The Irish and US governments have announced details of a pre-clearance agreement for transatlantic services from Shannon Airport, which will make it the first airport in Europe to have the facility.

The announcement was made by Transport Minister Noel Dempsey in Shannon this afternoon. The agreement will be formally signed by him in Washington on Monday and will allow for passengers to undertake all the necessary inspections before departing Shannon for the US. In addition to immigration facilities, the airport will now get customs and agricultural inspections as well