Guide to Global Entry by an Indian citizen

I used to always feel jealous when I saw the TSA-precheck customers zip through the TSA line and I have always wanted to do that. As I am an Indian citizen, I do not qualify for TSA as only American citizens and LPRs qualify for the same. However, there is something that is called Global entry which includes the TSA precheck which I applied and got approved for. This post is regarding the same.

First off a brief overview of what is Global Entry: 

Global Entry allows expedited processing for pre-approved, low-risk travelers when they arrive in the US at select airports. Instead of standing in line, program members proceed to Global Entry kiosks, present their machine-readable passport or U.S. permanent resident card, place their fingerprints on the scanner for fingerprint verification and complete a customs declaration. The kiosk issues a transaction receipt and directs the traveler to baggage claim and the exit. Aside from avoiding processing lines and paperwork, another benefit of the program is TSA Precheck eligibility.

People who can apply for Global Entry: U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, and citizens of Colombia, the United Kingdom, Germany, Panama, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, and Mexico. (Depending on the country, visas may be required.) Canadian citizens and residents are also eligible for Global Entry benefits through membership in the NEXUS partnership (the agreement that allows members expedited processing when entering the United States and Canada).

 My application process is as follows. 

1. Create a trusted traveler profile here. https://ttp.cbp.dhs.gov/ 
2. Select Global entry and then create an account and then fill in the details as asked. One will be asked to pay a $100 non0refundable application fee (many credit cards will refund the same) In addition to personal information—name, email address, gender, eye color, height, language preference—it requires you to fill in your employment, travel, and address history over the past five years. It also asks if you've violated any customs or immigration laws or been convicted of a crime. Fill out the application and submit a $100 fee, which covers your five-year membership if approved, but is non-refundable if your application is rejected. You can pay by credit card or electronic bank transfer.
3. Once you have submitted the application, within 1-2 hours you should get an email from passport.admin@passportindia.gov.in with instructions on how to set up an appointment in India vs USA (the USA part is new and has just started in the last couple of months. The earlier rule was to make an appointment when going/planning to go to India). You will have to pay ₹500 in the Passport Seva Portal,  for their background check in India. Once the payment is made and appt is confirmed, the page will tell you the things to take to the appointment (E.g. Proof of address (Passport, aadhar card), application confirmation page or SMS confirming the appointment). During the interview, your fingerprints and photo will be captured and there will be some other formalities
4. Once this interview is done, one has to wait for the police clearance which can take anywhere from 1 day to a week. My dad and I went to our nearest police station to ask if this could be expedited and they obliged. They will need 2 neighbor Aadhar card photocopies with signatures to attest that you live at the home address that you have in your Aadhar card.
5. After this, it is all sitting back and wait for the conditional approval to be granted. (takes anywhere from 6months to a year). A good place to look for is FlyerTalk, where one can see what is the current status.
6. Once you are conditionally approved, you have to go to a nearby airport/GE location to attend an interview where they will ask why you want GE, show your documents. Do take your visa documents in addition to passport and driver's license.  Please note that scheduling an interview is painful as there are no dates for most cities. However, keep checking the list and you might pounce on a date should someone cancel 

My personal experience

• Passport appt 04/29/2019
• Police verification 04/30/2019
• Conditional approval 12/19/2019
• Interview 1/12/2020

A few sites that I found useful

• https://indianewengland.com/2019/10/indian-citizens-are-now-eligible-for-global-entry-program-in-the-us-here-is-how-to-apply/
• https://passport.in.ckgs.us/gep
• Application centers in the USA https://passport.in.ckgs.us/application-centers
• https://www.cbp.gov/travel/trusted-traveler-programs/global-entry/international-arrangements/global-entry-indian-citizens

H1B stamping by an Indian in Canada

Prior to applying one has to apply for a Canadian visa- Most go for a visitor visa. Please ignore this if you are a citizen/permanent resident in Canada. For details on getting a Canadian visa please refer to my earlier post here

Personal credentials
Last H1 visa expired 2015 but had my i797s so was legal till now. Further had changed employer in between.

Applying for an H1B (USA) visa in Canada

• Fill DS-160 with the hopeful consulate location. These are a few locations in Canada- Halifax, Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Quebec City, Montreal. Generally, there is a HUGE wait time for Toronto and Vancouver (around 3-4 months) given they are top places
• Then go to the following site. Create an account and fill in the details and then schedule an appointment.

Documents that I took

• Valid unexpired passport – Passport should be valid for at least 6 months beyond the expiration date of your intended status.
• Older passport containing the visa category stamp. If you are renewing H1B then take the passport that has the H1B stamp
• DS-160 confirmation page ONLY
• Visa application fees receipt. One can get it from this. (Top right-hand side click continue and the last option- View payment receipt)
• Visa instructions- refer to the picture below
• Original Non-immigrant Visa Petition Approval Notice (Form I-797) (or something similar).
• Original degrees
• Recent Paystubs from your company
• SSN
• Valid driver's license
• Credit card
• Photograph (within the last 6 months)

Personal experience
Scheduling

• I started my DS 160 towards the end of October.
• Took an appointment towards the end of January since that was the only available date at that time
• Asked for an expedited visa, please refer to the picture below. Phrase it as to why should they expedite your visa

Appointment

• My interview was scheduled for 8 am, reached there around 720am, given was super anxious and thought why not go and get the lay of the land prior to the interview. However, the elevator was not working and they were delayed. At around 815 the started letting people in beginning with 715 730 and so forth. I finally entered approx 9ish (did not have a watch/phone so not sure of the exact time).
• Once the prelim guard clears you, you enter inside, go to the left and climb 1 floor and then go through security (TSA style)
• From here go to Window 1- Someone checks your documents and photographs. [If you are renewing please take the passport that had the last stamped visa]. Also, my photograph was not reading for some weird reason, so I took another snap there (C$10 for 6). Frankly, the new one looked weirder than my previous one but I did not argue and they let me continue. Also, as I mentioned earlier, my chosen consulate was Toronto but I got Vancouver in the end. So they had to transfer the same to Vancouver (took about ~15-20 mins for that- I am not sure given no watch)
• From there you are sent to window 2- This is where they 10 print (take your fingerprints). Left 4 followed by right 4 followed by thumbprints and they give you a number here
• From here you are then taken to the 20th floor (around 5-6 ppl at a time)
• One is made to stand in line again and then wait for a VO to open up.

Questions asked

• Where are you working?
• What are you working as?
• Where did you graduate from?
• Can you show me your previous passport which had the H1B stamp?
• Here are your rights, the visa is approved.
• Collect in 3-5 business days. Gave a green sheet with instructions.

A couple of visas were rejected prior to me for not having enough ties/not proper visa class. I did not pay attention to more details.

Best of luck.

Please Note

• You can take your cell phone for the Vancouver embassy. I did not take mine, as I was staying close by. (Airbnb)
• The consulate is close to a Starbucks and it is in a side location, easy to miss. Use google maps and key in the address. Also, there will be a huge crowd of people looking clueless which should tip you in the right direction.
• One can request for an expedited appointment ONLY once you have scheduled an appt. I was lucky in the sense my request got approved though in another consulate (Vancouver)
• The VO will take your 797 and you will get it when you collect your passport.
• The picture that explains couple of the above stuff is this

Post interview
- For some weird reason when I click on my check DS 160 state after the interview the page keeps crashing. But when you open the same in internet explorer does not crash as often.

Few websites that I found helpful

• https://www.desi-compile.com/guide-filing-h1b-visa-stamp-canada/
• https://www.immihelp.com/experience/view-22-visa_stamping_canada_mexico.html