Just wanted to pop back in this thread and share my appeal experience. I sent in my appeal on 3/20/2012, and just received my conditional approval today, 5/11. I wrote the Ombudsman a lengthy letter of appeal, listed anything that could have possibly been an error, including the minor traffic offenses, and apparently that's what they wanted. I wouldn't even waste your time calling your local GE office. All they ever did was say no. So it is taking around 2 months for them to respond, but the appeal does work if you're completely candid, like I was.

Amen, and well-said.

This program has been fantastic for us. We've made international-domestic connections that left the gate agent for the domestic flight completely dumbfounded as to how we made it to the connecting gate so fast. Had we been pulled to secondary in those cases, we would have likely missed a flight or two, but overall we are FAR, FAR, FAR ahead of the game using this program -- 100% worth every penny, especially since we are in and out of the country a lot.

CBP should do random secondaries at all points in the process from time to time on everyone -- both from the GE process and afterwards. IMHO GE members should just accept it or leave the kisoks to the rest of us. Just because someone has received GE credentials, doesn't mean they won't cheat on the whole customs process, and I hope that occasional secondary screening process nabs some of them. The beagles are watching you.

As an aside, I have a friend who was getting pulled to secondary EVERY time they entered the country, before they enrolled for GE. The reason: a phantom visa overstay allegation (caused by a lazy agent not pulling a a visa form on a departure many years earlier). After almost 2 years of trying to get the issue fixed, an application, interview and acceptance into GE marked the end of that. This single issue being taken care of (through the help of the very competent CBP officer conducting the interview) though unadvertised and not relevant to most, has been worth many times the price.

Everyone's MMV, but our experience has left me with little patience for those who complain about a secondary now and then.

Do you know how the whole audit process works? The more people they nab, the more difficult it will be for the rest of us. These secondaries are used to create a compliance rate. Unlike you, I hope everybody is honest and nobody gets nabbed so CBP will feel confident that the program is working.

Quite. Honesty is the best policy. I never cheated before, but now I am very sure I do not have an undeclared peanut. Trusted traveller programmes depend on trusted travelers being trustworthy. Randomly inspect me all you like, and I will prove my worthiness.

Secondaries (or the possibility thereof) will help to insure that the program doesn't get taken advantage of over time. And we will have to hope the process works in a manner that roots out any bad behavior to show CBP that the whole program is working: both in the selection process and in the enforcement process so that both may be improved together to continue a good program and make it even better over time.

Anyway, the larger point of my post is to agree with colonius which I take it you agree with as well? that secondaries are a reality in this program. And if someone wants to take their GE credentials as a license to carry a DYKWIA attitude around and then get upset because they are selected for extra screening, good riddance if they want to leave.

Happ

Thanks for the heads up on this. I was traveling YUL-CLE yesterday and there is no CBP officer at the exit, it appears to be just an airport employee with the boarding pass scanner. Thanks to your post, I knew to hand my GE kiosk receipt to the CBP officer at the closest booth, he took my receipt and scanned my BP and I was on my way. I could understand where someone would go direct from the GE kiosk to the exit, because there's a wide open path from the kiosks to the exit. BTW one of the two GE kiosks had some dutch(?) language on the screen that I couldn't figure out how to clear, so I went to the other kiosk.

Anyone know why the first appointment at ORD available today is in late July, while at DTW and JFK, appointments are still available tomorrow and every subsequent day? (I didn't check other locations.)

I know the GE web page says the wait will vary, but this seems like a hugely unbalanced allocation of resources. (It also looks like ORD is going to half-days only in the summer, i.e. no afternoon appointments.)

It's IAD. What else do you need to know?

SeeBuyFly - I was just going to post something like this. I signed up for GE, and got conditional approval very quickly, thinking I'd pop into the customs office in BOS just before my next trip (next Tuesday). I was amazed to find out that the next available appointment is June 29, and after THAT not until *July 10*! What gives? This is a 15-minute process, no?

Wow, and salt in the wound - while I was composing this, the June 29 slot disappeared!

It was for m:eek:st of us. I guess they're either very busy or not very busy and therefore they have chosen not to open very many slots.

little reminder that you're not signing up for Global Entry; you're signing up for Trusted Traveler which GE is part of.

TT also includes Pre-Check for domestic travel meaning you can use a similar expedited process on AA, Delta and Alaska flights at certain airports (continues expanding)

http://www.tsa.gov/what_we_do/escreening.shtm

Keep checking the calendar. It appearsr to be update in realtime as people cancel, which apparently many do. I started out for SFO with an appointment 6 weeks out, and after a week or so moved up in several hops to something just a week away.

This is true. The web site always offers the first available date.

But at ORD, that date is now early August, 2.5 months away. I am sure earlier dates appear occasionally as people cancel, but I haven't been able to 'catch' one yet. Meanwhile, at JFK, all dates are available.

GF used global entry fro first time in SFO.
She reported it worked incredibly well and she was through customs in under a minute.
Sounds worthwhile to have it in her case.