International Flight leaving from the U.S.
Do I just show up at the airport with a current passport and stroll onto the plane?
There’s nothing else right?
Also, I will have prescription drugs in my carry-on: two different topical medicines for psoriasis. Am I going to encounter any problems either when I leave the country or when I come back into the country?
Have you checked whether you need a visa for the country to which you are travelling?
Having flown into and out of the US a gazillion times, I can say that all you need is your passport and a ticket. Also, I take about 8 prescription drugs, and always carry them in my carry-on luggage. I have never once had a problem with this, or been asked to produce a prescription. The only conceivable problem you might have is that any container of liquid or gel you bring on board must contain less than 3 ounces. There might be an exception for RX medications; I don’t know. But in any case, most RX liquids and gels come in tubes smaller than 3 oz.
Edit: Oh, yeah; what **Cunctator ** said about a visa. I don’t usually go anywhere where I can’t get a visa at the arrival airport, so it’s not something I tend to worry about.
Mr. Neville carries on topical medications for psoriasis, and hasn’t had any problems.
The visa question really depends on where you’re going. If you’re going to Australia, you will need to get a visa in advance. That’s not the case for most European countries. Here’s the State Department’s list of which countries require visas.
The original plan was for Bhutan, but now I’m just going to plain old Ireland.
For less than 90 days.
You need to check whether Ireland requires a visa from US citizens or not.
Always carry the prescription for your meds - can’t hurt, might help.
And don’t forget the new (and very silly) liquids regulations: they strictly enforce 3.4 fl oz per container.
You don’t need a visa for Ireland, or at least you didn’t when I went there in 2004. The State Department says (via the link) that you still don’t. So yes, you just show up with your passport. I think it’s helpful, but not strictly necessary, to have a printed itinerary for your trip.
You will need a fair bit of money, though- Ireland uses the euro, which is at $1.35 now (ouch- that’s high). Other than the prices, though, Ireland is nice.
Mr. Neville makes a point of having the prescription label with his psoriasis ointments, and pointing them out to the airport security people. They don’t seem particularly interested, but better safe than sorry.
All you need is your passport and (if applicable) a visa. The airline is held responsible if they issue a boarding pass to someone who does not have a proper visa. So, if a visa is required, the person checking you in will ask to see the visa.
I travel with prescription drugs. I make sure the label with my name is on the bottle and have never had a problem.
Check into a visa for sure. The last time we flew back to Thailand from the U.S., the airline staff at checkin wanted to see my return ticket. I said that WAS my return ticket, I lived in Bangkok, so then they wanted to see my visa. It seems if there’s any problem with you entering the country you’re going to, the airline will be held responsible for not having checked you out. Depending on the country, that could mean a big fine for the airline if it wants to continue flying to that country, so I don’t blame them for being cautious.
However, many people fly one-way into places like Bangkok or Singapore, intending to travel overland from there, so in that case there IS no return ticket. I asked the staff what would happen if I were a backpacker intending to travel around a region and planned to buy a ticket home from somewhere else. I was told that I would have to buy a return ticket from them on the spot or else be refused entry onto the plane, and then I could have the ticket refunded at my destination. !!! Geez, that does not sound good. I haven’t checked into it, but I suspect there would be a penalty to pay. Things sure have changed from MY backpacking days.
This seems to be hit-and-miss, too. Aussie friends have told me they’ve encountered this when flying back from Australia for years, but it does not always happen.
The medicine thing was only ever a problem crossing from Malaysia into Singapore, where a load of tablets showed up on the x-ray and they started to freak. Luckily WriterChick had her prescription book with her.
But Ireland? Don’t worry. Just the passport will do. They love the Yanks so much that when you leave the country at Dublin Airport, US passport control is in Ireland - you’re already on American soil before you get on the plane, and therefore don’t have to line up when you get back to the US.
Cite? I have never in my life seen that people arriving from Ireland get some sort of special line to bypass passport control in the US. In fact, aside from airline crew and employees, I’ve never seen any special lines. I’ve never seen any special notices, any special procedures, etc. And I’ve been through about 20 or more different airports.
Well I have, several times. Flying from Dublin direct to the US, US passport control is in Dublin. When you arrive in the US you go straight to customs. This was flying into JFK, Boston, and Chicago.
United States border preclearance - that’s Wiki so in case of argument: All passengers pre-clear United States Immigration at Dublin Airport or Shannon Airport prior to departure.
I’ve just come back from Ireland a couple of months ago, and passprot control is in Ireland. The bad thing is that once you go through you can’t go back, even if you leave a bag. I found this out the hard way.
I am going to Ireland next month and although I get to “Pre-clear” at Shannon Airport on my return trip, it looks as though I still have to go through customs at Chicago O’Hare. Perhaps if I was using Detroit as a portal this would not be the case? (that would’ve added $400 to the cost of our tickets :mad: )
I don’t think you can escape customs at any inbound US airport, I’m afraid. it wouldn’t make sense to do so.
Some countries require proof of immunization (e.g., yellow fever) and HIV status.
One thing to be careful about is that most counties with visa waver programs require that you have at least 6 months left of your passport. Please don’t ask why I know this. :mad:
Also, it should be noted that while it’s your responsibility to get the visa, most governments make airlines carry the cost of deporting people travelling no visa or the wrong visa - so if you haven’t got the right one, you won’t even get on the outgoing plane.
Canadian airports have U.S. customs facilities in them as well as the Immigration (passport control) people; when you get off a flight arriving from Canada in a U.S. airport, you can walk straight out to the street & hail a cab without any restrictions. From what I remember of my trip to Ireland in '04, though, the Dublin pre-clearance facility only has Immigration facilities, not Customs.