basbalmom1

First time traveling to Europe from the US. Flight is on Air Lingus with a connection in Dublin. Do I go through immigration and or customs in Dublin and then again in London, or just in one of the airports?

scotlib

Hi basbalmom1,

I like traveling Aer Lingus from BOS to the UK. My last trip was April 2012 and I went through the new Terminal 2.

Arriving from BOS, my onward boarding pass was scanned, there was no one in the passport control booth and then security (metal out of your pockets, x-ray your bag, the whole security check) and on to the terminal shops area to wait.

Coming back, I think it was the passport booth guy who looked at my onward boarding pass, then security, then shops area.

Some flights to the US were going through US immigration in Dublin, but mine to BOS did immigration in BOS.

That trip I went to Manchester, UK. Arriving at MAN, the passengers were sent to baggage hall and onward, nothing special about the arriving.

I did do Aer Lingus to Gatwick in June 2010. I remember following signs for people who weren't from the EU. All that did was send me to the same place as the EU folk, but by a longer route. Someone did look at my passport, but it wasn't really a proper passport check.

I don't remember signs specifically for customs at Dublin or London, but I don't carry stuff that needs declaring, so I always can go through the nothing-to-declare rows.

Hope that helps.

Cheers.

alanRow

You pass through immigration in Dublin as the UK and Ireland share a Common Travel Area, you'll pass through Customs in London.

On return you'll probably pre-clear US immigration at Dublin - so allow a bit extra time between flights

PatrickLondon

Customs is essentially nothing much - assuming you're not bringing in any prohibited goods or anything over the permitted limits, you would go through either the green channel ("Nothing to declare") or the blue channel (since you're coming from elsewhere in the EU), and there will most likely be no-one there (that you can see). They would only check baggage for people they have some reason to suspect of being up to something.

Immigration is entirely separate, and you will have done all that before you pick up your baggage.

Ackislander

Preclearance in Dublin is closed as part of the US sequestration, except for flights to JFK.

flanneruk

"you're not bringing in any prohibited goods or anything over the permitted limits, you would go through either the green channel ("Nothing to declare") or the blue channel (since you're coming from elsewhere in the EU), and there will most likely be no-one there"

Not quite. Oddly, that's the one recommendation that might cause a hiccup.

Normally, on this journey you go through Irish immigration in Dublin, and then pass a Metropolitan Police checkpoint at Heathrow which is manned only if Irish terrorists (of either persuasion) are having one of their perennial attempts to relaunch themselves. Fortunately, that's rare.

If you've got checked bags, they go straight through to Heathrow, but the tags will indicate they were checked in outside the EU. If you then take them through the blue (arrivals from the EU) channel at Heathrow (which looks unmanned, but is electronically monitored), you'll have done almost the only thing that might send the otherwise apparently somnolent system into action.

Britain being Britain, that's unlikely to involve flashing lights or blokes with machine guns.But it might involve a mildly grumpy Customs officer, roused from his computer game, suddenly appearing and testily asking you if you can read English. He might even do something as drastic as ask to see your passport and detain you for all of 10 seconds.

The blue channel is for MERCHANDISE coming from the EU. Your last flight might have been from the EU, but the goods you're carrying started their journey in Real Abroad.

PatrickLondon

I stand corrected. That's what comes of living an uncomplicated life. But it would still not be the old-fashioned rummage through one's undies, in normal circumstances.

jaja

Can't speak to Dublin, but preclearance to US from Shannon is working fine as of June 22.