Canadian Friends: Get this Customs app before your next trip to (or through) the US
Get the CBP MPC app before your next cross-border flight
I made it through security and US customs at Pearson airport this morning in under 15 minutes.
Now, it’s not a weekday, but that has to be some kind of record.
Several Canadian airports now let you skip the US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) line by completing your preclearance in a free mobile app.
I see a news release on the Pearson website from August 30, 2022, announcing their MPC app implementation. And yet, I hadn’t noticed the separate lane in the customs hall for CBP MPC users until today. My last several flights have been with Avianca (no US stopover), which could be why.
Anyway, it’s in effect now. And it is good.
Checking in and getting a customs receipt on the MPC app enables you to enter the separate lane that diverts you around the regular customs lineup. Rather than waiting in the corral of people six lanes deep this morning, I was directed… (upgrade for more)
…around the group in a lane circling the outside of the hall, to a much shorter line (three people, in fact) with dedicated agents.
After arriving at the airport at 7am, dropped my bag, breezed through security, tried this new customs process (loved it), I was off wandering the terminal by 7:15. Pearson has clearly learned a lesson or two since the post-COVID travel chaos that earned our home airport a reputation as the second-worst airport in the world.
According to CBP, MPC is currently available at the following 48 sites, including 33 U.S. International Airports, 11 Preclearance locations, and 4 seaports of entry. For Canadian business or tourism travelers going to or transiting through the US, this includes:
Calgary International Airport (YYC)
Edmonton International Airport (YEG)
Halifax Stanfield International Airport (YHZ)
Montreal Trudeau International Airport (YUL)
Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ)
Vancouver International Airport (YVR)
Winnipeg James A Richardson International Airport (YWG)
It’s super easy to use, with step-by-step instructions on the front page of the app. You’ll be asked to enter passport info for each traveler, and can do this part a day or two ahead of your trip.
Answer the questions you would have completed on a paper form in years past. Wait until you get to the airport to submit your check-in, as your receipt is only good for a limited time. You’ll need to submit a selfie of each traveler with the application.
Once you’ve checked in, dropped your bag, and proceeded through security, have the receipt up on your phone as you’ll need to show it at checkpoints to enter the express customs line.
That’s it! Super easy. See the US CBP website for FAQs, and download the MPC app here for Android and here for iPhone/iPad.
Happy trails!