The App That Speeds You Past Customs Stops Working Next Week

US Customs and Border Protection is retiring the Global Entry mobile app on 15 September. The app, which many members use to submit their arrival details before reaching the inspection area, will simply stop functioning on that date. In its place CBP is rolling out a new Trusted Traveler mobile app that folds Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI and FAST into one product. Members do not need to reapply or re-enroll: existing sign-in credentials carry over, and profile and membership information transfers to the new app automatically.

The practical risk is not the membership, which is unaffected, but the moment of arrival. A traveler who lands from an international flight, opens the old app out of habit and finds it dead is going to have a worse walk to the hall than one who downloaded the replacement beforehand. The safest move is to install the Trusted Traveler app now, sign in once to confirm the credentials pull through, and check that the membership shows as active before the next trip abroad rather than at the jet bridge.

The change lands alongside a broader shift in how Global Entry lanes actually work. Facial recognition now does the identity match against biometrics already on file, and travelers are cleared in seconds without touching a kiosk. That has been the direction of travel for several years, and the consolidation of four trusted-traveler programs into a single app is consistent with it: fewer touchpoints, more of the verification happening from the camera rather than from anything the passenger does.

For anyone not yet enrolled, CBP has continued running enrollment events through August and September, which allow applicants to complete the required interview without waiting for an appointment slot at a busy airport enrollment center. Those events remain the fastest route through what has been a persistent interview backlog. Existing members whose renewal is approaching should also confirm their status in the new app, since a lapsed membership behaves the same at the lane whether or not the software has changed.

Sources: Upgraded Points, U.S. Customs and Border Protection