One of Air Travels Biggest Hassles Is Finally Disappearing in the U.S.

A growing number of international travelers can now skip reclaiming and rechecking bags at U.S. customs, thanks to a new CBP screening program.

For years, U.S. border regulations made arriving on an inbound international flight with an onward connection to another city more onerous in the United States than many other countries. The regulations required all passengers—regardless of whether they were connecting to another flight—claim their bags before continuing their journey. 

The rule made arriving in the U.S. time-consuming for returning residents and incoming visitors, requiring minimum connecting times of a few hours in order to give passengers enough time to collect their checked bags and check them back in for their onward flights. 

The U.S. is one of the few countries to require onward passengers to claim their bags at their first point of entry. In early 2025 however, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) introduced International Remote Baggage Screening, allowing inbound international passengers to complete entry formalities, then proceed directly to their connecting flights without claiming their checked bags. 

The program was initially limited to specific airlines and specific flights arriving from select cities. In April 2025, American Airlines flights from Sydney, Australia, became the first flights to allow connecting passengers to proceed without collecting their bags.

The system uses advanced screening equipment to scan passengers’ checked luggage at foreign origin airports. The images are then submitted to CBP for review prior to the flight’s arrival. CBP flags any bags they want to inspect, which can be sent to baggage claim (and passengers are notified by a CBP agent at arrivals), but the majority of passengers will have their bags automatically transferred to their next flight without having to claim and recheck. 

Delta Air Lines and Korean Air, via their joint venture partnership, have been early adopters in the program, starting with Seoul Incheon to Atlanta in August 2025. Delta’s flights from Incheon to Minneapolis and Detroit came online in April, and flights to Los Angeles and Seattle-Tacoma are now participating. Korean Air says their participation in the program saves passengers up to 20 minutes when connecting to onward flights from their U.S. gateway city. Korean also says that the program also reduces the number of passengers who miss their connecting flight in the event of a delay. 

“Seamless Baggage Transfer simplifies the connection experience for customers traveling to the United States,” Jeff Moomaw, Vice President – Asia Pacific at Delta Air Lines, said in a statement. “By expanding this service to Seattle and Los Angeles, we enable customers to move through U.S. airports more efficiently and have more time to relax between flights.”

While Delta and Korean have been the largest adopters of the program so far, United Airlines also allows customers arriving at San Francisco International Airport from Sydney to also head directly to their connecting flight without claiming and rechecking their bags. United also has plans to expand the program to more gateway cities for flights from more international destinations. 

Inbound international customers on pre-cleared flights from U.S. Customs stations in Canada, the Bahamas, Abu Dhabi, Ireland, Aruba, and Bermuda are also not required to collect their checked bags before heading to their connecting gate.