You shouldn't have to apply if your eligibility is through GE/Nexus. The application is for those who don't have a TT status and want to get it by virtue of the FF status.

It's about time. This is as welcome as GE. Figured we'd ultimately get to participate once the backlog of US eligible travellers were processed.


Agree. When this was introduced in the US, both UA and AA had a section on their websites where elites could register. Will try to find it again and go ahead with the process.

http://www.united.com/web/en-US/apps...nTraveler.aspx

So will this mean that those NEXUS lanes at Canadian airports will adopt the same form of screening, i.e. we won't have to remove belts, jackets (shoes to the US), laptops, baggies...?

I posted a comment on the other board of a colleagues recent experience in Canada with this.

I'm not sure this Canadian resident eligibility for TSA Pre is all that useful if you have to be travelling domestically. While I'm sure a few FlyerTalk users would fly between two US airports, every time I've flown between two US airports, it's been as a part of a trip originating or terminating at a Canadian airport.

I hope that I will be able to use TSA Pre when reclearing security at a US airport (e.g. at DEN on a YQR-DEN-SAN trip) but I guess time will tell if that's considered to be a "domestic" journey or if the fact that I will have originated at YQR invalidates me for Pre on that trip.

Actually you forget about those of us in the centre of the Universe (ie Toronto) who regularly fly from Buffalo to save a few hundred dollars. If it ever comes to BUF but even for transiting internationally through IAD or EWR to BUF it will be a timesaver. And LAX. Oh LAX.

Even before Canadians were officially allowed in the pre-check program, I used to show my ticket and nexus card to the pre-check line guy. He would scan the BP say it's not cleared, but still let me straight through to a screening line. Similar to Canadian nexus benefit in security.

As for having to register.... You just need to have your Nexus number included in your ticket as your trusted traveller no. Either at the time of booking or through a FF program.

My experience, for anyone interested
 

Just interviewed at the Lansdowne office this morning.

I stayed overnight at a little motel just off I-81 immediately before the northbound toll plaza. I'd recommend it for anyone driving here to do an interview: it was cozy but clean and comfortable...and only $48 for the night. The downside is they're closing for the season next week and won't reopen until May. If anyone is searching this thread and discovers this next year, it's the Bridge View Motel, on NY route 12 about a half mile west of the I-81/NY 12 interchange.

A review of border crossing times indicated that the wait was never more than 20 minutes and often less than that, so I allotted myself about 30 minutes to drive from the motel to the NEXUS office. There was a slight delay at the toll plaza, but the border crossing itself took less than five minutes. Probably best to give yourself a little bit more of a buffer, though...I do like to cut things close (and wanted to sleep as much as possible, especially after arriving at 2am after driving six hours!).

Anyway, I crossed the border and started looking for the "Stratford Plaza" that was mentioned in my invitation letter. I drove up to the second bridge without seeing anything that looked like an official CBSA office, so I made a U-turn back to the border checkpoint, latched on to an AT&T cell signal, and called the office. They said to look for the Stratford Gift Shop sign and that they were in the little strip mall next to the gift shop. It was NOT very obvious, but upon close inspection, there was a NEXUS logo in the window (and a DHS official vehicle parked out front).

The process itself was pretty easy--a few questions verifying the stuff on my application from the CBSA officer, who was in general very pleasant (I had no issues updating my information, which had changed significantly with my move from Alaska to Pennsylvania, as I had mentioned in this thread previously) and made sure I knew the warnings about misuse of the card. The iris scan thing was a bit trippy--I still consider myself to be on the younger side, but I remember the days when iris scans were pure science fiction. Made me feel old to see such a leap forward in technology now being used.

He then passed me over to the US CBP office at the workstation next to him. I didn't realize until I slid down the counter that he was with a different agency. This guy was a bit more sour than the Canadian guy (why was I not surprised? :rolleyes:); he asked several much more probing questions about my employment and reason for moving, and when I asked which number would be the one I would put in my TSA trusted traveler profile, he retorted, "I have no idea. We have nothing to do with whatever that is." He processed my fingerprints, though, and gave me some further documentation. (He didn't spend any time talking about misuse of the card; instead, he just shoved a warning paper at me and told me to read it and sign it. Gotta love the US's need for a paper trail--and lack of courtesy in doing so--for everything.)

I was out of the office in about 25 minutes and was told I'd receive the card within 5-10 business days. I've already updated my UA and AS profiles with my Known Traveler ID number and added it to all of my current reservations (along with making sure my name matched exactly--full name, including middle spelled fully out). I'll get a chance to test this next week on several UA flights. (Maybe it would be less of a hassle to just apply for Trusted Traveler by virtue of my UA elite status, since my AS status has made PreCheck work just fine without any hassles of updating my name, but I figure I paid for this, I might as well get the most use out of it.)

