When asked what was a painful part of travel people wish they could improve this year one of the top responses was airport security, dealing with checkpoints and long lines. In our “Make Travel Better” series we break down these two options and give you the pros and cons of each so you can find the best way to ease stress for this year.
For U.S.-based travelers, TSA precheck lines are shorter and faster. We’re talking minutes of wait versus hours. Global Entry offers a quicker return to the U.S. from abroad.
Table of Contents
What They Have in Common
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- Name, address, phone number, and email
- Addresses used over the last five years
- Date & place of birth
- Height, weight, eye & hair color
- Alias names (such as name changes in marriage or divorce)
- Country of citizenship
- Ability to certify a lack of felony or denial of entry to the U.S. in the past
Photo by Daniel Lim TSA Precheck
You know what’s clogging up the line is Felicia up there, having to untie her steel-toe boots while trying not to drop her laptop on the tile floor. And Bob is right behind her with questionable liquids he forgot about buried at the bottom of his backpack.
Now imagine skipping all that. Bye, Felicia!
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TSA Precheck provides access to expedited security lanes at airports in the U.S. and U.S. territories. You won’t have to take off your shoes, belts, or jackets (unless you really want to practice for that striptease class you finally decided to take). Your liquids and laptops can also stay snug as a bug in a rug. You don’t have to remove them. No wonder this line is shorter!
Children 12 and under don’t need memberships. So families with younger children won’t have to get TSA Precheck membership for everyone. Technically 13 is the cut-off but we’ve had our 14-year-old with us and noted he got the TSA Precheck symbol on his boarding pass as well. Possibly this was because I purchased all of our tickets together. We’re not trying to game the system, just waiting until our youngest had to renew his passport so we could align TSA Precheck membership with passport renewal as much as possible.
TSA Precheck costs $85 for a five-year membership. There is an online application and an in-person interview including a background check and fingerprinting. Both of us are in education so we were used to that level of screening. There are tons of locations for the in-person portion. We took advantage of a small center at our local airport. Within a few weeks, we received our Known Traveler Number which is what we use to book flights. If you are only planning on traveling domestically this is well worth the cost for the stress saving and time saving alone!
Photo by hiurich granja Global Entry
Remember the last time you got off a long-haul flight and that deep sigh of resignation when you saw the 500 other passengers ahead of you at customs? Yup, that line’s moving. Slower than dial-up internet baby. Global Entry can solve that problem by providing expedited processing at Customs and Border Protection when returning to the U.S. after an international flight.
A trusted traveler in the Global Entry program also has a Known Traveler Number (KTN) and can use the kiosks to clear immigration and it all but eliminates wait time. And TSA Precheck is included so put that in your pipe and smoke it! (Well, not during your in-person interview please)
Unlike the other program, everyone in your family must have his or her own membership to take full advantage of Global Entry. If a parent is traveling with a child who doesn’t have Global Entry, that parent will need to use the slower (and obviously less appealing) standard immigration lines with the child.
Get Your Travel Goals Newsletter & BONUS Workbook -
Like TSA Precheck, Global Entry requires you to fill out an online application and participate in an in-person interview. The fee is $100. There are fewer Global Entry enrollment centers so you may have to travel a bit farther than for TSA Precheck. Instead of our local airport, we need to travel to the nearest international airport. The easiest way to find your nearest location is to head to the Global Entry site and search with your zip code.
Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com Which One Should You Get?
If you do any international travel at all, the clear winner is Global Entry. The expedited entry is worth the additional $15 expense. And while the in-person interview may be a bit more challenging you still get all the benefits of TSA Precheck as well. So again to us, the additional effort is worth it.
Photo by Avery Evans Paying for It
While $100 for five years of expedited front-of-the-line security clearance is definitely worth it, that can add up pretty quickly for a family. There are credit cards that offer trusted traveler program reimbursement. If you have multiple cards that provide this service then you get multiple credits toward reimbursement.
Using TSA Precheck and/or Global Entry are key pieces to making your travel experiences better this year and for years to come! Without them, you will be stuck in long lines or overly stressed because of a time crunch. Nobody needs to continue that way. Maybe this year is the year you say YES to easy.
Get Your Travel Goals Newsletter & BONUS Workbook -
If you are making plans for an upcoming international getaway we can help with our post on what you need to know before your next international trip. Or if domestic travel is more your speed right now check out one of our many posts on spots in the U.S.
