12 Hour Layover

I'm traveling from Los Angeles to Sydney and have a 12 hour layover. I understand that we have to pass through passport control and customs, but does this mean even my checked luggage has to be collected to go through customs? If so, should they only check my luggage to Fiji when I leave LA?

Thanks in advance.

If your flight is with the same airline your luggage may be booked through, but just ensure there are no real valuables in the checked luggage, there are lots of suggestions for layovers if you haven't googled before your question, you have an outbound flight and with a US passport you are issued a visa on arrival, you should have about 8 hours of free time

Thanks for the info. My plan is to visit the Essence of Fiji Rejuvenation Centre to recover from my first flight and get ready for the next one.

Well, for what it's worth, I just checked my bag at the airport in Los Angeles and they would only check it to Nadi because my layover is more than 8 hours. I'll have to go through customs and then come back and check in. No big deal, but maybe someone else will benefit from this knowledge.

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