate C7. Your international departure will be somewhere in the C/D concourse - so it shouldn't take more then 15 minutes to get to the furthest gate, and likely a lot less to a nearby gate.

Note that the CBP Transfer facility closes at 8:30pm. If the flight is more than 30 minutes late, all passengers are sent to the CBP facility in the Terminal building - and a connection to a 10PM departure is dubious.

CmmC

Thank you for all your replies, great info here! My flight into IAD lands at 8.20pm and my transatlantic connection is at 10.15pm, but I'm a little concerned that CBP closes at 8.30pm, given that I'm flying United and I'm afraid their on-time record isn't what it should be!

Annandaler

Under normal circumstances you should be fine. UA makes a great effort to get the Caribbean/Mexico flights in before CBP closes the Transfer facility. And CBP works with United to continue working until all passengers arriving prior to the formal closing time are processed.

CmmC

CMK10

I've come into IAD twice this year:

- Friday at 9:30 PM: Horrible wait (over 40 minutes). Most of the CBP Officers went home at 10 PM and I was stuck behind a bunch of people off an Avianca flight

- Sunday at 6 PM: Shorter wait (around 10-15 minutes)

klevin99

40 minutes is not horrible for IAD depending on when you land. Mid afternoon at peak can be 90 minutes. Global entry is a nice thing...

Phoenixtinct

I'm a bit concerned about peak times. I am making an international-to-domestic connection at IAD and both are United flights, however, it is fairly short - 1 hour and 24 minutes. Arrive at 3:30pm from MUC and depart 4:54pm to ORD. I've read that United transfer passengers go through immigration faster than other airlines. Is that really the case? First time entering through IAD. I've done JFK, EWR, IAH, SFO, LAX, MIA and such a tight connection will be impossible to make but United thinks it's acceptable. I cannot miss my connecting flight to ORD as it will screw up my entire itinerary, so I'm hoping United got it right this time and I will have sufficient time to make it. What is everyone else's experience for that time of day?

Often1

UA has its own midfield terminal FIS for connections. Your time at CBP should be somewhat shorter and you will be much closer to your departure gate. You will still need to clear a security checkpoint.

There are two later flights to ORD should you misconnect, but I understand that you have other scheduling commitments. On the other hand, if you book the later flight, can you still execute your planned itinerary?

Perhaps some detail as to why the arrival schedule at ORD is important would be helpful.

Phoenixtinct

Sure, here are the details - I am traveling to LAX with a connection at ORD - if I miss the ORD connection at IAD, I cannot take a later flight to ORD as the last flight to LAX that I'm currently on would have left. If I do miss the flight, United would have to put me on a direct flight to LAX from IAD and I won't be able to leave my luggage at ORD like I want to do. After I reach LAX, I am connecting to AA and currently have less than an hour to switch terminals - if I have to re-check my bag (which I don't need on this trip), I won't make it and will miss my flights. So, to answer your question - my itinerary needs to be executed as is or it would cause a whole lot of problems for me. It's already booked, so I can't really make changes to it now but all I can do is hope that it all goes without a hitch and everything works out as planned. Thanks for the info!