TSA PreCheck Touchless ID is a new spin on the regular PreCheck lane that uses facial recognition to verify your identity. Instead of handing your ID to a TSA officer, enrolled travelers simply pause for a quick face scan, then keep moving toward the X-ray machines. Sounds like a game changer, right? But here’s the thing—it’s not available at every airport yet and works only with participating airlines.
An important heads-up: you must opt-in to the program before you check in for your flight. Trying to enroll after you’ve already arrived and gotten stuck in a long line? Too late. Also, it’s not completely foolproof—you might get to the airport ready to use it, only to find the verification machine temporarily offline for maintenance. So don’t cut your airport arrival time too short just yet.
Here’s what else you need to know.
🤔 What is PreCheck Touchless ID?
TSA explains this program as a joint effort between U.S. Customs and Border Protection, airports, and airlines to help travelers “move through dedicated lanes with ease, enjoying a smoother and more convenient airport experience.”
It first launched in 2021 with Delta Air Lines at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport and is expanding this spring to 65 airports across the U.S.
Even though you won’t have to show your ID in the Touchless lane, TSA still recommends carrying a physical Real ID-compliant form of identification as a backup. Just in case!
✅ Who is eligible to use it?
You need to be a TSA PreCheck member with a valid “known traveler number,” have an active airline profile (like a loyalty program account), and have a valid passport uploaded there. The airlines participating in the program so far are:
- Alaska Airlines
- American Airlines
- Delta Air Lines
- Southwest Airlines
- United Airlines
👨👩👧👦 What about families?
Kids can use Touchless ID lanes with their enrolled parents—but there are details to keep in mind. Children ages 13 to 17 must have a boarding pass that displays the PreCheck Touchless ID symbol. Kids 12 and under don’t need any special indicator on their boarding pass. All family member tickets must be on the same reservation.
Note: Children under 18 don’t have their faces scanned but you may need to show their boarding passes.
📝 How do I sign up?
You must opt into the program through your airline’s website or app before check-in. The process varies by airline but look for the prompt in the “travel documents” section of your loyalty program app or website.
For example:
- American Airlines customers will find the option at the bottom of their AAdvantage profile’s “Information and password” page.
- Alaska Airlines customers need to go to their account settings, then to “travel documents.”
Once opted in and checked in, your boarding pass should display the TSA PreCheck Touchless ID symbol. At the airport, look for the dedicated Touchless lane signs—staff will check your boarding pass to confirm your enrollment before letting you in. No symbol? No entry into the Touchless lane—even if you enrolled.
🛫 Where is the PreCheck Touchless ID available?
The program is growing fast. Check TSA’s website for the latest, but here’s a lengthy list of current airports offering the service for various airlines:
- Albuquerque International Sunport
- Austin-Bergstrom International Airport
- Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport
- Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport
- Boise Airport
- Boston Logan International Airport
- Bradley International Airport
- Buffalo Niagara International Airport
- Charleston International Airport
- Charlotte Douglas International Airport
- Chicago Midway International Airport
- Chicago O’Hare International Airport
- Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport
- Cleveland Hopkins International Airport
- Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport
- Dallas Love Field
- Daniel K. Inouye International Airport
- Denver International Airport
- Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport
- Washington Dulles International Airport
- Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport
- George Bush Intercontinental Airport
- Harry Reid International Airport
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
- Indianapolis International Airport
- Jacksonville International Airport
- John F. Kennedy International Airport
- John Glenn Columbus International Airport
- John Wayne Airport
- Kansas City International Airport
- LaGuardia Airport
- Long Beach Airport
- Los Angeles International Airport
- Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
- Luis Munoz Marin International Airport
- Miami International Airport
- Milwaukee Mitchell International Airport
- Minneapolis—St. Paul International Airport
- Nashville International Airport
- Newark Liberty International Airport
- Norman Y. Mineta San Jose International Airport
- Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport
- Orlando International Airport
- Palm Beach International Airport
- Palm Springs International Airport
- Philadelphia International Airport
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
- Pittsburgh International Airport
- Portland International Airport
- Raleigh–Durham International Airport
- Reagan National Airport
- Rhode Island T. F. Green International Airport
- Sacramento International Airport
- Salt Lake City International Airport
- San Antonio International Airport
- San Diego International Airport
- San Francisco International Airport
- Seattle-Tacoma International Airport
- St. Louis Lambert International Airport
- Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport
- Tampa International Airport
- Tulsa International Airport
- Will Rogers International Airport
- William P. Hobby Airport