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- TSA Precheck requires an application and pre-screening, in order to provide members with faster screening at security lines at airports in the U.S.
- Global Entry also requires an application and pre-screening in order to provide faster, kiosk-based immigration processing when re-entering the U.S. from international travel.
For both applications, you need to provide the following information:
-
- Name, address, phone number, and email
- Addresses used over the last five years
- Date & place of birth
- Height, weight, eye & hair color
- Alias names (such as name changes in marriage or divorce)
- Country of citizenship
- Ability to certify a lack of felony or denial of entry to the U.S. in the past
Photo by Daniel Lim TSA Precheck
You know what’s clogging up the line is Felicia up there, having to untie her steel-toe boots while trying not to drop her laptop on the tile floor. And Bob is right behind her with questionable liquids he forgot about buried at the bottom of his backpack.
Now imagine skipping all that. Bye, Felicia!
-
TSA Precheck provides access to expedited security lanes at airports in the U.S. and U.S. territories. You won’t have to take off your shoes, belts, or jackets (unless you really want to practice for that striptease class you finally decided to take). Your liquids and laptops can also stay snug as a bug in a rug. You don’t have to remove them. No wonder this line is shorter!
Children 12 and under don’t need memberships. So families with younger children won’t have to get TSA Precheck membership for everyone. Technically 13 is the cut-off but we’ve had our 14-year-old with us and noted he got the TSA Precheck symbol on his boarding pass as well. Possibly this was because I purchased all of our tickets together. We’re not trying to game the system, just waiting until our youngest had to renew his passport so we could align TSA Precheck membership with passport renewal as much as possible.
TSA Precheck costs $85 for a five-year membership. There is an online application and an in-person interview including a background check and fingerprinting. Both of us are in education so we were used to that level of screening. There are tons of locations for the in-person portion. We took advantage of a small center at our local airport. Within a few weeks, we received our Known Traveler Number which is what we use to book flights. If you are only planning on traveling domestically this is well worth the cost for the stress saving and time saving alone!
Photo by hiurich granja Global Entry
Remember the last time you got off a long-haul flight and that deep sigh of resignation when you saw the 500 other passengers ahead of you at customs? Yup, that line’s moving. Slower than dial-up internet baby. Global Entry can solve that problem by providing expedited processing at Customs and Border Protection when returning to the U.S. after an international flight.
A trusted traveler in the Global Entry program also has a Known Traveler Number (KTN) and can use the kiosks to clear immigration and it all but eliminates wait time. And TSA Precheck is included so put that in your pipe and smoke it! (Well, not during your in-person interview please)
Unlike the other program, everyone in your family must have his or her own membership to take full advantage of Global Entry. If a parent is traveling with a child who doesn’t have Global Entry, that parent will need to use the slower (and obviously less appealing) standard immigration lines with the child.
Get Your Travel Goals Newsletter & BONUS Workbook -
Like TSA Precheck, Global Entry requires you to fill out an online application and participate in an in-person interview. The fee is $100. There are fewer Global Entry enrollment centers so you may have to travel a bit farther than for TSA Precheck. Instead of our local airport, we need to travel to the nearest international airport. The easiest way to find your nearest location is to head to the Global Entry site and search with your zip code.
Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com Which One Should You Get?
If you do any international travel at all, the clear winner is Global Entry. The expedited entry is worth the additional $15 expense. And while the in-person interview may be a bit more challenging you still get all the benefits of TSA Precheck as well. So again to us, the additional effort is worth it.
Photo by Avery Evans Paying for It
While $100 for five years of expedited front-of-the-line security clearance is definitely worth it, that can add up pretty quickly for a family. There are credit cards that offer trusted traveler program reimbursement. If you have multiple cards that provide this service then you get multiple credits toward reimbursement.
Using TSA Precheck and/or Global Entry are key pieces to making your travel experiences better this year and for years to come! Without them, you will be stuck in long lines or overly stressed because of a time crunch. Nobody needs to continue that way. Maybe this year is the year you say YES to easy.
Get Your Travel Goals Newsletter & BONUS Workbook -
If you are making plans for an upcoming international getaway we can help with our post on what you need to know before your next international trip. Or if domestic travel is more your speed right now check out one of our many posts on spots in the U.S.
This is a really great post. I didn't even know about Global Entry. Keep in mind that I don't travel internationally yet, but this makes me feel a bit better about doing it. 🙂 Thanks!
So glad the post helped you feel more comfortable with the process!