A new law extends free TSA PreCheck to certain severely disabled veterans. Active-duty members have always had it free through their Defense Department ID. Gold Star families qualify, too. Here is a complete breakdown of who gets what and what each group needs to do.
How to Get TSA PreCheck for Free
TSA PreCheck, the program that lets travelers keep their shoes on, skip the regular security line, and move through a dedicated fast lane at more than 200 airports, costs $85 for a five-year membership through the standard civilian process. For a growing number of military-connected travelers, it costs nothing. Understanding who qualifies for free enrollment and who does not matters, because the VA’s recent announcement about the benefit has created some confusion about how broadly it applies.
The short answer is that free TSA PreCheck is not available to all veterans. It is available to active-duty military members automatically, to Gold Star families who apply, and — under a law that took effect in 2025 and whose enrollment process the VA formally announced in June 2026 — to certain severely disabled veterans who meet specific medical criteria. Everyone else in the military and veteran community either pays the standard fee or finds other ways to reduce the cost.
Read More: Military Travel Discounts
Active Duty: Already Included, No Application Needed
All uniformed members of the U.S. Armed Forces — active-duty Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Space Force, Coast Guard, National Guard and reserve components — receive TSA PreCheck automatically as a benefit of their status. No enrollment, no fee, no application process.
The mechanism is the DoD ID number. When booking a flight, active-duty members enter their 10-digit Department of Defense identification number in the Known Traveler Number field during reservation. When the TSA PreCheck indicator appears on the boarding pass — shown as TSAPRECHK, TSA PRE, or TSA PreCheck — the member can use the expedited lane. The CAC card itself is not sufficient at the checkpoint; the KTN must be in the reservation.
DoD civilians also receive TSA PreCheck free of charge through the same mechanism. Dependents over 17 who are not themselves DoD-affiliated do not receive the benefit automatically; children 12 and under can use the PreCheck lane with an eligible parent without their own membership.
Read More: Airlines Military Discounts
Severely Disabled Veterans: Free Under the VETS Safe Travel Act
The Veterans Expedited TSA Screening Safe Travel Act, signed into law Jan. 4, 2025, extended free TSA PreCheck enrollment to veterans with qualifying service-connected disabilities. The VA formally announced the program and began issuing eligibility letters in June 2026.
The eligibility requirements are specific and should be read carefully before assuming you qualify. To receive a free enrollment under the VETS Safe Travel Act, a veteran must be enrolled in VA health care; must have a service-connected disability that resulted in permanent blindness, loss of a limb, loss of the use of a limb, full paralysis, or partial paralysis; and must require the use of a VA-issued wheelchair or prosthetic limb as a result of that disability. All three conditions must be met simultaneously.
Veterans with other service-connected disabilities — PTSD, hearing loss, traumatic brain injury, chronic pain, or any condition that does not result in limb loss, paralysis, or blindness requiring a VA-issued device — do not qualify for the fee waiver under this law. They can still enroll in TSA PreCheck through the standard process and pay the enrollment fee.
How to Apply If You Qualify: The VA automatically identifies eligible veterans and uploads an eligibility letter to their VA.gov account. Veterans do not need to request the letter — if you qualify, it will appear there. To access it, sign in to VA.gov, go to Benefits and Healthcare, select Records, then Download your VA benefits letters and download the TSA PreCheck Application Fee Waiver Letter.
Once you have the letter, the enrollment must be completed through IDEMIA, one of TSA’s three authorized PreCheck enrollment providers. This is a critical detail: CLEAR and Telos ID, the other two authorized providers, currently cannot process the fee waiver. Veterans who enroll through CLEAR or Telos and then request a reimbursement will not receive one. The waiver is only available through IDEMIA at this time.
Before scheduling your in-person IDEMIA appointment, email your eligibility letter to IDEMIA’s customer support with the subject line “VETS Safe” to receive an offer code. Then complete the standard enrollment process — a roughly 10-minute in-person appointment for fingerprinting and a photo. Membership is valid for five years and can be renewed at no cost through IDEMIA as long as you remain eligible under the program.
The fee waiver does not guarantee PreCheck enrollment. TSA conducts a standard background check as part of the process, and veterans can still be denied based on criminal history, incomplete application information, or other disqualifying factors. Receiving the VA eligibility letter is a necessary first step, not a final approval.
Gold Star Families: Also Free
Gold Star family members — immediate family of a service member who died in the line of duty — qualify for free TSA PreCheck enrollment under a separate program TSA launched in July 2025. Enrollment is through TSA’s authorized providers and follows a similar process to the VETS Safe Travel Act pathway.
All Other Veterans: Standard Enrollment, Some Discount Paths
Veterans who do not meet the VETS Safe Travel Act criteria and are not Gold Star family members apply for TSA PreCheck through the standard civilian process at $85 for five years. Several credit cards, including a number of travel rewards cards commonly used by military families, reimburse TSA PreCheck enrollment fees as a cardholder benefit. Some loyalty programs also offer fee reimbursement. Before paying out of pocket, it is worth checking whether any existing cards in your wallet cover the cost.
Veterans traveling with prosthetics, wheelchairs or other mobility devices should know that TSA PreCheck provides specific accommodations regardless of how you enrolled. Wheelchair users may remain seated throughout screening; no transfer is required. TSA officers will swab hands and inspect the mobility device. Veterans who need additional assistance at any checkpoint can request it through TSA Cares at 855-787-2227, with a minimum of 72 hours notice before travel recommended.
Veterans with questions about the VETS Safe Travel Act eligibility letter can contact VA through Ask VA at ask.va.gov. Questions about the enrollment process itself should go to TSA at 866-289-9673 or tsa.gov/precheck/military/vets-safe.
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