TTPRADARTouchless ID is an opt-in step you take in your airline profile, not in your Global Entry account. You need your Known Traveler Number (KTN), your passport number and your passport country saved with the airline. Once TSA confirms your enrollment, a Touchless ID indicator appears on your boarding pass.
This post assumes your membership is already active. If you are still waiting on Global Entry itself, the Global Entry guide library covers the application and interview steps.
What Touchless ID is
TSA describes Touchless ID as the PreCheck option that uses your face as ID. At a participating checkpoint, the officer compares your face to the passport photo associated with your profile, rather than examining a physical document.
It is tied to a KTN held in an airline profile. Global Entry is a recognized source of that number, and Alaska Airlines names it as an example of where the KTN comes from. Your Global Entry number is on your CBP Global Entry membership.
How to opt in with your airline
Opt-in happens through the airline, because the airline holds the profile TSA matches against. The steps below are Alaska's.
- Sign in to your Mileage Plan account.
- Add your passport number and your KTN under travel documents.
- Opt in from the profile settings.
Opting in means giving explicit consent to use your biometric data for identity verification. You can opt out at any time. After you opt in, a Touchless Identity icon shows on your electronic boarding pass at an eligible airport.
Other airlines
Expect the same ingredients elsewhere: KTN, passport number and passport country in the profile, plus an opt-in. The exact menus and wording differ by airline, so look in the profile or the airline's help pages for Touchless ID. We have not confirmed whether each airline requires its own separate opt-in, so check with each carrier you fly rather than assuming one setup carries across.
The passport requirement
Alaska requires an eligible passport saved in your profile, and TSA's guidance lists passport number and country as required fields. The face comparison runs against that passport photo, so the profile needs those details.
Which airlines and airports take part
TSA lists six participating airlines: American, Alaska, Delta, Hawaiian, Southwest and United. It says the program covers 65 airports.
We are not listing the airports. The set changes, and a stale list would send you to a checkpoint that does not have the lane. Use the Touchless ID page and map linked from TSA PreCheck for the current airports, and confirm your own airline's participation before you rely on it.
Check before you fly
TSA suggests looking for the Touchless ID indicator on your boarding pass at least 24 hours before departure. The indicator appears once enrollment is confirmed, and you need it to use the dedicated lane.
If it is missing, you have time to fix things. Check that your KTN, passport number and passport country are all in the airline profile and that the opt-in is on. Your KTN also has to be on the reservation itself for PreCheck to print on the boarding pass.
What to do if it fails
If the officer cannot verify you by facial comparison, they fall back to standard ID verification. You then present an acceptable physical ID.
This is also why Touchless ID never replaces your ID. TSA says to carry a REAL ID-compliant physical ID and show it if an officer asks. Pack it as if the face lane did not exist.