I don't think so because Global Entry does a fingerprint scan.... They take your fingerprints during the interview ... Sounds like you got lucky!
US Customs discussion - airports, importing
- Thread starter esyee
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I don't think so because Global Entry does a fingerprint scan.... They take your fingerprints during the interview ... Sounds like you got lucky!
Doesn't sound like it. Global Entry is a clearly labeled line and kiosk and as jayjay77 says, it's based entirely on your fingerprints. If your prints don't match your passport, they will not let you in. (You don't need your card, I lost mine years ago.)
Thank you for this, Scarf1 - whenever I return to SFO I have to stand in that horrid line for at least an hour. Global Entry, here I come!!
That's kiosk passport control and is not the same as Global Entry. The kiosk passport control uses the non-Global Entry lanes at the end. It is faster though than the old system! There's also the APC, which you can do on your mobile phone and then stop at the APC kiosk when you land. With both the kiosk and APC, you still go through the same line for Customs. The Global Entry system is also kiosk based and as others mentioned you do the fingerprints. But at the end there is a specific Global Entry line to exit.
Although I have Global Entry, I also have the APC app on my phone. This way if I lose my passport I can access the details from my phone.
I came through Newark Airport on Friday and declared everything. I paid a flat 5%.
I had a pretty bad experience at JFK on last Saturday.
Instead of just looking through the goods and reciepts, my officer of the day insisted he has to look at everything. I think he was bored. He looked through every inch of my bigger bags, containing mostly laundry. What he should've really looked was smaller one with more expensive items, such as a B but by that time his boredom wore off I guess? I wonder what he would've said if he saw B sitting there, as this guy literally looked through everything, such as credit card receipts I got from restaurants and business cards from shops.
Business cards are business cards. Just small pieces of paper. Yet he read every single one of them and commented "So you got a card from everyone?" I replied, "They give you one when you go to shop."
Being it JFK, I assumed they must seen lots of H goods in the past. But this guy was judging us as if he was our father.
"Do you really save that much from buying over there?"
When I replied the bag alone costs over 10K here, he wasn't happy with the answer and added how he thinks it's not worth the hassle, etc. Well, it certainly felt like it's not worth the burden I was dealing with the dude. We felt like being treated as criminals, when we were actually honest citizens who declared everything. And I certainly didn't appreciate being ridiculed for buying 8 twillies, or "little thing costing 145 euros each," as he called.
And after such tormenting time of having our bags searched and standing there like idiots for what felt like forever, he didn't even actually process the duty charges himself! Either he didn't know how or didn't feel like doing it. So he called another officer, who was actually the one that helped me at immigration process to calculate, calling him "nerd." "Nerd" officer started to list every item and calculated everything according to type of items. Silk, 1 point something percent. Bags, 10, etc. So the duty came out a bit higher than I expected, as I've been waved or charged flat 3% before. It wasn't that terrible amount though, so no hard feeling about the charge. I paid what I was supposed to pay. It was the time consuming process and treatment that was frustrating.
So it seems it's inconsistent how things are done at the custom. Just like asking for a B/K at FSH, who you get makes the process all so different. I never really had to show everything like that in the past. I hope all members here going through JFK in the future have much less painful experience.
Instead of just looking through the goods and reciepts, my officer of the day insisted he has to look at everything. I think he was bored. He looked through every inch of my bigger bags, containing mostly laundry. What he should've really looked was smaller one with more expensive items, such as a B but by that time his boredom wore off I guess? I wonder what he would've said if he saw B sitting there, as this guy literally looked through everything, such as credit card receipts I got from restaurants and business cards from shops.
Business cards are business cards. Just small pieces of paper. Yet he read every single one of them and commented "So you got a card from everyone?" I replied, "They give you one when you go to shop."
Being it JFK, I assumed they must seen lots of H goods in the past. But this guy was judging us as if he was our father.
"Do you really save that much from buying over there?"
When I replied the bag alone costs over 10K here, he wasn't happy with the answer and added how he thinks it's not worth the hassle, etc. Well, it certainly felt like it's not worth the burden I was dealing with the dude. We felt like being treated as criminals, when we were actually honest citizens who declared everything. And I certainly didn't appreciate being ridiculed for buying 8 twillies, or "little thing costing 145 euros each," as he called.
