DHS halts TSA Precheck & Global Entry

[EatBulaga 508]

https://apnews.com/article/homeland-security-tsa-precheck-global-entry-dc1d2ccd913a74fa2c8b91dad340a3b3

Not a good time to travel, especially with this very short notice. LPR and US citizens are eligible for both TSA Precheck and Global Entry.

 

I have been advocating both programs for years with the extra background check by the DHS to complement the immigration journey.

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/799684-global-entry-with-conditional-green-card/#findComment-10847181

 

Hope this temporary suspension ends soon for the sake of all travelers. 

Edited Sunday at 01:03 PM by EatBulaga

[PGA 370]

7 hours ago, EatBulaga said:

https://apnews.com/article/homeland-security-tsa-precheck-global-entry-dc1d2ccd913a74fa2c8b91dad340a3b3

Not a good time to travel, especially with this very short notice. LPR and US citizens are eligible for both TSA Precheck and Global Entry.

 

I have been advocating both programs for years with the extra background check by the DHS to complement the immigration journey.

https://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/799684-global-entry-with-conditional-green-card/#findComment-10847181

 

Hope this temporary suspension ends soon for the sake of all travelers. 

I saw this earlier and wasn't sure what to make of it, but I do know that it seems like ANY government program or system somehow seems to become riddled with fraud and abuse.   

[Bob in Boston 798]

46 minutes ago, PGA said:

seems to become riddled with fraud and abuse.   

Its a matter of funding with the partial government shutdown, not fraud,

Edited Sunday at 09:14 PM by Bob in Boston

[JD2 268]

I used Precheck today.  I think they walked it back.

[EatBulaga 508]

@PGA Means not a good time to travel. But I still recommend LPR or US Citizens sponsoring visas to enroll in the TSA Precheck/Global Entry for the extra background check.

 

@Bob in Boston The Dems and Reps are using travelers as political football.

 

@JD2 Interesting. Which airport? Enforcement may depend on whether particular airports have the workers, because removing the programs seems to be extra work for the already stressed TSA system.

Edited Sunday at 10:21 PM by EatBulaga

[Boiler 48,724]

It is a funding issue and seems Congress Members are no longer escorted through so that is nice.

 

I am against people being able to buy a platinum service when dealing with a Government agency

[Sam Burns 226]

8 hours ago, PGA said:

I saw this earlier and wasn't sure what to make of it, but I do know that it seems like ANY government program or system somehow seems to become riddled with fraud and abuse.   

Not these programs

[speedster 102]

21 hours ago, Boiler said:

It is a funding issue and seems Congress Members are no longer escorted through so that is nice.

 

I am against people being able to buy a platinum service when dealing with a Government agency

 

On 2/22/2026 at 4:14 PM, Bob in Boston said:

Its a matter of funding with the partial government shutdown, not fraud,

 

Wrong to both. Global entry and TSA Precheck is funded by user fees, just like USCIS. Global entry and TSA Precheck have also never been affected before in a shutdown for further proof of it.

It's political theater and TSA Precheck "magically working" again tells you more of it.

[Bob in Boston 798]

14 hours ago, speedster said:

Wrong to both. Global entry and TSA Precheck is funded by user fees, just like USCIS. Global entry and TSA Precheck have also never been affected before in a shutdown for further proof of it.

The workers who man the TSAPre lines are all part of of the TSA.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is primarily funded through a combination of mandatory "9/11 security fees" collected from airline passengers and discretionary, annual appropriations from Congress, forming part of the Department of Homeland Security's budget. As of 2026, a significant portion of these passenger fees is diverted to the general treasury for deficit reduction. 

www.tsa.gov +3

Key Funding Sources:

• Passenger Security Fee: Often called the "9/11 security fee," this is collected by air carriers from passengers at the time of ticket purchase. It currently stands at $5.60 per one-way trip, with a cap of $11.20 per round-trip.
• Congressional Appropriations: Congress provides discretionary funding, especially for major equipment procurement, infrastructure, and salary increases.
• General Fund: A portion of the fees collected is deposited into the Treasury General Fund, with 
   
   billion set for FY2026, as per the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018. 
  www.tsa.gov +5

Budgetary Allocation:

• Operations & Staffing: The majority of the budget covers employee salaries, training, and operational costs.
• Technology & Infrastructure: Funding includes the procurement of explosive detection systems (EDS) and checkpoint technologies. 
  House Homeland Democrats (.gov) +3

With total budget outlays in the billions, TSA funding is increasingly tied to long-term legislative adjustments to address inflation and staffing needs. 

[mam521 2,947]

4 hours ago, Bob in Boston said:

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is primarily funded through a combination of mandatory "9/11 security fees" collected from airline passengers and discretionary, annual appropriations from Congress, forming part of the Department of Homeland Security's budget.

Sure, TSA is funded this way, but TSA Pre and GE are not TSA.  

 

TSA Pre and Global Entry are Fee funded Trusted Traveler programs that are independent of the regular TSA screening.  Essentially, security clearance is done in advance and it goes into the Secure Flight System database that TSA accesses to verify you're a low security risk.  If anything, you'd want people to have TT clearance because it makes TSA's job easier. 

 

Global Entry isn't limited to US Citizens or LPR's, either.  It's been expanded to a number of partner countries.  Those who qualify for either program pay a fee to receive the benefit of expedited entry (clearance) into the US.  It's a pre-paid privilege of sorts. 

 

People will get pretty angsty over a fee funded, prepaid program benefit being canceled. They paid for a service and expect it to be delivered on.  TSA have to screen everyone anyway and like I said, having an easily accessible profile in the SFS database makes their job quicker and easier.  

 

My kid flew from IAH early Sunday morning and TSA Pre/GE was open.   

[Bob in Boston 798]

6 minutes ago, mam521 said:

My kid flew from IAH early Sunday morning and TSA Pre/GE was open.   

I agree that TSA/Pre and Global Entry are funded by Fees. If TSA does not Staff TSAPre it wont be open due to the lack of Bodies at the Airport. TSA is funded by Air travelers, Congress and Homeland Security. Due to the Partial shutdown they are not 100% funded. 

[mam521 2,947]

3 minutes ago, Bob in Boston said:

I agree that TSA/Pre and Global Entry are funded by Fees. If TSA does not Staff TSAPre it wont be open due to the lack of Bodies at the Airport. TSA is funded by Air travelers, Congress and Homeland Security. Due to the Partial shutdown they are not 100% funded. 

TSA is not fully funded due to the partial government shutdown.  

 

TSA Pre and GE are fully funded.  You pay the fee, you attend the interview, you have the biometrics, you receive your preclearance.  Paid in full. The service, however, may not be offered due to the limited availability of TSA.  Availability of TSA agents due to a lack of government funding for TSA doesn't defund the prepaid Trusted Traveler programs.  

 

The decision was reversed because it is understood that Trusted Traveler programs bring operational efficiency to TSA, making their job easier and quicker and DHS don't want to deal with the fallout of angry travelers who've paid for a service they were promised and the promise wasn't delivered on.  They don't want to deal with people filing non-delivery of services charges.  

 

This government shutdown garbage doesn't happen in any other country.  Funding typically continues as is from a previous budget or it goes to a no confidence vote and triggers an election in a number of other places.  

[Bob in Boston 798]

Seems like we Beating a dead horse here. Im out