Took awhile but I finally found the thread: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/pract...-required.html

I knew it was out there somewhere...

About half an hour to an hour. Mine took about half an hour.

5-10 min for me and Mrs...

Thanks. I have a 2.5 hour layover in DFW. Should be plenty of time for 2 people then..if things go smooth.

My number came up yesterday, and I finally got the X at the kiosk the first time in the 10+ uses since I got GE. My wife used the same kiosk and didn't get the X, and a friend of mine used a nearby kiosk, also without the X. However, there were 3 or 4 other people who also had received X's, and the CBP officer manning the kiosks even commented, "What's up with all of the X's today?" He seemed to think it was dirty fingerprint readers - although mine all said good - and he went to clean the glass with some light adhesive tape. I got cleared by an officer within a minute and finally received my first CBP stamp in about four years.

This happened at EWR, where I believe the kiosks are on the visitors side. One guy with an Italian passport became irate when he saw me and a few other people with X receipts "cut" in line. (We were standing off to the side but had flagged an officer at the nearest booth with our X receipts.) I told the person we had something different and needed to see an officer, and he was yelling, "You? What's different? No different than other people! You wait behind everyone else!" (The CBP officers at the closest booths had begun prioritizing the GE people, making the guy more upset.) The CBP officers were patient with the guy, and he finally calmed down after he was stamped through.

We still made it through before our checked luggage came down the carousel, so I consider this a win for GE for throughput. ^

That's pretty quick. The half hour was because they had to explain to me all the pamphlets, and show me the kiosk, etc... even though they're all pretty easy to understand. The questioning part was very easy and quick, perhaps only a few minutes.

In Oct. 2009, when I had my GE interview, it took under 10 minutes--it would have been faster, but the agent's computer screen had slow response.

Just asking here because I didn't want to start a new thread:

how recent do bills/proof of address etc have to be for the interview? I can't find anything that recent here since I put my recent ones together, then seem to have accidentally trashed them....

If I'm traveling with my family who doesn't have GE, then what happens? The FAQ says they cannot come to the GE kiosk/line, but can we get head of line privileges? Or is that for me only? Having me jump ahead doesn't really help when I have to sit and wait for everyone else anyway.

Similarly, I would have to get my coworker to apply too if we typically travel together.

You may be able to bring your minor children with you, but definitely not your spouse. What you OUGHT to do is sign up ALL the members in your family for GE (and ask your co-worker to do it too). There is no longer any restriction on signing up children regardless of age.

That will help a lot in the future. Only someone who does not travel by plane at least ONCE a year should not sign up for GE. Wow - it works out to a whole $20 per year! If you can afford to buy an airline ticket, you can afford GE.

I know many travelers without GE who would not hesitate to buy a $20 martini. Yet I can't convince them to join GE - "can't be bothered" is the usual response. I guess they CAN be bothered taking all their liquids out, belt off, shoes off, coat off, and laptop and DVD out of their bag.

honestly, I think nobody but me should sign up.

Just added my second passport to Global Entry.. I just love it

Great idea, but if we don't have more travel professionals sign up for GE or TSE Pre-check, that means more inexperienced flyers will be shuttled over to TSA Pre-check and clog up that line even more than it is now! Oh, I pine for the good ol' days when Pre-Check was reserved only for me.

Cannot bring family through the kiosk. I have never tried the "front of the line" treatment - that would appear quite rude if kiosks are functional. However you should simply sign up your entire family - that is what I did. Yes, it's $20 a year but well spent particularly for young children who don't do well waiting in long pointless lines.

Ironically it took us longer to use GE when we arrived from Mexico last month. Could have walked directly to the first CBP drone but of course we did not fill out the customs form so we had to use the kiosks. And of course that meant assisting the children, so it took several minutes. Then when we got to the customs exit the CBP drone insisted on matching each passport to each GE receipt and person, which took additional time. If we had simply skipped the kiosk we would have been through in a couple of minutes with no secondary check at customs.

That being said GE is well worth the money - because you just never know what you well see when your plane lands. And if the lines are long you'll be smiling as you saunter by all those folks in the queue.

I would not worry about your co-worker. He will get the message the first time you bypass him.

You had a well-written response but you ruined it and discredited yourself unnecessarily, in my opinion, by referring to a government employee from Customs and Border Protection as a "drone." Call anyone a "drone" is demeaning and insulting to that person. You should have used CBP "officer" or at least CBP "employee" in your response. There, got that off my chest.

+1000