International arrivals at O'Hare land at Terminal 5. If this is your first time arriving at ORD on an international flight, the path from plane to car is longer than most domestic airports. Here's the exact process for O'Hare car service after an international arrival.
The Terminal 5 Arrival Path
- Deplaning and passport control: After deplaning, all passengers proceed to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Wait times vary widely — 20 minutes on a quiet day, 90 minutes or more when multiple international flights land at once.
- Baggage claim: After clearing customs, you'll retrieve checked bags in the Terminal 5 baggage claim area.
- APC / Global Entry kiosks: If enrolled, Global Entry significantly reduces customs wait time. Worth asking about when booking your trip — not car service specific, but it affects your total exit time.
- Exit to the arrivals hall: After baggage claim, you walk through the exit doors into the public arrivals area of Terminal 5.
Where to Find Your Driver
For curbside pickup: your driver will be staged in the commercial vehicle lanes on the lower-level arrivals curb just outside the T5 exits. Text or call them as soon as you clear customs and have your bags.
For meet-and-greet: your driver will be waiting inside the arrivals hall with a name board, typically positioned near the exit from the secured baggage area — just past the customs exit doors, before you reach the outer curb. This is the clearest option after a long international flight.
Why Unpredictable Exit Times Matter
Professional operators running regular international pickups at T5 use flight tracking plus a grace period. Ask any operator you're considering: "How do you handle delays in customs processing?" The answer tells you a lot about their reliability. A driver who adds a flat 30-minute buffer for T5 international arrivals has clearly done this before.
Connecting Flights and T5 to T1/T2/T3 Transfers
If you're arriving internationally and connecting to a domestic flight, you'll need to re-check bags and proceed through domestic security. The ATS (Airport Transit System) connects T5 to T1–T3. Allow at minimum 90 minutes for an international-to-domestic connection at ORD under normal circumstances.
For departing international passengers, your car service pickup goes to T5 departures, upper level — the same process as any departure drop-off, just the international terminal.
Browse O'Hare car service operators who specialize in international arrivals. Related reading: O'Hare meet-and-greet vs. curbside pickup | ORD pickup zones by terminal