Can we undergo US Immigration checks at Heathrow?

I'll be traveling from Mumbai, India to Gainesville, Florida. For that I have to board a flight at Mumbai which will drop me at Heathrow. I have layover time of about 8 hours at Heathrow, from where I'll be traveling to Miami. And from Miami to Gainesville. But the layover at Miami is only 2 hours, which from what I've heard, is very little time for completing immigration checks. So, I was wondering if there is any provision of conducting US security checks at Heathrow instead of Miami?

During the search for this answer, I came across this post. This looks to be 2014 news. I'm not sure though, whether this has been implemented or not.

Could anyone please confirm the same?

Or, is it possible to complete immigration checks at Miami airport within 2 hours ?

Thanks.

Best Answer

No. The UK does not participate in US Pre-Clearance. As such, it is not possible to clear US immigration and customs in any UK airports

If you wish to avail yourself of UK pre-clearance, your nearest option is the Republic of Ireland. Both Dublin and Shannon airports feature US pre-clearance. We've a few questions on that here already if you need more information

There's lots of quite long FlyerTalk discussion on the UK and pre-clearance like this and this and this, which amongst other things points out the problems you'd have with introducing pre-clearance at Heathtrow, given the different terminals used for US-bound flights, and the "lumpy" nature of these departures. Best guess seems to be that it wouldn't happen for at least 10 years, probably longer.

There's currently talk of Global Entry being more widely rolled out for UK citizens, now that US citizens amongst others can now sign up for Registered Traveller on arrival into the UK. A mixture of wider availability of Global Entry, coupled with more US airports offering CBP automated passport terminals for the main entry questions should reduce the queues for others, which in turn should reduce how long it'll take to get through US immigration and customs.

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Can you clear US immigration at Heathrow?

There is no US pre-clearance in the UK yet. You will have to go through UK immigration on arrival at Heathrow, and US immigration at Charlotte. You clear UK immigration on arrival at Heathrow. There is no US pre-clearance from Heathrow - you'll need to do all formalities at Charlotte.

How do I contact immigration at Heathrow Airport?

For assistance, you may call the Border Force Customer Service at Terminal 3: +44 020 8910 3719 Hours of Operation: 24/7 but 10pm - 6am only has a skeleton crew so there might be a little delay.

Do I have to go through immigration at Heathrow?

If your baggage is checked through to your final destination, that's where you clear customs. If you're collecting your baggage and checking in to your next flight yourself, you need to pass through customs at Heathrow.

How long does it take to clear immigration at Heathrow?

Re: How long does it take to get through customs at Heathrow? Allow between 30 minutes and 2 hours.

DON'T Do THIS at the UK Border! // Tips on UK Customs \u0026 Immigration for Visitors

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