Flights from Ukraine, Russia and other countries of the former Soviet Union to Mexico are the cheapest with connections at US airports. At the same time, transit through airports in the USA and Canada has its own nuances that you need to know before buying a ticket.
Next in the text we will write «USA«, implying that similar transit rules also apply in Canada and even Australia.
Visas
First of all, you need to have a visa from the relevant country, if your citizenship requires it. For citizens of Ukraine, Russia, Belarus, Mexico, etc. this requirement is mandatory. There are no transit areas at US airports. This means that anyone who flies into the United States immediately enters the territory of the state. After leaving the plane, you are required to go through immigration control, which is not allowed without a visa.
Moreover, no airline will put you on a plane to the United States unless you have a United States visa. Some airlines, for example, European ones, ask for visa materials before the flight by sending a request by email, while others just need to check your visa when checking in for the flight. Forget about getting your boarding pass on your mobile phone! You will only be issued a paper boarding pass after your visa has been verified at the check-in counter.
The requirement to have a visa also applies to those connections where the stop in the USA is indicated as a “technical stop”, for example, for refueling.
You may have a valid multi-year US visa in a valid passport or in an expired passport; in the latter case, you must present an expired passport with a valid visa and a second valid passport.
Sequence of actions
When transiting through US airports, the sequence of actions is as follows:
- filling out a migration card and customs declaration;
- passing immigration control. A passport with a valid visa, a migration document and a customs declaration (or a ticket from a self-service kiosk) are required, as well as any other documentation that the immigration officer may require (in particular, a ticket from the country, proof of solvency, etc.);
- purchasing luggage;
- passing customs clearance (selectively);
- baggage check-in.
Below we will reveal some of these stages.
Filling out forms
Before going through immigration control, you must fill out a migration card and a customs declaration. At some major US airports, this can be done at special electronic self-service kiosks by scanning your passport with a visa, taking a photo and answering questions on the monitor screen. In this case, the kiosk will print a ticket, which you then need to present to the immigration officer.
At other airports you will still have to fill out paper forms manually. This can be done on the plane — The crew will hand out the forms during the flight, or at the airport upon arrival.
Address in USA
Even if you are transiting through the US, you will still need to provide your US address. The first time the airline will ask you for it, the second time you will have to indicate it on your migration card.
Of course, during transit your address is in the USA — airport address. We know of cases when the airline asked to indicate the address, and not just the name of the airport. You can improvise, but do not fill out the «Address in the USA» you are not more right.
Baggage transit
In contrast to transit through European, Asian and many other airports, when transiting through US airports you collect and then check your luggage again. There are no exceptions in the USA, but in Canada, on some flights, AirCanada can sometimes overload luggage itself.
You receive your luggage at the belt as usual. At the same time, before entering the belt, luggage can be opened for inspection; items prohibited for import into the United States (in particular, excessive amounts of alcohol, meat and plant products) can be removed from it. When the inspection takes place, you will find a paper inside the suitcase notifying you that the suitcase has been opened.
It is not recommended to wrap your suitcase in film. Moreover, many airlines do not accept baggage wrapped in film on flights to the USA.
Next, you and your luggage go through the customs zone, and you must have a completed customs declaration. Here you can be selectively sent to dosmfromr.
After passing through customs, you hand over your luggage to a special section, where it is sorted according to the labels attached by the airlines. You do not check your luggage at the airline check-in counter, but rather in a special section for transit luggage. Usually it is located immediately after the customs clearance area.
After this, you have the opportunity to board the next flight or, if time is too late, leave the airport and go see the city.