Can you clear US customs in Heathrow?

Heathrow does not, in fact, offer US pre-clearance. It is, however offered at both Dublin and Shannon International Airports in Ireland. 'The term “immigration” is sometimes used, but the proper term is “Customs.”' Erm, no. The two are mutually exclusive.



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The fastest way to pass immigration quickly is to use the electronic gates wherever possible. I recently passed through Terminal 5 in less than two minutes this way. U.S. passport holders have been able to use U.K. ePassport gates at major U.K. airports including all London Heathrow terminals since 2019.

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Usually, when you land in the US from a foreign country, you go through a customs inspection in the first US city you land in. However, if you're flying from one of 14 designated airports with preclearance facilities offered by Customs and Border Protection, or CBP, you clear customs before you fly.

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Allow between 30 minutes and 2 hours. Immigration queueing times have increased this week (some groups have been taking nearly two hours to reach arrivals from touchdown) but it's still very inconsistent so Peter's comment above is valid. Hello, I will be arriving at Terminal 4 at about 15:00 on Monday.

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Use the eGates for quicker entry a national of an EU country, Australia, Canada, Iceland, Japan, Liechtenstein, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland or the USA.

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Delays at Heathrow, the Daily Mail also reported, have been due to extensions in Border Force shift hours to cope with the increased arrival numbers. Some staff are now forced to work 12 hours each day which has caused an increase in staff calling in sick due to exhaustion.

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For goods over the £1,500 threshold and restricted and excise goods, and goods over 1,000kg you will need to make a full customs declaration either by yourself or through an agent.

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Customs and immigration are usually required at the connecting airport for international flights. You don't always have to for domestic flights. In most cases, passengers on layover flights must clear customs and immigration at the first point of entry.

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You do not have to pick up your bags if they have been labelled for your next flight. If you need to collect a boarding pass, please follow the purple signs for Flight Connections and visit the Airline Desks to pick up your boarding pass.

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