see also: in April 2008:   U. S. Customs and Border Protection Seizes $1.3 Million Worth of Counterfeit Cigarettes   Border Patrol Launches Rhode Island Search   Border Patrol Agent Search Launches in Atlanta   Two Weeks = Two Tons of Marijuana Seized at Arizona Port of Entry   CBP Officers in Texas Find $3 Million Worth of Dope in 'Empty' Sea Container   New Jersey CBP Officers Make $4 Million Heroin Candy Bar Bust   Border Patrol Agents Locate More Than Half Ton of Marijuana ...more on cbp.gov:   CBP News Releases   Press Officers   FAST: Free and Secure Trade Program

contacts for this news release

Washington – U.S. Customs and Border Protection reminds applicants for the Free and Secure Trade program that applications are now accepted online through the Global Online Enrollment System (GOES) accessible at CBP.gov. The FAST program is available to drivers crossing the southern border between the U.S. and Mexico.

Applying to the FAST program online increases the speed at which CBP approves applications and it is part of a phased integration of the FAST Driver process into the online system GOES. This improvement in the FAST application process places the program on par with other CBP trusted traveler programs like SENTRI, NEXUS and Global Entry scheduled to begin next month. By the late summer of 2008, U.S./Canada FAST will also offer a GOES option.

The availability of applying to FAST in GOES will soon afford commercial truck drivers the ability to update critical components of their FAST account data online, assuring uninterrupted passage without the need to visit a FAST enrollment center.

The change went into effect April 15 and was originally announced on February 15.

Additionally, CBP reminds future applicants that:

• No paper applications will be accepted for the U.S./Mexico FAST driver program.
• When the U.S./Canada FAST driver program offers a GOES application (now projected for August 2008), that program will retain a paper application option.
• Unlike SENTRI applicants, U.S./Mexico FAST applicants will not be able to schedule interview sessions with the GOES online scheduler until approximately August 2008.
• As in the past, U.S./Mexico FAST applicants will not receive conditional approval letters. Enrollment Centers will continue the practice of contacting conditionally approved FAST Drivers by phone to inform them of their status and schedule an interview.
• Existing FAST drivers, whether enrolled in the U.S./Mexico or U.S./Canada program, will not be able to modify their account information, such as mailing address, using GOES until approximately August 2008. Until then, all updates to account information required by the program must still be made in person.

For further information, please visit the FAST website. ( FAST: Free and Secure Trade Program )

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.