Customs officials at Pune’s Lohegaon International Airport reintroduced the ‘green channel’ on 5 January, allowing duty-free passengers to bypass routine baggage scans and proceed directly to the exit. The dedicated lane was suspended during last year’s terminal renovation, forcing nearly all passengers through the ‘red channel’ and contributing to peak-hour queues of up to 45 minutes.
The revival follows a 65 % jump in international traffic—from 205,000 passengers in 2024 to 339,000 in 2025—on new nonstop services to Singapore, Dubai and Doha operated by IndiGo, SpiceJet and Air India Express. Customs maintains the right to profile or randomly screen travellers in the green lane, especially in light of recent gold-smuggling cases; however, officials expect the selective approach to halve average clearance times.
Before setting off, passengers should also ensure their travel documents are in order. VisaHQ’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/india/) streamlines visa applications for Singapore, the UAE, Qatar and dozens of other destinations, allowing Pune residents to secure entry approvals quickly and avoid last-minute embassy visits.
![Pune airport reinstates customs ‘green channel’, cutting clearance times for international arrivals]()
For corporate flyers based in Pune’s automotive and IT corridors, faster egress could translate into tangible productivity gains. Travel-management companies estimate a potential 20-minute reduction in door-to-door journey times, making same-day hops to client sites more feasible.
Airlines also stand to benefit: quicker passenger dispersal reduces aircraft dwell time at contact stands, easing apron congestion. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) said it will monitor passenger-flow data for three months before deciding whether to expand the green channel to Nagpur and Jaipur, two other tier-2 airports registering double-digit international growth.
Travellers should note that duty-free gold allowances remain capped at 40 g for women and 20 g for men returning after stays abroad of six months or more. Declarations above these limits must still be made in the red channel, and suspicious profiles can be diverted for full checks even after opting for green.
The revival follows a 65 % jump in international traffic—from 205,000 passengers in 2024 to 339,000 in 2025—on new nonstop services to Singapore, Dubai and Doha operated by IndiGo, SpiceJet and Air India Express. Customs maintains the right to profile or randomly screen travellers in the green lane, especially in light of recent gold-smuggling cases; however, officials expect the selective approach to halve average clearance times.
Before setting off, passengers should also ensure their travel documents are in order. VisaHQ’s online platform (https://www.visahq.com/india/) streamlines visa applications for Singapore, the UAE, Qatar and dozens of other destinations, allowing Pune residents to secure entry approvals quickly and avoid last-minute embassy visits.
For corporate flyers based in Pune’s automotive and IT corridors, faster egress could translate into tangible productivity gains. Travel-management companies estimate a potential 20-minute reduction in door-to-door journey times, making same-day hops to client sites more feasible.
Airlines also stand to benefit: quicker passenger dispersal reduces aircraft dwell time at contact stands, easing apron congestion. The Airports Authority of India (AAI) said it will monitor passenger-flow data for three months before deciding whether to expand the green channel to Nagpur and Jaipur, two other tier-2 airports registering double-digit international growth.
Travellers should note that duty-free gold allowances remain capped at 40 g for women and 20 g for men returning after stays abroad of six months or more. Declarations above these limits must still be made in the red channel, and suspicious profiles can be diverted for full checks even after opting for green.
