Global Entry fee hike is coming: It will soon cost $120 to apply

02.04.2024 - 16:13 / thepointsguy.com

Global Entry is about to get more expensive.

Starting Oct. 1, 2024, the application fee for a five-year membership will increase from $100 to $120, U.S. Customs and Border Protection said Tuesday.

That's a 20% jump in the cost of the program, which offers vetted travelers a fast track through passport control upon re-entry to the U.S. following an international trip, plus TSA PreCheck access.

There is a bit of good news for families, though. Children of Global Entry members or applicants will no longer have to pay an application fee.

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Although the fee hike may be a bit jarring, CBP notes it's the first fee increase the program has seen in more than 15 years, dating back to the early days of its launch in 2008.

Global Entry membership has exploded in recent years. As of September, the program had 12 million members.

Though many federally operated programs are sustained entirely through tax dollars, Global Entry is primarily funded through application fees. However, the fees don't cover the program's entire costs, a top CBP official in charge of the program told TPG Monday.

"As these programs have matured and expanded, updating the fee structures is critical to the continuation and management of the programs," the agency said in a statement Tuesday.

The program has seen costs (and revenue) climb as it's fielded a record-setting number of applications in recent years. That number, along with residual effects from the coronavirus pandemic, has helped fuel application processing delays, particularly as it relates to landing an interview.

Global Entry isn't the only Trusted Traveler program getting a fee hike. The fee for Nexus, which expedites travelers' crossing from Canada into the U.S., will also cost $120 as of Oct. 1. That's up from $50 currently.

SENTRI, which does the same for both Canada and Mexico, already costs $122.25.

The agency is referring to the changes as "fee harmonization," making each of those three programs virtually identical in cost going forward.

Notably, no fee hike was announced Tuesday for the stand-alone TSA PreCheck program. In fact, the cost for first-time PreCheck applicants actually dropped in 2022, from $85 to $78 for a five-year membership.

The just-announced Global Entry fee hike will certainly widen the cost gap between the two programs. Still, if you're a frequent international traveler, the $120 cost is a relatively modest investment over five years for a program that gets you both the expedited experience at customs and TSA checkpoints.

Plus, several popular travel credit cards currently reimburse the $100 Global Entry application fee. It remains to be seen whether those cards will