It was recently announced that India has become the ninth country to enter into the International Expedited Traveller Initiative (also known as the Global Entry Program) with the US, meaning that Indian travelers will be able to travel between India and the US with ease.  The US is home to more than 3 million Indian-origin individuals who, of course, maintain deep-rooted ties with India. It is said that more than a million of these people travel in both directions every year for various reasons such as business, tourism, education, and leisure, so this initiative will greatly benefit these particular travelers.

This initiative will facilitate hassle-free entry for Indians into the US at selected airports and will provide speedy security clearances for pre-approved, low risk travelers. After a joint decision on clearance by both countries, the approved Indian travelers will be granted expedited entry into the US through kiosks at selected airports.

While the initiative will take a few months to implement, the US and Indian Governments are hoping that this effort will put less strain on travelers as well as have a positive impact on the people-to-people exchange and further strengthen the relationship between the two countries as a whole.

The Global Entry Program is available at more than 40 US airports and 12 pre-clearance locations. Due to the vast benefits of this program, more than 1.8 million travelers are enrolled and approximately 50,000 new applications for the program are filed every month. For more information on The Global Entry Program and specifics on how to enroll, visit the Department of Homeland Securities website.