TSA says PreCheck ‘remains operational’ after DHS said it was ending program during shutdown

TSA PreCheck will continue to function at U.S. airports during the partial government shutdown, officials announced on Sunday, despite the Trump administration previously saying the expedited check-in program would be paused.

“At this time, TSA PreCheck remains operational with no change for the traveling public,” the Transportation Security Administration wrote in a statement on X. “As staffing constraints arise, TSA will evaluate on a case by case basis and adjust operations accordingly.”

Earlier Sunday, the Department of Homeland Security said the program would be temporarily halted, citing “emergency measures to preserve limited funds” during the shutdown and a need to “refocus Department personnel on the majority of travelers.”

The Independent has requested comment from DHS and the TSA on what prompted the apparent change.

TSA PreCheck lets paid subscribers access shorter security lines with less intensive screening at the airport. It had more than 20 million active users in 2024.

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Other government travel programs and services remain paused, including Global Entry processing and courtesy escorts for members of Congress and their families, according to DHS.

Chris Sununu, CEO of the industry group Airlines for America, argued in a statement on Sunday that travelers are being “used as a political football amid another government shutdown.”

“The announcement was issued with extremely short notice to travelers, giving them little time to plan accordingly, which is especially troubling at this time of record air travel,” he wrote.

“It’s past time for Congress to get to the table and get a deal done that ensures TSA can fully operate and their frontline employees can be paid for the important work they do to keep our skies secure.”

Funding for DHS, which oversees TSA, expired February 14, as Democrats in Congress pushed to impose new limitations on aggressive immigration enforcement after agents fatally shot U.S. citizens Alex Pretti and Renee Good last month in Minnesota.

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Since then, most DHS headquarters staff has been furloughed, and TSA airport employees have been working without pay.

Officials in both parties blamed the other side for the shutdown.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem accused Democrats of putting “politics over public safety.”

“This is the third time that Democrat politicians have shut down this department during the 119th Congress,” she said in a statement. “Shutdowns have real world consequences, not just for the men and women of DHS and their families who go without a paycheck, but it endangers our national security.”

Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer accused the Trump administration of using “bullying tactics.”

“The Trump administration is choosing to inflict pain on the public instead of adopting common sense ICE reforms,” he said in a statement. “In the 43-day historic Trump government shutdown, DHS never changed the Global Entry program’s status. Democrats are fighting against this exact kind of abuse.”

The confusion over PreCheck comes at a time of heightened scrutiny towards DHS.

The department has faced widespread criticism over its military-style immigration enforcement tactics, and a recent exposé accused Secretary Noem of carrying on an affair with a top adviser, which she denies.