With all the grumbling and complaints about long security lines at MSP this spring, here's something that will help travelers get through the airport faster. On Monday, the airport began using a new app that makes it easier and faster for international travelers coming back into the country.
New app helps travelers clear customs faster at MSP
With all the grumbling and complaints about long security lines at MSP this spring, here's something that will help travelers get through the airport faster. On Monday, the airport began using a new app that make it easier and faster for international travelers coming back into the country.
June 22, 2016 at 12:18PM
MSP is now the 13th airport in the nation to offer Mobile Passport Control, which allows international travelers returning to the United States to use their smartphones or tablet app to submit their passport and customs declaration form to Customs and Border Protection before arrival.
Passengers then submit their information and receive an electronic receipt with a Quick Response (QR) code, which they take along with their passports to an officer who finalizes the inspection process. No paper involved.
"The goal is to use technology to make the process of entering the country through MSP as simple and efficient as possible," said Brian Ryks, the airport's new executive director and CEO of the Metropolitan Airports Commission.
The mobile passport app is available free from Google Play and the Apple Store.
MSP has 34 automated kiosks in the international arrival area that passengers without smartphones or tablets can use to enter their information and obtain a printed receipt that customs agents can use to screen travelers returning to the United States.
The governor said it may be 2027 or 2028 by the time the market catches up to demand.
