Enrollment on Arrival lets a conditionally approved Global Entry applicant finish the interview on the way back into the country, with no appointment and no separate trip to an enrollment center. CBP officers complete it during the admissibility inspection you were going to stand in anyway.

It is also the part of the process most applicants never hear about. Here are the rules, the documents, and every location that offers it.

The two rules

CBP's Global Entry FAQ, last modified June 24, 2026, answers both questions people get wrong.

You must already be conditionally approved. Asked whether an applicant can take part before receiving conditional approval, CBP's answer is one word: "No." It replaces the enrollment center appointment and nothing earlier: it is the interview, not a shortcut through the application review.

The flight has to be an international arrival. Asked about a domestic flight that departs from, arrives at or connects through an Enrollment on Arrival airport, CBP says:

No. Only those who are entering the U.S. Customs and Border Protection area after arriving from an international flight can participate in EoA.

Being in the right terminal is not what qualifies you; being processed by CBP is. A domestic itinerary never puts you in front of an officer conducting the admissibility inspection where the interview happens.

What to bring

• A valid passport. If you travel on more than one, bring them all so the information can be added to your file.
• Evidence of residency. CBP's examples: a driver's license if the address is current, a mortgage statement, a rental payment statement or a utility bill. Not required for minors.
• A permanent resident card, if applicable.

What happens in the terminal

Follow the signage in the international terminal directing you to CBP officers who can complete your Global Entry interview during your admissibility inspection. There is nothing to book and nobody to tell in advance.

If you need assistance because of a disability, tell the interviewing officer immediately that you need a reasonable modification or an auxiliary aid or service. Plan for one outcome: if it is not readily available at that moment, the interview may be scheduled for a later date instead.

Hours are the real constraint: they differ by airport, differ between terminals at the same airport, and change. Chicago O'Hare is available 24 hours a day; Atlanta runs 5:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. "until all slots have been filled"; many locations simply say "during international arrivals". Check the terminal you are landing in on CBP's Enrollment on Arrival page, the authority for the list below.

Where it is offered

More than 50 U.S. airports in 28 states, and 16 locations abroad.

U.S. airports, by state

Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky appears under both Kentucky and Ohio on CBP's page — one airport listed twice, not two locations. And two codes are CBP's own printing rather than the ones the airports normally use, Ontario as "OIA" and Denver as "DIA", reproduced here so this list matches the source.

The 16 locations abroad

• Aruba: Aruba Queen Beatrix International Airport (AUA)
• The Bahamas: Lynden Pindling Nassau International Airport (NAS)
• Bermuda: L.F. Wade International Airport (XKF)
• Canada: Calgary (YYC), Edmonton (YEG), Halifax Stanfield (YHZ), Montréal-Pierre Elliot Trudeau (YUL), Ottawa Macdonald-Cartier (YOW), Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson (YWG), Toronto Lester B. Pearson (YYZ) and Vancouver (YVR)
• Guam: Guam International Airport (GUM)
• Ireland: Dublin and Shannon
• Saipan: Saipan International Airport (SPN)
• United Arab Emirates: Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH)

Several are preclearance locations whose desks sit in the U.S. departures area, so the interview happens before you board rather than after you land. Guam and Saipan are U.S. territories CBP groups here.

The three siblings

If your travel does not fit the arrival rule, one of these might.

Enrollment on Departure

The same idea before the flight instead of after it: conditionally approved applicants complete the interview prior to their departing flights at select airports, and CBP describes it as being for same-day domestic or international air travelers — so a domestic trip does count here. Same documents. CBP's page, last modified January 12, 2026, lists Miami International Airport (MIA), Monday to Saturday, 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern.

Enrollment on Embarkation

For cruise passengers, before embarkation at select seaports. CBP's page, last modified May 8, 2025, lists Miami Seaport Terminal A, Friday to Monday; the Baltimore Seaport, during cruise operations; the Half Moone Cruise Terminal in Norfolk; and Cyril E. King Airport in St. Thomas, Monday to Friday. San Juan's Pier 4 and Pan-American Dock are listed as under construction.

Enrollment on Arrival at land borders

For pedestrians and vehicles at a land port: after your inspection, ask the primary officer to direct you to the Enrollment on Arrival area. CBP's page, last modified July 10, 2026, lists six crossings — the Detroit Canada Tunnel, the Detroit Ambassador Bridge, the Buffalo Peace Bridge, Alexandria Bay (which CBP's page spells "Alexander Bay"), Champlain, and the CBX bridge between Tijuana airport and San Diego, which runs 24 hours a day.

When this is not your answer

Enrollment on Arrival solves one problem: an international trip already on the calendar. With nothing booked — no flight, no cruise, no land crossing — an enrollment center appointment is the way through.

Do not defer it. CBP's Trusted Traveler Program FAQ says you must complete enrollment within 730 days of receiving your conditional approval, and that not scheduling and completing the interview results in cancellation of the application, with no refunds granted.

So compare centers instead of settling for the nearest one — availability differs sharply between them. Our wait times page lists U.S. enrollment centers by how far out the next appointment is, and the state pages group them geographically: a second center in Texas or Florida is often weeks ahead of the one down the road. Openings also return to the scheduler continuously as other applicants cancel and reschedule, so checking repeatedly — or having an alert service watch for you — beats checking once.

Two posts go further: how to get an earlier Global Entry interview, and what the scheduler means when it says no appointments are available.

This guide was last checked against CBP's published guidance on September 15, 2026.

The short version

1. Enrollment on Arrival completes the Global Entry interview during your CBP inspection — no appointment, no trip to a center.
2. Two conditions: conditional approval in hand, and a genuine international arrival. A domestic flight through one of these airports does not qualify.
3. Bring every passport you hold, evidence of residency, and a permanent resident card if applicable.
4. More than 50 U.S. airports in 28 states and 16 locations abroad offer it; hours vary by terminal and change, so check CBP's page for yours.
5. Ask about a disability accommodation at the start — the interview may be rescheduled if what you need is not readily available.
6. Departing, sailing or driving instead? Enrollment on Departure, Enrollment on Embarkation and land-border Enrollment on Arrival cover those.
7. No trip at all means an enrollment center appointment, and 730 days from conditional approval to complete it.

If you have just been conditionally approved and are deciding how to finish, start with what happens after conditional approval.

By US Global Entry Team

Global Entry Enrollment on Arrival: Airports and Rules