Reimagine arrival process - How about collect baggage first before passing customs and immgiration?

[LionKing]

As air travel become more common, there are more and more instances where connections are made with separate PNRs, I wonder whether it is time for airports worldwide to reimagine the arrival process for passengers, where collecting baggage after passing immigration should become before immigration and customs instead?

Allowing baggage collection before immigration and customs allows transiting passengers with separate PNRs avoid passing customs and questioned by immigration for very short (3 - 4 hour transits) on different PNRs, and it also allows land transit options done without entering the country, which could be attractive for transit passengers.

For example, if baggage are collected before immigration at Hong Kong, then potentially it would allow passengers to immediately transit to another airline, or transit to Macau/China via HZMB much quicker, or go thourgh a transit check in hall, where passengers can simply re check baggage without passing customs.

Moreover, immigration officers can also do custom checks at the same time whilst clearing the passenger, for example bags can be scanned whilst passengers are having their passport scanned which potentially saves time queuing twice for both procedures and can also make some border personnel redunadant, saving taxpayers money to do double checks.

I would imagine if security clearance can be done same time as passport control in the UK, and in Australia we are moving security clearance before immigration, so that passengers who brought in liquids can have a second chance to check in, surely there's space for this to happen?

Thoughts?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

As air travel become more common, there are more and more instances where connections are made with separate PNRs, I wonder whether it is time for airports worldwide to reimagine the arrival process for passengers, where collecting baggage after passing immigration should become before immigration and customs instead?

Allowing baggage collection before immigration and customs allows transiting passengers with separate PNRs avoid passing customs and questioned by immigration for very short (3 - 4 hour transits) on different PNRs, and it also allows land transit options done without entering the country, which could be attractive for transit passengers.

For example, if baggage are collected before immigration at Hong Kong, then potentially it would allow passengers to immediately transit to another airline, or transit to Macau/China via HZMB much quicker, or go thourgh a transit check in hall, where passengers can simply re check baggage without passing customs.

Moreover, immigration officers can also do custom checks at the same time whilst clearing the passenger, for example bags can be scanned whilst passengers are having their passport scanned which potentially saves time queuing twice for both procedures and can also make some border personnel redunadant, saving taxpayers money to do double checks.

I would imagine if security clearance can be done same time as passport control in the UK, and in Australia we are moving security clearance before immigration, so that passengers who brought in liquids can have a second chance to check in, surely there's space for this to happen?

Thoughts?

The main reason why you don’t have bag collection before immigration is because of the practicalities… there generally aren’t baggage trolleys in that part of the airport, and with some of the queues you see, you wouldn’t want en extra 1000 trolleys (or even 1000-2000 bags) pushing those queues out even further.

Would it be possible to have an airside carousel where pax in transit on separate tickets could collect their bags? Maybe. But you’d also need another conveyor to send the bags back down again. Which these days might not be too hard given the move to common check-ins and common bag drops. You’d have to make sure transit desks were staffed, even for someone with an 8 hour transit.

Then, this special area for separate PNR transit luggage would need security controls, in and out, as some items can be checked which wouldn’t be permitted in thr airside area.

By the time you’ve done all that… easier to just get the passenger to enter the country and re-check? Plus, of course, thr government and airports get their fees for every arrival and departure!

 

[dajop]

Aside from the logistics, in quite a few airports it could actually inconvenience terminating passengers with luggage.

Immigration at some airports actually takes up a lot of the wait time for luggage. As an example, recently at JFK, took about 15mins to go through immigration, went to carousel and waited about a couple of minutes for luggage. The proposed process could involve waiting for luggage say 15-20 mins then another 15 min wait for immigration.

That is putting side the error in describing the process, in most airports you pass through immigration, collect baggage, and then pass through customs (or if not can be randomly selected for customs screening, like at SIN).

Also, as technology evolves, immigration (at least for those who can use machines) is often not the time cost that it used to be, and the customs screening is a very different process to someone checking and stamping your passport.

 

[transpactraveller]

in Australia we are moving security clearance before immigration

It only just occurred to me from reading your post that outbound we previously did passport first and then security, and it's now the other way around! I'm not sure how I never realised this before!

 

[SYD]

It only just occurred to me from reading your post that outbound we previously did passport first and then security, and it's now the other way around! I'm not sure how I never realised this before!

But it’s completely irrelevant to connections.

I was actually none the wiser that MEL International had security screening before immigration for years until I read it here. SYD was a bit of an outlier.

Again, absolutely zero relevance to arrivals / transits.

The reality is that airlines used to happily thru check bags on seperate tickets between all sorts of airlines for years (I once flew QF from ADL-SYD (weekend in the vines) and then UA to LAX - totally different booking (work trip), but no issue.

Now, most airlines don’t want the heartache if there’s mis-connections, delays and cancellations, so generally won’t touch them. There are some exceptions - SQ being one.

 

[dajop]

There are some exceptions - SQ being one.

And even then there are exceptions to the exception.

 

[SYD]

And even then there are exceptions to the exception.

You didn’t say “Please”?

 

[dajop]

You didn’t say “Please”?

I wish!