The CBSA officer said I could update all documents and data (address/employment/driver's license, etc. change) EXCEPT for my passport, which I would need to bring into any NEXUS office (no appointment needed). I asked if I could update them at a Global Entry enrollment center, but the CBSA officer said he didn't know. He consulted with his CBP colleague, who didn't know either, but they said they thought I should be able to (since their systems are tied together) but couldn't guarantee it.

All in all, an interesting process. Now, off to Ottawa and Toronto--never been, and I might as well make a fun road trip out of this! :)

Gotta love GE...no not that GE
 

Arrived into EWR from HKG on a UA flight Monday afternoon around 2p. Seems about a dozen other overseas flights arrive about this hour too, so the customs area was quite a site to behold. In fact, as we left our bridge and headed towards the main hall, there was a INS officer stopping people from using the escalators and insisting we use the stairs...which were already filled with people waiting to move further down the corridor. The line up was about a quarter mile long, three/four people wide. I told the agent I had GE, so he told me I could go up the escalator and make my way down the corridor into the main hall and to the GE entry area. Got lots of dirty looks as I made my way down the corridor, but the GE lanes were empty and I was processed in less than two minutes.

Same scene greeted me down in the customs hall and at luggage carousels where hundreds were waiting for their bags, then lining up in similar snaking lines to exit. Again, grace a the dedicated GE exit lane, I was out in a few minutes and heading to my connection.

I've seen backlogs at SFO and LAX, but never one quite this bad, though one morning at YYZ when my PVG flight joined a couple from the Caribbean, TLV, SCL, EZE and DEL! That morning too, the line snaked down the stairs (back in the days when we were bussed from the Infield Terminal). I was let through when I told the security guard I had CANPASS. Just wish YYZ would have a NEXUS exit lane from the customs hall when it backlogs and lines to get out snake around in both directions!

Well, they had announced earlier this year that we'd get it as soon as the program exited the trial phase, so no surprise there.

This will happen slowly, but yes. They are trialing the 'laptop left in' at a YYC Nexus lane right now. Biggest hurdle right now is that the lines have to be dedicated Nexus only in order to allow those type of rules and CATSA has been reluctant to do that as it frequently results in a lane with 4 employees doing nothing at all.

... and this is different from normal CATSA employees how? :p :D

What I meant was that you still need to add the info to your traveller info. I've always both checked the box and put my TT # in and it works. Maybe unchecking the box but leaving the# in would work, too, but I'm not going to change what's working.

In addition, since you can be accepted or denied even when providing the info, even a TT number, you are essentially "applying" for each domestic flight. Having the number in is supposed to increase your score or whatever metric(s) they make the decision on, but it is made every flight, so you can be accepted one trip and denied the next. Suspect they do it randomly sometimes too, just like Nexus.

I went to the Whirlpool location. Both the Canadian and US staff were really friendly. The only drawback was that they don't have the iris scanner there, and so I had to come back onto the Canadian side, and do it on our side.

The Canadian officer and I talked about baseball stats and baseball stadiums, while the American was more business-like, but still friendly, despite one of my fellow applicant's questions.

crappy time with Nexus this trip, wow!

YCD-YVR-PHX, rtn. Jazz and US Airways. 1.5 hrs in YVR but my initial flight was 30 min late so it was a pretty short stop, I guess. The in-province gates are so far from the US gates, it was a 20 minute fast walk and I also had to go through 2 "check points" just on the walk alone. Asked them what it was about, agent replied "Someone likes to know exactly where you are."

Get to the connections area, and there are two big lines awkwardly merging to go through security (again?) then customs. No Nexus recognition. Time ticking.

Ask security agent about Nexus - she suggests that it is actually faster to leave the secure area and go back through the "front" departures security Nexus lane for screening and Nexus lane for customs.

Too late now! Time is ticking! Nervously glancing at my watch as the plane is boarding, make it through at last call. I guess I missed Priority Boarding haha!


On the way home, PHX airport security long line, moved quickly but I noticed signs up for Pre-Check. I ask about it but they have no idea about NEXUS. (I learned today that it will be rolled out in November). In Vancouver, Customs - after trying 3 times, find out NEXUS machines are broken! - self-serve lane pretty fast, then grab bag, through security again.

1) I cannot wait until airline and security agents are familiar with the Nexus program
2) I look forward, immensely, to this Pre-Check thing.
3) at YVR, if connecting US-Canada or Canada-US, just go out of the secure area, and enter normal departure security since Nexus means nothing if you are connecting and the lines in the connecting area can be quite long!

--> is #3 true at other airports like YYZ?

I learned the hard (nervous, running late!) way that 'smooth connection' is not a real thing. I'm so used to NEXUS getting me through security in a wink for domestic flights, esp. at YWG, that I was not prepared for it to be completely useless for me this trip.

Any other tips?