Using CBP ROAM to enter the U.S. by boat

Katy and I just re-entered the U.S (well, Puerto Rico, which has an unusual status, but basically counts...), and in doing so learned a few things about the process.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has an app to simplify arrival of pleasure boats into the U.S (and territories, such as Puerto Rico and the U. S. Virgin Islands): CBP ROAM. It requires:

• a cell phone or tablet running Android or iOS
• an account at login.gov
• for vessels over 30 feet in length, a current DTOPS decal

You will also want some means of setting up 2 factor authentication: a text message to your phone, an authentication app, etc.

Start by getting a DTOPS decal (if your boat is big enough to need one). These have to be delivered to a physical mail address, but you can use the receipt number generated by the DTOPS web site temporarily until the decal arrives. In theory, you need to carry the decal on your boat; in fact, just having the decal number lets you register with CBP ROAM.

Next, set up the account at login.gov. If you are a member of a "trusted traveler" program (such as Global Entry or TSA Pre) you probably already have one.

Once you have done that, download the CBP ROAM app for your device and create an account. This entails setting up profiles for each vessel (including the name, registration, year, make and model, length, DTOPS decal number, flag) and each crew member (name, birth date, passport details, etc.).

Having all this set up, you are now prepared for a streamlined arrival process into the U.S.

• Open the CBP ROAM app, log in, and click the "Report Arrival" button.
• Select your "Mode of Travel" (put a check next to the boat you're on, and click continue).
• Wait while the app uses your devices location services to figure out where you are (more on this later).
• Enter the "Arrival Details" (where you're arriving, where you're coming from, and various declarations) and click continue.
• Select a boat "Master" from the people whose details you have set up, and click continue.
• Select crew in the same manner, and click continue.
• Review the information, and click submit.

You'll get an "arrival number", and after an indeterminate interval, your arrival will either be rejected (you'll get email telling you this) or you'll get a phone call from a pleasant CBP official. You'll be asked to confirm the information you provided via the app, and, assuming all is well, be told that -- you're in! It's great - there's no need to actually show up with passports at the CBP office.

HOWEVER - important detail. You must not submit an arrival request until you are "close" to your port of entry. I don't know how "close" is defined, but I do know that when I submitted a request for Culebra (in Puerto Rico) from just west of St. Thomas (about 15NM from Culebra), we were "too far" away. I tried again when we were entering the channel into Ensenada Honda (about 2.5NM from Culebra) and was successful.

This is way better than taking your boat papers, passports, and crew to an actual CBP office. Thank you, CBP!

UPDATE, September 2023

The app has recently stopped working on Android; there are many complaints on the Google Play store about this. For our most recent entry into the U.S., I had to download the app onto my iPad and us it from there. This meant re-entering all the vessel and passenger data, as it's stored on the device, not the CBP servers. Once I did that, I could create an arrival as before. 

 On the plus side - we were able to enter (from Canada) at Chatham, Massachusetts, which is NOT an official port of entry. Your mileage may vary...