And after such tormenting time of having our bags searched and standing there like idiots for what felt like forever, he didn't even actually process the duty charges himself! Either he didn't know how or didn't feel like doing it. So he called another officer, who was actually the one that helped me at immigration process to calculate, calling him "nerd." "Nerd" officer started to list every item and calculated everything according to type of items. Silk, 1 point something percent. Bags, 10, etc. So the duty came out a bit higher than I expected, as I've been waved or charged flat 3% before. It wasn't that terrible amount though, so no hard feeling about the charge. I paid what I was supposed to pay. It was the time consuming process and treatment that was frustrating.
So it seems it's inconsistent how things are done at the custom. Just like asking for a B/K at FSH, who you get makes the process all so different. I never really had to show everything like that in the past. I hope all members here going through JFK in the future have much less painful experience.
I had a pretty bad experience at JFK on last Saturday.
Instead of just looking through the goods and reciepts, my officer of the day insisted he has to look at everything. I think he was bored. He looked through every inch of my bigger bags, containing mostly laundry. What he should've really looked was smaller one with more expensive items, such as a B but by that time his boredom wore off I guess? I wonder what he would've said if he saw B sitting there, as this guy literally looked through everything, such as credit card receipts I got from restaurants and business cards from shops.
Business cards are business cards. Just small pieces of paper. Yet he read every single one of them and commented "So you got a card from everyone?" I replied, "They give you one when you go to shop."
Being it JFK, I assumed they must seen lots of H goods in the past. But this guy was judging us as if he was our father.
"Do you really save that much from buying over there?"
When I replied the bag alone costs over 10K here, he wasn't happy with the answer and added how he thinks it's not worth the hassle, etc. Well, it certainly felt like it's not worth the burden I was dealing with the dude. We felt like being treated as criminals, when we were actually honest citizens who declared everything. And I certainly didn't appreciate being ridiculed for buying 8 twillies, or "little thing costing 145 euros each," as he called.
And after such tormenting time of having our bags searched and standing there like idiots for what felt like forever, he didn't even actually process the duty charges himself! Either he didn't know how or didn't feel like doing it. So he called another officer, who was actually the one that helped me at immigration process to calculate, calling him "nerd." "Nerd" officer started to list every item and calculated everything according to type of items. Silk, 1 point something percent. Bags, 10, etc. So the duty came out a bit higher than I expected, as I've been waved or charged flat 3% before. It wasn't that terrible amount though, so no hard feeling about the charge. I paid what I was supposed to pay. It was the time consuming process and treatment that was frustrating.
So it seems it's inconsistent how things are done at the custom. Just like asking for a B/K at FSH, who you get makes the process all so different. I never really had to show everything like that in the past. I hope all members here going through JFK in the future have much less painful experience.
Wow sorry about your experience. They should be treating you professionally and not commenting on what you purchased. After a flight I just want to get out of the airport!
I really think the guy was bored that day. He even checked the label on one of my pants in one of the laundry bags, as if trying to see if I was hiding my newly bought clothes. In reality they were $10 pants I got from Macy's as lounge pants!
NamamiRyu, that is a terrible experience, but I am so glad you declared everything! I can't imagine what he would have done if you hadn't. Glad you are home safe and sound.
Sorry that you've such bad experience. I think JFK is a strict airport since they have many people coming back from Europe and they know that everyone shops there due to the low Euro. But making judgement on whether an item is worth the price is out of line. But like FSH, people that work in immigration and customs as well as those SAs offering you the bags enjoy that sense of 'power' that their position brings. They make up the rules and you can't challenge them or face repercussions. Glad that you declare everything and even paying 10% on your bags is still lower than buying in the US.I had a pretty bad experience at JFK on last Saturday.
Instead of just looking through the goods and reciepts, my officer of the day insisted he has to look at everything. I think he was bored. He looked through every inch of my bigger bags, containing mostly laundry. What he should've really looked was smaller one with more expensive items, such as a B but by that time his boredom wore off I guess? I wonder what he would've said if he saw B sitting there, as this guy literally looked through everything, such as credit card receipts I got from restaurants and business cards from shops.
