A ?? about going through customs/immigration

[jagafen]

We will be flying into Miami from Jamaica, and then catching a connection to Orlando (2 hours later). At what point do we claim our luggage and go through customs (we're US citizens)...at our first US stop, Miami, or at our final destination, Orlando?

I my mind, I just assumed that we would claim our luggage in Miami and go through customs there, since that's our first stop. If that's the case, how do we re-check our luggage for the MIA-MCO leg?? I don't want to have to go through security again if we've been cleared already. Obviously, I've never booked an international return flight that wasn't direct, so I'm unsure of the procedures....

This is the way the flight was ticketed: MBJ (Jamaica) to MIA, to MCO. We will have to change planes to get to MCO, but it was all booked as "one" flight with the connection in MIA....

Any help is appreciated!! Thanks!

 

[seashoreCM]

Call your airline to find out whether you clear customs at the connection point (Miami) or later (in Orlando).

Also ask them what the steps and stops (places to go to in turn) to clear customs consist of.

At Orlando customs station, you put your bags on the other conveyor belt after clearing and then take the tram empty handed to baggage claim to claim your bags for good. If you were using Magical Express and want your bags taken to your resort automagically, you would put them on that other conveyor belt. A few folks take their bags right out of the custom station and onto the tram and off to where they are going.

 

[jagafen]

Caleld the airline (I had a hard time finding the #!!!) and got my answer...it's been more than 15 years since I've flown into MIA.....I know it's HUGE.....the CSR gave me a general rundown of the process...we claim and go through customs in MIA, and she said there should be an area right after customs to re-check our luggage for the connection....then we get to go through security again!!!

Basically, I just wanted to make sure that with a domestic connection to MCO, we could put our DME tags on at some point before they were checked for MCO and they will get delivered!!!

 

[jsilvers]

Call your airline to find out whether you clear customs at the connection point (Miami) or later (in Orlando).

There's no reason to ask; all passengers making a connection clear customs at their first U.S. "port of entry", because they will be mixing with domestic passengers thereafter. Additionally, if you're making a connection, you will have to go through security again; because you've had access to your checked luggage, the reasoning is that you could have had access to items allowed in checked baggage but not in the cabin.

It used to be that a few carriers operated "tags" with no domestic passengers - i.e., Qantas flights to Los Angeles continued to New York with just passengers from Australia - and that passengers on those flights could wait until their final destination to clear customs. But I believe that delaying customs hasn't been allowed since 9/11, and in any case that's not the question on the table.

 

[uva185]

Actually in 2008 Qantas was doing something similar. My friend flew YVR-SFO-SYD. However in SFO no one was allowed to de-board. They just picked up additional passengers and departed for SYD.

However in your case I'm 99.99% confident you will be required to de-board in MIA, clear immigration, collect your checked luggage, clear customs, re-check your checked luggage right after customs, and finally go through security again to re-enter the secure area.

I've never cleared customs in MIA, but at most airports you just drop your re-checked luggage off right outside customs. Only one, in CLT when going from LH to UA I was required to re-check at the UA ticket counter. US Airways (understandably) had its own re-check counter set up outside of customs and given the setup I'd rather give the bags directly to UA than give them to US and rely on US to give them to UA in time.

 

[jsilvers]

Actually in 2008 Qantas was doing something similar. My friend flew YVR-SFO-SYD. However in SFO no one was allowed to de-board. They just picked up additional passengers and departed for SYD.

Note that passengers flying to the U.S. from major Canadian cities such as Vancouver clear U.S. customs at a special facility at the Canadian airport before boarding their flights. So your friend did have to clear U.S. customs, just not in the location one might expect...

 

[uva185]

Note that passengers flying to the U.S. from major Canadian cities such as Vancouver clear U.S. customs at a special facility at the Canadian airport before boarding their flights. So your friend did have to clear U.S. customs, just not in the location one might expect...

Touche. However given that, it was even more odd they would not let the passengers de-board for the 1.5-2hr connection.

 

[crashbb]

Note that passengers flying to the U.S. from major Canadian cities such as Vancouver clear U.S. customs at a special facility at the Canadian airport before boarding their flights. So your friend did have to clear U.S. customs, just not in the location one might expect...

Not necessarily. If the flight was treated as an International flight (i.e. treated as a direct flight to Sydney), the passengers would not have gone through US pre-clearance in Vancouver (hence, being forced to stay on the plane).