Preclearance Program Expansion
Flying into the U.S. from select airports abroad could soon get easier. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) joined the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in announcing Tuesday that they will invite new airports to participate in the Preclearance program for the first time since 2016.
“Preclearance is an excellent passenger facilitation program that complements our rigorous U.S. standards and strengthens global security through the development of key international partnerships.” said TSA’s Deputy Executive Assistant Administrator for Security Operations, Melanie Harvey. “This program is a win-win, allowing travelers to experience a streamlined approach that saves them time and frustration while reducing the burden on our domestic system.”
To be eligible for Preclearance, airports must host U.S. air carrier operations, have a suitable facility for Preclearance processing, and be prepared to share some costs with the U.S. Government. Through the program, governments authorize CBP to station personnel at airports to complete customs, immigration, and agriculture inspections of travelers before they board flights bound for the United States.
Precleared travelers bypass CBP and TSA security inspections upon arrival in the United States, saving valuable time as they proceed to connecting flights or their destination.
The Preclearance program is not just a convenience for travelers, but also a big boost for airports that participate in it. They gain an advantage over competitors by making U.S.-bound travel easier and enabling direct routes to more than 160 U.S. airports with limited or no CBP facilities. Preclearance helped drive a 75% increase in Dublin Airport’s U.S.-bound travel volume from 2014 to 2018 for example.
List of Preclearance Airports
So far there are only 16 Preclearance airports in six countries. Preclearance cooperation enhances U.S. and foreign partner security while facilitating growing volumes of U.S.-bound air travel.
| Calgary Preclearance Calgary International Airport |
P.O. Box 155 2000 Airport Road, Northeast Calgary, AB, T2E 6W5 |
(403) 221-1641 | ||
| Edmonton Preclearance Edmonton International Airport |
2312, 1000 Airport Road Edmonton, AB, T9E 0V3 |
(780) 890-4515 | ||
| Halifax Preclearance Robert L. Stanfield International |
Airport Level 2& 1 Bell Boulevard Enfield, NS, B2T 1K2 |
(902) 873-7780 | ||
| Montreal Preclearance Montreal Trudeau International Airport |
975 Romeo Vachon Boulevard North Dorval, QC, H4Y 1H1 |
(514) 636-3875 | ||
| Ottawa Preclearance Ottawa MacDonald-Cartier International Airport |
1000 Airport Road, Private Ottawa, ON, K1V 9B4 |
(613) 523-8120 | ||
| Toronto Preclearance Lester B. Pearson International Airport |
P.O. Box 115 Toronto AMF Toronto, ON, Canada L5P 1A2 |
(905) 676-2606 ext 140 | ||
| Vancouver Preclearance Vancouver International Airport International Terminal – Level 3 |
3161 Grant McConachie Way Richmond, BC V7B 0A4 |
(604) 278-7422 | ||
| Victoria Preclearance | 2701 Alaskan Way Pier 69 Clipper Direct Group 1 Seattle, Washington 98121 |
(250) 384-1821 | ||
| Winnipeg Preclearance Winnipeg International Airport |
2311-1970 Wellington Avenue Winnipeg, MB, R3H 0E3 |
(204) 783-2206 | ||
| Bahamas – Freeport Preclearance Grand Bahama International Airport |
P.O. Box 22400 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida 33335 |
(242) 352-7256 | ||
| Bahamas – Nassau Preclearance Lynden Pindling International Airport |
1 Windsor Field Road Nassau, Bahamas |
(242) 377-7125 | ||
| Bermuda Preclearance L.F. Wade International Airport |
3 Cahow Way St. George, Bermuda GE CX |
(441) 293-0353 | ||
| Aruba Preclearance Queen Beatrix International Airport |
P.O. Box 520068 Miami, Florida 33152 |
011 297-588-7240 | ||
| Abu Dhabi Preclearance Abu Dhabi International Airport |
P.O. Box 13160 Abu Dhabi |
011 971-2-575-9005 | ||
| Dublin Preclearance Dublin Airport |
Terminal 2, Pier E Dublin |
011 353-1248-0300 | ||
| Shannon Preclearance Shannon Airport |
Shannon County Clare |
011 353-6147-2297 | ||
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Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Did the preclearance in Dublin good and bad points.
Good – allowed us to make a very tight connection in JFK (plane arrived late). Just walked off our inbound flight and down eight gates to our outbound flight.
Bad – they did not take the prelanding TSA check in app (now discontinued) so the wait in line was 90 minutes with no air conditioning. Global entry was no wait, which is why we applied for it as soon as we got back.