My First-Hand Experience Getting TSA PreCheck

The last time I flew out of my nearest international airport, the wait to get through security was over 30 minutes long. And that was for a flight that left before dawn. It was while I was standing in that line, watching the TSA PreCheck folks stream past me, that I decided enough was enough. It was time to get PreCheck for myself.

Now, after all is said and done, I'm not sure why I waited so long. My travel rewards card paid for the cost of the service. The sign-up process was completely painless. And even the interview was faster and easier than I could have imagined.

Here's my story.

A five-minute online application

The first step in getting TSA PreCheck is to fill out the online application. This took about five minutes (and a full minute of that was finding my driver's license).

Your initial application will require your basic personal information: name, address, date of birth, Social Security number, etc. They'll also ask a few questions about your eligibility, including questions about any criminal history.

Once you're past that bit, you'll be asked to verify which documents you'll bring to your in-person interview. You need some sort of ID, plus proof of citizenship. (I brought my passport and my driver's license.)

Finally, you need to book your appointment for your interview.

Heading to…Staples?!

The in-person part of applying for TSA PreCheck is basically just to verify your identity and documents, plus take fingerprints. In other words, there isn't much of an "interview" during your interview.

There are more than 500 locations from which you can choose for your appointment. Unfortunately for me, none of those 500-plus locations were within an hour's drive of my town. So, I had to travel a couple of hours to the nearest big city. (I paired the trip with some family visits so it worked out well in the end.)

As you'd expect, you can typically book an appointment at any major airport. But that's not the only location option. In my case, I was also presented with the option to hit a Staples -- yes, the office supply store. Since parking in a shopping plaza is nearly always better than parking at a busy airport, I easily chose the Staples route.

A few scans and a thank you ma'am

I arrived at my appointment about fifteen minutes early. The nice fellow handling the process quickly signed me in, before going back to the three folks ahead of me. I spent my wait browsing nearby shelves of binders and pens (which is actually more fun than it probably sounds).

Once it was my turn, I handed over my passport to be scanned. The guy in charge was very quick and efficient -- it was obvious he'd done this process a few bajillion times -- and had my information inputted in his tablet within a few minutes.

Then it was my turn. I put my thumbs, then fingers, on the tablet so my fingerprints could be scanned. I verified the information (name, address, etc.) was all accurate. Then I handed over my The Platinum Card® from American Express to pay, as it provides a statement credit to cover the cost of PreCheck (and yes, I got the credit within a week of the charge posting).

At the end, the fellow handed me a 20% off coupon for a Staples purchase and sent me on my way.

A KTN the very next day

While I'd been warned it could be a week or more before I heard back about my final approval, it actually took far less. In fact, I had an email from the TSA the very next day with my Known Traveler Number (KTN).

I wasted little time adding my KTN to a flight I'd already booked. I also added it to my frequent flyer accounts so that it will be applied automatically the next time I book a flight.

All in all, the actual process of getting PreCheck took less than half an hour (plus driving time, but it's probably not very common to have to drive so far). And since my card reimbursed the cost, it was basically free (minus gas, but again, that is very much a your-mileage-may-vary part of the experience).

Even if I include the bit of hassle that the extra travel entailed, I think having PreCheck will easily make up for it with time saved in the airport over my next few trips. Even better, PreCheck is good for five years, so I won't need to worry about renewing until 2028. Well worth the investment.