BajaNomad
Not logged in [Login - Register]

Go To Bottom
Printable Version  
Author: Subject: Reasons why Sentri and GE are taking SO long now.
Paco Facullo
Super Nomad
****




Posts: 1301
Registered: 1-21-2017
Location: Here now
Member Is Offline

Mood: Abiding ..........

[*] posted on 10-16-2019 at 07:36 AM
Reasons why Sentri and GE are taking SO long now.


Receiving approval for a new membership (or a renewal) in the Global Entry Program for Trusted Travelers has never been more frustrating.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency has even taken the unprecedented move of extending the expiration date of existing Global Entry memberships by a full year. The reasons for the backlog are surprisingly complicated.

Long delays for those applying to or renewing membership in the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Global Entry Program for Trusted Travelers are now so commonplace that the increasingly drawn-out process has become something of a running joke among frequent flyers. One FlyerTalk member who shared concerns about allegedly being questioned by CBP agents prior to a domestic flight at Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) quipped that the possibility of turning the unorthodox interaction with law enforcement into an advantage was briefly considered solely out of desperation.

“Last time they pulled the guy in front of me (if they picked me I was gonna joke about finally getting my global entry interview), but this time I was picked and asked quite a few questions like I just came back in the country,” the FlyerTalker recounted in his controversial post.

It turns out frustrations over the backlog in Global Entry applications are also shared by thousands of this frequent flyer’s fellow travelers. This summer, the CBP took the unusual step of extending the expiration date for Trusted Travelers who have already applied for Global Entry renewal but have not yet been approved. For those travelers, memberships will remain valid for 12 months after the current expiration date.

“We have accommodated to various situations that have included the ripple effect of the partial government shutdown, the response to the southwest border and the high volume of GE (Global Entry) members seeking to renew (those who initially applied in 2014 and 2015),” a CBP spokesperson told the SFGate in September. “The one-year extension of GE benefits for those seeking to renew their GE memberships is helping to mitigate this situation, provided that the renewal application is submitted before the GE membership expires.”

The agency says it has suffered what amounts to a perfect storm where it comes to processing Global Entry applications and renewals. In addition to reasons listed, the program’s popularity continues to skyrocket (meaning the CBP’s workload is only increasing).

The rush to join the Global Entry program in the early days of the program is, in many ways, being revisited today. Most of the very first travelers to join Global Entry are now faced with renewing expiring memberships. Some of those renewals and all new applications require that the travelers be interviewed in person.

Lately, this has been much easier said than done.

Earlier this year, citing “a dire immigration crisis that requires swift and decisive action to confront illegal and uncontrolled migration threatening our safety and security,” then-Secretary of Homeland Security Kirstjen M. Nielsen has ordered the federal agencies under her charge, including the CBP and the TSA, to re-deploy resources to the Southern U.S. border with Mexico. The Los Angeles Times reports that this has left far fewer resources for processing Global Entry applications. In fact, the newspaper notes that Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) Global Entry office was shuttered indefinitely as agents were reassigned to the Southern border.

The partial federal government shutdown of 2018-2019 also created a backlog in processing Global Entry applications for obvious reasons. Believe it or not, the CBP says that it has not entirely recovered from the time lost during the most recent shutdown and resulting work stoppage.

There is no need to fret, however. In addition to an extra 12-month grace period on some expiring Global Entry memberships, there are a few tried and true tactics to help speed the process along. Here are some tips on getting a faster Global Entry interview appointment. In some cases, the advice includes heading out of town in order to help fast track the schedule.




Since I've given up all hope, I feel much better
View user's profile
Nappo
Nomad
**




Posts: 102
Registered: 1-25-2009
Member Is Offline


[*] posted on 10-16-2019 at 09:08 PM


There are many other areas where there are delays. When our president shut down the govt, rattlesnake venom (delay) for dogs was ceased as was the shingles vaccine . We all have to realize that "shutting down" the govt affects more than just legislature...govt offices. People other than govt employees are put on "vacation" - labs, scientists...
View user's profile

  Go To Top

 






All Content Copyright 1997- Q87 International; All Rights Reserved.
Powered by XMB; XMB Forum Software © 2001-2014 The XMB Group






"If it were lush and rich, one could understand the pull, but it is fierce and hostile and sullen. The stone mountains pile up to the sky and there is little fresh water. But we know we must go back if we live, and we don't know why." - Steinbeck, Log from the Sea of Cortez

 

"People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care." - Theodore Roosevelt

 

"You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who they think can do nothing for them or to them." - Malcolm Forbes

 

"Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else's hands, but not you." - Jim Rohn

 

"The best way to get the right answer on the internet is not to ask a question; it's to post the wrong answer." - Cunningham's Law







Thank you to Baja Bound Mexico Insurance Services for your long-term support of the BajaNomad.com Forums site.







Emergency Baja Contacts Include:

Desert Hawks; El Rosario-based ambulance transport; Emergency #: (616) 103-0262