Punta Cana could soon become the first Dominican airport to offer pre-clearance facilities for entering the United States. This means that passengers flying out through PUJ would clear US immigration and customs in the Dominican Republic, allowing for an expedited entry into the United States. The facility at the present time is offered in 15 international airports around the world.
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced it has begun negotiations to expand its Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) preclearance program to ten new foreign airports, Punta Cana International Airport included. Other airports are Brussels International Airport (Belgium), Narita International Airport (Tokyo, Japan), Amsterdam Schipol International Airport (Netherlands), Oslo International Airport (Norway), Madrid Barajas International Airport (Spain), Stockholm Arlanda International Airport (Sweden), Istanbul Ataturk International Airport (Turkey) and London Heathrow International Airport and Manchester International Airport (United Kingdom).
Successful CBP programs are in place in Dublin and Shannon (Ireland); Aruba; Freeport and Nassau in The Bahamas; Bermuda; Calgary, Toronto, Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Vancouver, and Winnipeg in Canada; and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.