How Long Is the Customs Line? — US Airport Customs Wait Times
Your US arrival airport and the hour you land → how long the Passport Control line was then, from CBP’s own record.
About 10 minutesUS citizens landing at New York JFK, Terminal 4 (IAT), 3–4 pm on Sundays, waited 10 minutes on average to clear Passport Control; visitors, 22 minutes. 1 day in 10, the longest wait that hour passed 94 minutes.
About 1 passenger in 40 waited over an hour.
On Sundays the quietest hour is 11 am–12 pm (9 minutes), the busiest 11 pm–12 am (15 minutes).
Across the year, all passengers: February was the quietest month (15 minutes on average), December the busiest (29 minutes).
CBP’s times are Passport Control only: CBP airport wait times do not include time to retrieve baggage or navigate through the airport.
Connecting? Add the bags, re-checking them and TSA — the Layover Time Checker times the rest.
Twelve months of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s Airport Wait Times (October 2025 to October 2026), averaged by day of the week and hour. CBP’s own report ↗
Clearing US customs — Passport Control — took US citizens 6 to 18 minutes on average at the twelve busiest US airports over the last twelve months, and visitors 12 to 36 minutes: at New York JFK, 13 minutes for citizens and 34 minutes for visitors. It depends on the terminal, the day and the hour you land. Pick yours above for CBP’s own record.
How to use it
Pick the airport where you land in the US, the terminal if it has more than one, the day of the week and the hour your flight lands (local time), and whether you hold a US passport. The answer is the average wait CBP recorded at that hour over the last twelve months, the other group’s beside it, the longest wait on a bad day (1 day in 10) and how many passengers waited over an hour. The bars show the whole day, your hour in gold, so you can see whether an earlier or later flight lands into a shorter line. The link under the answer keeps your choice.
Customs waits at the twelve busiest US airports
Every passenger CBP processed on international arrivals, October 2025 to October 2026, all terminals together. The wait is the time to clear Passport Control; CBP’s numbers do not include collecting bags or walking through the airport.
| Airport | Passengers (12 months) | US citizens | Visitors | Waited over 1 hour |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York JFK (JFK) | 15.6 M | 13 minutes | 34 minutes | 7.3% |
| Miami (MIA) | 11.5 M | 13 minutes | 27 minutes | 4.8% |
| Los Angeles (LAX) | 10.6 M | 13 minutes | 29 minutes | 4.4% |
| San Francisco (SFO) | 7.0 M | 14 minutes | 25 minutes | 3% |
| Newark (EWR) | 6.5 M | 15 minutes | 25 minutes | 3% |
| Atlanta (ATL) | 6.4 M | 6 minutes | 12 minutes | 0.3% |
| Chicago O’Hare (ORD) | 6.2 M | 13 minutes | 24 minutes | 2% |
| Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) | 5.9 M | 11 minutes | 24 minutes | 2% |
| Houston Bush (IAH) | 5.6 M | 15 minutes | 27 minutes | 4.2% |
| Washington Dulles (IAD) | 4.6 M | 12 minutes | 22 minutes | 4% |
| Boston Logan (BOS) | 3.8 M | 15 minutes | 24 minutes | 1.6% |
| Orlando (MCO) | 3.3 M | 18 minutes | 36 minutes | 11.7% |
Of these, visitors waited longest at Orlando (36 minutes on average) and least at Atlanta (12 minutes). Inside one airport the terminals differ: at JFK, Terminal 1’s line is longer than Terminal 5’s.
Worked examples
New York JFK, Terminal 4, a Sunday, landing 3–4 pm. About 10 minutes for US citizens and 22 minutes for visitors — but 1 day in 10 someone waited over 94 minutes that hour.
Orlando, Terminal C, a Saturday, landing 2–3 pm, a visitor. About 42 minutes: about 1 passenger in 7 waited over an hour. US citizens on the same flights waited 27 minutes.
Miami, North Terminal, a Monday, landing 7–8 am, a US citizen. About 11 minutes; visitors 23 minutes.
Common mistakes
- Counting only the line. CBP says its times “do not include time to retrieve baggage or navigate through the airport” — on a connection you also collect your bags, re-check them and clear TSA.
- Trusting the average on a busy day. The average hides the bad days: the “1 day in 10” figure is the one to plan a tight connection around.
- Looking at the wrong terminal. JFK, Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Washington Dulles each have more than one international arrivals hall, with different lines.
- Forgetting Preclearance. From Dublin, Shannon, Abu Dhabi, Aruba, Bermuda, Nassau or Canada you clear US customs before you board, and land as a domestic passenger.
Before you land
Read international travel tips for first-timers, arrive in better shape with the long flight survival guide and red-eye flights and how to arrive functional. The Layover Time Checker tells you whether a connection after customs is long enough, and TSA PreCheck vs Global Entry whether Global Entry is worth it for you.
FAQ
How long does it take to get through customs?
At the twelve busiest US airports, 6 to 18 minutes on average for US citizens and 12 to 36 minutes for visitors in CBP’s last twelve months — and longer at peak hours: at Orlando about 1 passenger in 9 waited over an hour. Add the time to collect your bags.
How long is the customs wait at JFK?
Over the last twelve months, 13 minutes on average for US citizens and 34 minutes for visitors, all terminals together. Terminal 1 has the longest line and Terminal 5 the shortest; pick your terminal, day and hour above for that hour’s record.
Can I see live airport customs wait times?
CBP publishes its record by hour at awt.cbp.gov — the hours already past, not the line right now. The record for your day of the week and hour, over twelve months, is the best guide to the line you will meet.
Is customs faster for US citizens?
Yes, at every one of the twelve busiest airports: at JFK 13 minutes against 34 minutes for visitors on average, at Orlando 18 minutes against 36 minutes.
Does the customs wait include getting my bags?
No. CBP’s wait times are the time to clear Passport Control; in its own words they “do not include time to retrieve baggage or navigate through the airport.”
Which US airport has the longest customs line?
Of the twelve busiest, visitors waited longest at Orlando: 36 minutes on average over the last twelve months. The longest average hour for visitors in CBP’s whole record: New York JFK, Terminal 1, 11 am–12 pm on Tuesdays, 62 minutes.