Megan Singleton: BloggerAtLarge writer on the benefits of the MPC app for travel

The MPC app may not be a new invention, but it's the perfect hack to navigating US travel.

The Mobile Passport Control app is free to download - and it can help travellers quickly navigate US Customs.

BloggerAtLarge writer Megan Singleton explains the app further - read more about it here.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Sunday Session podcast with Francesca Rudkin
from News Talks ATB Travel with Wendy wo Tours Where
the World Is Yours?

Speaker 2 (00:16):
Book now and do join me now to talk travel.

Speaker 3 (00:20):
Megan Singleton, good morning, Good morning, Francesca. So, if our
listeners have been listening over the last couple of weeks,
they know, we'll know that you have been in the
US and on this trip you discovered this wonderful little
tip or trick for getting through US.

Speaker 4 (00:41):
What is it customs customs? Yeah, yeah, expediting through. Yes,
it's the MPC app. So that sounds for Mobile Passport
Control and it's been around since twenty sixteen for visa
waiver countries. Cannot believe no one's told me about this
before now, And so you download it onto your phone,

(01:04):
You fill it in with your passport details and the
airport that you're going to arrive into. Then you do nothing.
You get on the plane, you arrive, you turn your
phone back on and the next screen says are you
here sort of thing? You go yes, You hit the
yes button submit that asks you to take a selfie.
So my husband and I did this in line at

(01:26):
Houston Airport, we're like, yep, selfie, selfie. So now that
knows that you're on US territory, you've got up to
four hours now to find the MPC line at the customs.
We found it in thirty seconds and we were through
in four minutes. So it's a line for US citizens, Canadians, residents.

(01:50):
I think of the US and Visa way for countries amazing,
and that's US, that's US, and it's in fifty one airports,
so it's great for all kiwis like Houston, we'll be
using it in San Francisco, Los Angeles, all the airports
that we go into. You just need to look for
that MPC line and off you go. Okay, wait for transiting.

Speaker 2 (02:12):
That, yeah, because you don't want to be wasting time.
You might just be needing to get to that next flight, right.

Speaker 4 (02:18):
Yeah. Well you've got to clear your bags too, because
when we arrive into you know, US International Airport, you've
got to clear your bags, whether you're whipping down to
Mexico or heading off to New Orleans anyway. So if
you've only got a two hour turnaround, this MPC line
is going to be amazing.

Speaker 2 (02:35):
So how long is it time consuming getting it set
up and filling in the information and things.

Speaker 4 (02:41):
No, just a few minutes. In fact, I was telling
a lady about it on the plane as we just
after we touched down in Houston. She didn't know anything
about it. So after we'd touchdown she had Wi FI reception,
she downloaded it on the spot, put her passport details in.
She was ready to go with her selfie and she
was through with us.

Speaker 2 (03:01):
Amazing. And when you head through the line, did this
this line that you whip through? What happens in that line?

Speaker 4 (03:08):
So it's just the normal line. So you go up
to a customs officer, you have to maybe have a
photo taken. We didn't have to do our fingerprints, I
think because once you've been a few times, they can
do photo ID now. So we went through normally. But
it was just a shorter line that didn't include its
citizens from all around the world.

Speaker 2 (03:26):
Okay, And so if you were a first time visitor
to the United States, could it be a little bit
more complicated? Do you think?

Speaker 1 (03:32):
Well?

Speaker 4 (03:33):
I think you just have to do your fingerprints as
well as your face. I don't think first timers would
notice any different. It's just a shorter lane. Like excluding
people that aren't from Feza waiver countries, which is all
of South America, all of Asia. They're excluded, you see.
So that's why these lines are a bit shorter.

Speaker 2 (03:51):
How good is that? Are always learning, Megan?

Speaker 4 (03:54):
Right? That's right.

Speaker 2 (03:57):
Anything else that you picked up on this in this
trip that you sort of had a little a har
moment when it came to making travel easier.

Speaker 4 (04:06):
Probably wear a mask on the plane so you don't
catch a cold.

Speaker 2 (04:10):
Yeah, as long as that's on the way home though, right,
that's exactly Meghan. Good to talk to you. You've got
all that in a blog up at Blogger at Large.

Speaker 4 (04:22):
I do. And are we talking to you from Mexico
next week? Oh?

Speaker 2 (04:26):
How wonderful. I can't wait. Je I'm getting good of
a pomo from this travel segment, Meghan. But travel safe
and we will talk next week.

Speaker 1 (04:34):
For more from the Sunday session with Francesca Rudgin, listen
live to News Talks. It'd be from nine am Sunday,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.