Google Wallet Becomes First Digital Wallet to Direct-Enroll TSA PreCheck Touchless ID

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) today announced a partnership that will allow PreCheck users to opt into Touchless ID via Google Wallet, the first time a digital wallet has been allowed to offer the feature.

Touchless ID lets travelers, who are already enrolled in PreCheck, clear airport security checkpoints using biometrics instead of having to present physical identification or a boarding pass to TSA officers. The Google Wallet integration will prompt users to opt in whenever they add a participating airline’s boarding pass to Google Wallet, placing a Touchless ID indicator onto the digital pass.

Previously, using Touchless ID required users to manually set it up. Travelers had to navigate to individual airline apps, upload their passport information separately for each specific carrier, and manually opt in through frequent flyer profiles. It was also restricted to just a handful of major airlines.

Now, once a traveler creates a digital ID pass using their passport within Google Wallet, the app automatically handles the TSA enrollment connection during flight check-in. Google handling enrollment means that Touchless ID availability goes from just six airlines to all 100+ participating TSA PreCheck airlines.

Touchless ID is now live at more than 65 airports across the U.S., including most of the major hubs like Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta (ATL), Los Angeles International (LAX), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW), Denver International (DEN), and all three major New York area gateways—JFK, LaGuardia (LGA), and Newark (EWR).