TravelTalkOnline Forums Travel and Vacation Forums St. Maarten - St. Martin Meeting on US pre-clearance

Didn't really say much about timetable.

Has any timetable been discussed yet?

They really can't do anything with regard to pre-clearance until they are fully back into the airport.

Keep in mind they haven't signed a formal agreement yet. Sweden and the US signed a formal agreement back in 2016 to start preclearance at the airport in Stockholm, but due to the high cost of implementing it, nothing has been done and there is no timetable on when they might start. I suspect it is going to be a while before we see anything.

Fine by me. With GE doing it in the states is a non issue with me.

People who travel to Aruba say that the lines there in Aruba are often much worse there than they have seen in the US, so pre-clearance wouldn't necessarily be that much of an advantage, EXCEPT with regard to cutting down connection times, once you arrive in the US.

I hate Aruba don’t work for me !!!
Don’t think it’s going to happen anytime soon they don’t have the mone to finish the inside of the Airport as it is and have to borrow it !!!
It’s an 18 mo job once they start !!!

I finally have Global Entry which in SXM would mean nothing. On a side note Brits have till friday to renew their passports with the Brexit situation... https://www.independent.co.uk/trave...-travel-visa-what-you-need-a8812881.html

We had great luck with the mobile passport control at JFK last summer. https://www.cbp.gov/travel/us-citizens/mobile-passport-control Basically went through the same lines as Global Entry.

It certainly will help those who have checked baggage. If you have flight connections you don't have to handle those items. If you have arrived at your final destination the baggage should be available much sooner since it was checked in SXM. In either case the plane will arrive at a different gate since there will be no need to clear customs.The walk to and through customs at Jet Blue's terminal in JFK is healthy but time consuming.

We go to Aruba every year, and nothing short of amazing with pre-clearance. It may be a while before SXM gets it, but it'll be worth the wait.

No. Not in SXM but makes it real fast returning to the states.

Typically they put Global Entry Kiosk at the preclearance areas too, so you can still use Global Entry when going through a preclearance location. Preclearance would be nice for connecting passengers, as it would no longer require you to go through TSA screening before connecting to your domestic connection. I have Global Entry, but when I connect through Atlanta internationally, they do not have a TSA precheck in the international terminal for connecting domestic passengers.

I would think you would still need to go through tsa on a connection back in states. Time and exprience will tell.

With pre clearance you would land at the domestic terminal, not the international one, so, in most airports, no need to leave the terminal and re-enter, so no TSA check.

Timetable? Doing this costs millions. We need roofs.

I have been on many flights from preclearance airports and can attest that flights land as a domestic flight. Part of the deal with preclearance is having security screenings meeting TSA standards.

I’m with Elaine.



I’d far rather see the mega-monies required for this spent to get rid of those charming blue portable roofs so many are still living with. It’s shameful that so many are still living with this inconvenience and yet the government can find funds for this program. It would be a nice addition, for sure, but they really need to get their priorities in order.

Airport money for pre is seperste than island rebuilding money.

Keep in mind, 85% of the cost of preclearance, is paid by the Airport, not the US. That money is going to have to come from somewhere considering the airport has said they won't see positive cash flow for quite a while. That is why I think preclearance is still a long ways away.

The airport is running a deficit, they don't have any $, hence no pre check will happen for a very long time.