Entry to the US

[rachelbw 0]

Hey everyone,

I was wondering if anyone could help me....Does anyone know how long it will take to get through customs when you first enter after approval?

I need to book an on going flight and I am trying to organise which time to get one..!

Good luck everybody

Thank you

[JFH 12,190]

Depends very much on the port of entry - how many planes are landing around that time and how many passengers to process and how many employees have turned up for work that day.

You can find other members' experiences here

http://www.visajourney.com/reviews/poereviews.php

Also, CBP post their waiting times at various airports here:

http://awt.cbp.gov

[kris&me 572]

Chicago is good / they handle everyone quickly

Atlanta and even NY at JFK are smooth

those are the ones we have gone thru

[mallafri76 1,012]

I found Chicago to be really slow, but I guess it depends on when you arrive and what other flights come at the same time. I always found Dulles and Newark to be pretty smooth.

I would count at least three hours between flights. If you book the connecting flight on the same ticket, they'll re-book you for free if you get stuck at CBP and can't make your connection.

[EmilyW 1,434]

LAX can be fast if you approach the ground staff. Our first entry was literally 15 minutes from the time we got off the plane to the time we were finished.

[rachelbw 0]

Thank you so much for responding everyone! Im flying into LAX, so I think I'm going to give it 2 hours to get to my next flight and fingers crossed it works!

One last thing...on my flight from UK to LAX its asking for ESTA details...I have a valid ESTA already and obviously will be finalising Greencard when I enter...Should I enter my ESTA details just incase? Or will that mess with my Greencard entry?

Thanks again!

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Thank you so much for responding everyone! Im flying into LAX, so I think I'm going to give it 2 hours to get to my next flight and fingers crossed it works!

One last thing...on my flight from UK to LAX its asking for ESTA details...I have a valid ESTA already and obviously will be finalising Greencard when I enter...Should I enter my ESTA details just incase? Or will that mess with my Greencard entry?

Thanks again!

You are traveling on a visa, not visa waiver. Is there a place to say visa details. Not everybody on a plane uses ESTA because they require a visa if not from a VWP country. And even though you have ESTA approval, you are using a visa this trip. Edited February 25, 2016 by Nich-Nick

[JFH 12,190]

Thank you so much for responding everyone! Im flying into LAX, so I think I'm going to give it 2 hours to get to my next flight and fingers crossed it works!

One last thing...on my flight from UK to LAX its asking for ESTA details...I have a valid ESTA already and obviously will be finalising Greencard when I enter...Should I enter my ESTA details just incase? Or will that mess with my Greencard entry?

Thanks again!

Are you flying with Norwegian? Whenever I've flown with them it has asked for my ESTA details. But as Nich-Nick says, not everyone travels under the VWP. Some people on the flight may have US passports, some may have visas (including you). Not everyone even qualifies for the VWP. You might need to call them to explain your situation.

[DaisyD 12]

I missed my connecting flight when I first entered the country after being approved, but the airline I was with allowed me to transfer onto a later flight without any issues. Call the airline and see what their policy is if you miss the connection.

[Mike-eeh and Odie 193]

I would get a connecting flight with at least 4 hours layover just to be safe. That said, my wife and I normally do that when we travel now. It gives us enough time to get through security and spend some time relaxing/eating at a cafe/restaurant before the flight, because in-flight food normally sucks. Haha.

[Soup Dragon 104]

I would allow three hours layover

[Ryan H 3,812]

Moved from IR-1/CR-1 Process & Procedures to General Immigration-Related Discussion.

[Russ&Caro 1,549]

As others have stated, I'd allow at least 3-4 hours for a connecting flight. LAX isn't bad if it's your final destination or if you're not changing airlines. However, if you are changing airlines, it is one of the worst airports in the entire world. There's a good chance you'll have to change terminals and in many of those cases you'll have to go through security again. Even for domestic flights where I change airlines at LAX, I give myself at least 90 minutes and sometimes that's not enough.

[Ortolan 381]

3 hours is what we allowed with transfers thru Atlanta....don't know with other airports, but it was plenty of time and allowed him to sort of relax a little bit and breathe....

[IcezMan_IcezLady 582]

Best to give yourself at least 2 hrs between connection.. Things can change and you could end up missing your flight if you go by "it is fast and quick".

What if your luggage takes longer to arrive? Just give yourself some hours. I was in IAH for over 2hrs cos CBS personnel took me into a room to sit and wait..