Business cards are business cards. Just small pieces of paper. Yet he read every single one of them and commented "So you got a card from everyone?" I replied, "They give you one when you go to shop."
Being it JFK, I assumed they must seen lots of H goods in the past. But this guy was judging us as if he was our father.
"Do you really save that much from buying over there?"
When I replied the bag alone costs over 10K here, he wasn't happy with the answer and added how he thinks it's not worth the hassle, etc. Well, it certainly felt like it's not worth the burden I was dealing with the dude. We felt like being treated as criminals, when we were actually honest citizens who declared everything. And I certainly didn't appreciate being ridiculed for buying 8 twillies, or "little thing costing 145 euros each," as he called.
And after such tormenting time of having our bags searched and standing there like idiots for what felt like forever, he didn't even actually process the duty charges himself! Either he didn't know how or didn't feel like doing it. So he called another officer, who was actually the one that helped me at immigration process to calculate, calling him "nerd." "Nerd" officer started to list every item and calculated everything according to type of items. Silk, 1 point something percent. Bags, 10, etc. So the duty came out a bit higher than I expected, as I've been waved or charged flat 3% before. It wasn't that terrible amount though, so no hard feeling about the charge. I paid what I was supposed to pay. It was the time consuming process and treatment that was frustrating.
So it seems it's inconsistent how things are done at the custom. Just like asking for a B/K at FSH, who you get makes the process all so different. I never really had to show everything like that in the past. I hope all members here going through JFK in the future have much less painful experience.
I had the same thought! Imagine what he would've done if I didn't declare and got pulled.
Oh yeah, the duty wasn't bad. I mean, my Herbag is about $900 or so cheaper, so that "discount" alone covers the duty for everything. It was the whole standing there for an hour while he went through stuffs that was frustrating. My legs went dead half way through. I felt as if I was back at the queue for FSH.
I had a pretty bad experience at JFK on last Saturday.
Instead of just looking through the goods and reciepts, my officer of the day insisted he has to look at everything. I think he was bored. He looked through every inch of my bigger bags, containing mostly laundry. What he should've really looked was smaller one with more expensive items, such as a B but by that time his boredom wore off I guess? I wonder what he would've said if he saw B sitting there, as this guy literally looked through everything, such as credit card receipts I got from restaurants and business cards from shops.
Business cards are business cards. Just small pieces of paper. Yet he read every single one of them and commented "So you got a card from everyone?" I replied, "They give you one when you go to shop."
Being it JFK, I assumed they must seen lots of H goods in the past. But this guy was judging us as if he was our father.
"Do you really save that much from buying over there?"
When I replied the bag alone costs over 10K here, he wasn't happy with the answer and added how he thinks it's not worth the hassle, etc. Well, it certainly felt like it's not worth the burden I was dealing with the dude. We felt like being treated as criminals, when we were actually honest citizens who declared everything. And I certainly didn't appreciate being ridiculed for buying 8 twillies, or "little thing costing 145 euros each," as he called.
And after such tormenting time of having our bags searched and standing there like idiots for what felt like forever, he didn't even actually process the duty charges himself! Either he didn't know how or didn't feel like doing it. So he called another officer, who was actually the one that helped me at immigration process to calculate, calling him "nerd." "Nerd" officer started to list every item and calculated everything according to type of items. Silk, 1 point something percent. Bags, 10, etc. So the duty came out a bit higher than I expected, as I've been waved or charged flat 3% before. It wasn't that terrible amount though, so no hard feeling about the charge. I paid what I was supposed to pay. It was the time consuming process and treatment that was frustrating.
So it seems it's inconsistent how things are done at the custom. Just like asking for a B/K at FSH, who you get makes the process all so different. I never really had to show everything like that in the past. I hope all members here going through JFK in the future have much less painful experience.
OMG!! I'm so sorry this happened to you. That's awful and completely inappropriate of him to have comments on your purchases as he rifled through your personal belongings. I understand it's his job but he should do it in a professional manner. I agree with someone above that people abuse their power when they know you can't argue back. He should do his job silently and no judgey commentary necessary.
For those wondering, the first 800 is free. The next 1000 is a flat 3%. Then it all depends on the goods. The import tariffs manual is crazy long.