Islands Seek U.S. Customs Clearance to Speed Travel

As any Caribbean traveler can tell you, one of the royal hassles of traveling to the islands is having the clear U.S. Customs once you arrive back in the U.S. (especially if you're traveling through Miami, ugh).

Aruba, Bermuda, and Nassau and Grand Bahama Island in the Bahamas all offer the luxury of pre-clearing U.S. Customs before you depart, which is convenient since travelers more often have time to waste before departure than in transit.

Caribbean tourism officials also say that pre-clearance would cut airline turnaround times and costs to travelers, and they are lobbying the U.S. State Department to place Customs pre-clearance facilities at other airports in the region, Aviation Week reports.

In a related twist, Dominica officials are looking to partner with St. Lucia and Antigua so that inbound visitors can clear Dominica customs before arriving on the island.

Caribbean officials also are seeking to raise the duty-free allowance above $500 so that travelers can bring back more goodies from their Caribbean trips.

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