Feds open TSA Pre-check registration to all travelers

courtesy of Katie Rice, Travel Weekly.

The Transportation Security Administration is expanding its TSA PreCheck program to allow infrequent flyers to sign up for the program.

After undergoing a vetting process, PreCheck members are eligible to use expedited security lanes at 40 airports in the U.S. They don’t have to take off their shoes and belts or remove laptops from their bags.

There is not a 100% guarantee that travelers will be expedited because the TSA will always incorporate random and unpredictable security measures throughout the airport.

The expanded PreCheck program is similar to Customs and Border Protection’s Global Entry program, which provides expedited clearance for vetted, low-risk travelers when they arrive in the U.S.

TSA will start the program at two initial enrollment sites at the Washington Dulles and Indianapolis airports, and plans on opening additional enrollment sites nationwide.

Approved travelers receive a known-traveler number that they enter when they make their airline reservation.

Until now the only way travelers could get into PreCheck was through an airline’s frequent-flyer program, or to  be enrolled in one of CBP’s Global Entry, Sentri or Nexus trusted-traveler programs.

Anticipated cost for PreCheck is $85 for a five-year membership