Travelers from any country outside of Europes Schengen Zone will have their passports closely inspected both when they arrive and when they depart. Those two minutes per traveler add up quickly, especially when you consider that just one arriving flight may contain 500 or more passengers! Some airports are much better at getting US citizens swiftly processed through passport control than others! As weve seen, there are wide differences between airports when it comes to the amount of time youll spend standing in line! Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the passport agency is not able to provide time frames for the issuance of passports or for the return of citizenship documents. For 1, I had a similar situation as the odd man out. You might have a long wait at the airport Starbucks counter in November, but at least youll clear immigration quickly! National databases containing information on stolen, misappropriated, lost and invalidated travel documents. Designated Library staff are trained and authorized to be official Passport Acceptance Agents. Europes open borders have closed a bit more with the passage of European Union regulation 2017/458 this past March. Upon entering the terminal, follow the airport signs for "Arrivals," go through Passport Control (for non-Schengen arrivals), pick up your baggage and after customs clearance, exit from the Arrivals / All Users Area. This means you have not been vetted in the same way that Global Entry users have been. New York's John F. Kennedy airport, which receives 14.6 million travelers arriving from overseas each year, and Miami International Airport, which gets more than 10 million international arrivals annually, are among the airports with the longest average wait time to clear passport control. The officer may ask a few questions about your trip, but the process is swift because, as a Mobile Passport user, youll have a dedicated lane in 31 participating airports that expedites the line to complete the standard immigration and customs process. Its a surprisingly small and efficient airport for such a major destination. Some non-US citizens are eligible to use the new checkpoint-expediting technologies. Hey and welcome organizedbag:-) You'll go through 'passport control' in Rome;-) Once in Athens, you'll simply retreive your luggage.. and if grabbing the dedicated Express X96 bus to Piraeus, I'd give the whole process a couple of hours minimum .. the bus is traffic dependent getting out to Piraeus.. can take as little as an hour.. or more . Are you flying directly from the US or UK to a Schengen Zone country like France or Italy? Thank you in advance to all seasoned travelers for helping me figure out logistics for my trip (we leave in 9 days!). You will be fast tracked through passport control and security checkpoints. Customs is a thing but it relates to your goods, not you. Ten minutes? Charlotte,North Carolina 28262-9191. Immigration/Passport Control is where you get your passport stamped. The British Foreign & Commonwealth Office has informed its citizens that they too, will be a subject of the new tougher checks at the Greek airports. (function(w,d,e,o,u,s,t){w[o]||(w[o]={},s=d.createElement(e),s.src=u,s.async=1, What is my allowance and cost of additional baggage? One could do it in less, especially if they arent checking a bag, but Id suggest 3. For flights to Europe, Atlanta and Washington-Dulles offer the smoothest re-entry to the United States. The Mobile Passport app is available for iOS and Android devices and can be downloaded from the app store. The Mobile Passport Control app can be used by Canadians as well as US citizens. Any declarations would be discussed at that point, but if you have none, you are sent on your way. Fewer people travel in February than in the summer months, when kids are out of school and ready to go on family vacations. ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. But, considering required interviews can be cumbersome to schedule and it comes at a cost of $100 every five years, its not for everyone. Reason for this is the implementation of EU directive 458/2017, which Greece implements with a delay of two years. your guide for Delphi the "Navel of the Earth". Please be advised that the Athens-Clarke County Library has no authority to modify time frames. One booked the two flight legs separately. As one of the busiest airports in the world, this innovative technology will provide our millions of passengers each year an enhanced customer experience upon their return to the U.S.. In addition, foreign travelers who have traveled to the United States previously may no longer need to provide fingerprints, as their identity will be confirmed through the touchless facial biometric process. Tougher passport controls are being carried out at the Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos on EU nationals since April 7, by the Greek Police. Please visit our FAQ page for updated information about Passport Services. For an international airport, its not large. You will want to arrive at least three hours early for your flight back to the United States. 5,403 Views. The EU Regulation 2017/458 has been published in the Official Journal of the European Union on 15 March 2017. Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. The biometric facial comparison process occurs only at a time and place where travelers are already required by law to verify their identity by presenting a travel document. 