I found it a bit strange to be pulling into parking lot of the Tom Bradly International terminal at LAX with not one single piece of luggage. I had my purse, my passport and an itinerary, but no luggage. Although I do dream of the day when I can jump on a flight with no luggage and enough money to buy a whole new wardrobe upon my arrival, today was not that day. But it was the day for my in-person interview for the GOES program.

GOES stands for Global Online Entry System and basically it’s a fast track through customs when you return to the U.S from an overseas destination.  Convenient when you get off of a red eye flight and don’t really have the patience to wait in a long line of your fellow countrymen. Essential, when you’ve booked a tight connection or your flight was delayed and you have no time to spare. Instead of going through the traditional customs lines, you get to waltz right past them and instead use an automated kiosk located in most major U.S. airports.  And as a bonus, you are automatically enrolled in the domestic TSA Precheck program. Ahhhh…the joys of not  needing to remove shoes, toiletries or laptops at domestic security line ever again.

The whole application process is fairly straight forward. It costs $100 to apply (no refunds if you don’t get approved) via an online form that asks you about your past work experience, prior residences and travel over the last 5 years in order to conduct a thorough background check.

I filled out the form on line at the end of May and about a month later, I received an email saying I was conditionally approved, but that I had to book an in-person interview to meet with a customs agent. Here’s where the process can grind to a halt. Once I was notified that I could make an appointment, the first opening i could find was approximately 6 weeks away.  That was back in June when I booked the appointment. I checked again the other day and now the next appointment is sometime in November.

The in-person interview was fairly easy.  Probably the most difficult part was finding a parking space in the airport garage.  Once I arrived at the customs office, I met with an officer, provide them with my valid US Passport, drivers license and a copy of the confirmation letter I received.  The customs agent asked a couple of straight forward questions, took my fingerprints and a photo for what will be my GOES card assuming I am accepted into the program. I was out of the appointment in less than 15 minutes.

One funny story about today’s interview: the customs officer was telling me that my application should be processed quickly because I don’t have any criminal or suspicious activity on my record.  Just after he said that he tapped a button on his computer then something he saw on the screen made him gasp and literally push back from the desk. Not being able to see what was on the screen, I could only imagine that due to some clerical mix up, a murder rap suddenly showed up in my file. Then, just as I was starting to imagine being thrown in jail for a data entry mistake, the officer said “Wow! I’ve never interviewed someone who has traveled to so many countries in the past 5 years.”  Ha! I had to laugh at that one. You know you have some travel clout when you can impress a global customs officer.

I was told that I could expect a decision on my application within 7 days, but for once the government worked at lightning speed. By the time I got home from the appointment, I had an email telling me to check my online application status. Yep! I was approved. For all of the time it took me to get to the interview process, they sure make quick work of it in the end. Now I just have to wait for my ID card to come in the mail and then I’ll be on my way.

If you have any questions about the application process for GOES, please leave me a comment below or on the blog’s Facebook page. Or if you are already a active member of the GOES program and you have any advice for a newbie like me, I’d love to hear from you as well.