U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced today that the Mobile Passport Control program (MPC) will expand on Aug. 30 to include the Montreal and Toronto Preclearance locations. The program will further expand to Vancouver in late September, bringing MPC availability to 38 air and seaport locations.
The MPC mobile app, available to U.S. citizens and Canadian B1/B2 visitors, allows travelers to submit their passport and travel information using a mobile device and will enable them to store their information so it will be readily available for future international travel. This results in less congestion and more efficient processing.
“CBP is focused on creating a secure, straightforward and best-in-class traveler experience,” said Donald Conroy, CBP Director Field Operations, Preclearance. “Investing in the deployment of MPC demonstrates CBP’s commitment to leveraging technological solutions as international travel continues to return to pre-pandemic levels.”
The CBP MPC app can be downloaded for free from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. After downloading the app, users will be prompted to create a profile with their passport information, name, gender, date of birth, and country of citizenship. Upon landing in the United States or arriving at an eligible Preclearance location, travelers will select their airport or seaport and terminal, take a self-photo, and answer a series of CBP inspection-related questions. Once the traveler submits their transaction through the app, the traveler will receive an electronic receipt with an encrypted Quick Response (QR) code. Travelers will then bring their physical passport and mobile device with their digital QR-coded receipt to a CBP officer to finalize their inspection for entry into the United States.
As wait times continue to rise due to increased international travel, the app can be especially useful for families traveling together, as it allows for a single household to submit one MPC transaction, including answers to CBP inspection-related questions. It also eliminates the need for a declaration form because travelers can answer the CBP inspection-related questions electronically via their smartphone or tablet prior to arriving at Customs.
The MPC program was originally launched in August 2014 and has been used by more than 4.3 million travelers. For more information on MPC, including user eligibility, visit the CBP MPC website.