1820 Harris Houston Rd. Passport forms are available for download in PDF format via the State Department Web pages at travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/passports/forms.html. New photos of U.S. citizens will be deleted within 12 hours. The fee is per application. Passport control is divided between booths for EU and non-EU passport holders. Earn miles when flying or using our partners services, Redeem miles for award flights, seat upgrades and services from our growing list of partners, Enjoy exclusive benefits and discounts from our partners, Get advantage of more privileges as you move to higher tiers. This article was originally published on April 5, 2019; it was updated on July 11, 2022 with additional information. Passport patrons aged 16 and 17 who have their own Drivers License are still considered minors and must have at least one parent with ID present. According to a press release of the Athens International Airport, the new checks apply to all EU passport holders traveling to or from countries that are not members of the Schengen Convention. Like Global Entry, Mobile Passport can only be used for arrival in the United States. We checked our luggage without much line and then went through security in only a few minutes. Its far better to be early than to risk missing your flight! Apart from the Athens Airport, other airports in Greece that have customs control are: Thessaloniki, Heraklion, Chania, Corfu and Rhodes. So, many may wonder if they need to go through customs for their connecting international flight through Europe. It is impossible to miss! Passport control had a line, but not a horrible one. When you first use it, you must upload a headshot and enter your passport details (its as simple as scanning your passport page). The EU directive does not refer to domestic flights and those to Schengen countries. Automated Passport Control Kiosks can be used by Canadians and by any citizen of one of the 38 Visa Waiver nations who do not need a visa to enter the US. It also advises EU travelers to use a passport instead of an Identity Card in order to speed up the control procedures. To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Pre-Covid, I found that arriving 3 hours early to a European airport resulted in having to wait 90 minutes just to check one's luggage! This topic has been automatically closed due to a period of inactivity. We created this mega-resource not because we love getting a passport, but because we grew tired of standing in long lines at the passport agencies. Unfortunately, many Americans call the whole process "customs" when it is really two different things. We were on Air Canada which arrived a bit late and we had 55 minutes to catch our onward flight which was on a separate ticket. The ability to speed through U.S. immigration and customs after an international flight without wasting time waiting in line, is perhaps one of the greatest improvements to modern travel. Why not? Popular Destinations with Visa Requirements. Does Athens International Airport have a fast track service for security and/or passport control. In 2019, last time I came, it was longer because a big jumbo jet from China came in same time but as u know, no tourism from china now. In an announcement, Athens International Airport Eleftherios Venizelos informs passengers that as of April 7th, 2019, the Hellenic Police will implement EU Regulation 2017/458 which requires systematic checks against relevant databases, for all European citizens traveling to/from Non-Schengen destinations. The below diagrams depict any possible combination of flights, from the airport where you started your trip to your final destination, so that you know in advance all the steps you need to follow from the moment you arrive at the Athens International Airport until you get to the Gate for your next flight. However, some airports have already implemented the new rules, and others are conducting spot checks of travelers as they pass through immigration. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Acceptance of U.S. Passport Applications. The Mobile Passport Control app will help speed you through Customs and Border Patrol lines when you arrive back in the States. We went through passport control which took no more than 5 minutes then took the escalator up to departures level. covid-19 information airlines departing from athens security procedures customs control prohibited items passenger rights vat refund baggage information passport control lost & found lost property travelling with pets special assistance [CDATA[ US citizens dont need visas to visit any country in the European Union. Interpols Stolen and Lost Travel Documents (SLTD) database. Is 3 hours enough time to do it? Register to genAIRation. // < ! To date, more than 72 million travelers have participated in the biometric facial comparison process at air, land, and seaports of entry. Dont Delay, Wait Times Have Climbed, American Is Cutting 50,000 Summer Flights From These U.S. Athens-Clarke County Library does not take the passport photographs. For departure look at when your airline opens its check in desk. Two hours would have been more than enough and was what we did in 2018. Required fields are marked *. Please make a copy of your BIRTH CERTIFICATE as it will be inserted into the application. 4 is overkill at Athens. We arrived on a Sunday evening at Athens. Phoenix Sky Harbor, Charlotte Douglas International Airport, and Washington Dulles also are busy airports that typically process returning passengers through in 11 minutes or less. This means that some flights are departing without their full complement of passengers, and other flights are being delayed. Not every major international airport is as slow as JFK, Miami, or LAX. Click Share This Page button to display social media links. There are currently 31 airports and 4 cruise ports in the United States that have Mobile Passport lines. Which are the necessary documents for passengers arriving in Greece from abroad? Our bags came quickly. The month with the shortest average wait times is February. Baggage claim is what took time. New or Replacement Passport Card, or Renewal of Passport Card: Please note that passport cards are valid only for travel by land or sea to Mexico, Canada, Bermuda or the Caribbean. They dont have dedicated lines for Global Entry members, and they also dont use Automated Passport Control kiosks or the Mobile Passport Control app. More than half of all passengers had to wait more than 30 minutes to get through passport control, with the average maximum wait time topping one hour!

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