Quick Take: Gateside by TSA PreCheck lets eligible members apply for free access beyond airport security even when they aren't flying. The program is currently available at 13 named airports, including Los Angeles, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit, Las Vegas, San Diego and Salt Lake City. Apply one to three days before the visit using your Known Traveler Number, then check the online dashboard for approval. An approved pass is valid for one calendar day and allows re-entry, but it isn't a boarding pass, a lounge membership or guaranteed admission. Airport limits, checkpoint hours and security conditions still control.
Airport goodbyes don't have to end at the security checkpoint anymore—at least not everywhere.
The Transportation Security Administration has launched Gateside by TSA PreCheck, a centrally managed way for eligible non-travelers to enter secure terminal areas at participating airports. That means a parent can walk a family member toward the gate, a friend can meet someone during a long layover or a local visitor can use restaurants and shops beyond security without buying a plane ticket.
It's a nice addition, but it isn't a walk-in visitor pass. You need an eligible Known Traveler Number, advance approval and an acceptable ID. The airport can also run out of passes for the day.
How Gateside by TSA PreCheck Works
The application process is separate from ordinary airline check-in:
- Open the official Gateside by TSA PreCheck page.
- Create or sign in to a Login.gov account.
- Select a participating airport and a visit date one to three days away.
- Enter the requested personal information and your Known Traveler Number, or KTN.
- Add any children who will visit with you to the same registration.
- Submit the request and return to the dashboard to see whether it was approved.
- On the approved date, bring an acceptable ID and use the TSA PreCheck lane designated by the airport.
TSA says the pass is free. It lasts for one calendar day and can be used for re-entry on that date. You aren't purchasing a ticket or making a flight reservation.
Don't confuse eligibility with approval. TSA says each airport limits the number of passes it issues, and security or operational conditions can affect access. A valid PreCheck membership gets you through the first door of the application; it doesn't guarantee a pass for a specific airport and date.
Your dashboard matters: TSA's instructions say to return to the application dashboard for the approval result. Travelers may need to sign in and display the live approval status at the checkpoint, especially when children are included. A screenshot or printout may not be accepted, so arrive with a charged phone, working login and access to the email or authentication method connected to Login.gov.
The 13 Airports TSA Currently Names
TSA's public page currently lists these participating airports:
- AZA: Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport.
- CMH: John Glenn Columbus International Airport.
- DFW: Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.
- DTW: Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport.
- ICT: Wichita Dwight D. Eisenhower National Airport.
- IND: Indianapolis International Airport.
- LAS: Harry Reid International Airport.
- LAX: Los Angeles International Airport.
- LIT: Bill and Hillary Clinton National Airport.
- OKC: Will Rogers International Airport.
- OMA: Eppley Airfield.
- SAN: San Diego International Airport.
- SLC: Salt Lake City International Airport.
TSA says more airports will be added in phases. Check the live list before making a plan, because airport participation and the checkpoints used for entry can change.
There is one odd detail worth flagging. A sentence in TSA's FAQ says the initial launch includes 14 airports, but the agency's visible list names only the 13 above. Until TSA adds another airport or corrects the count, treat the named list and the options inside the application portal as the usable source—not the unexplained number 14.
Who Is Eligible?
TSA describes Gateside as a benefit for people who can access TSA PreCheck screening through an eligible KTN. That includes people enrolled directly in TSA PreCheck and members of trusted-traveler programs that include PreCheck eligibility.
If your PreCheck benefit comes from Global Entry, NEXUS or SENTRI, your CBP PASSID functions as your KTN. TSA's KTN lookup guidance explains where to retrieve the number for each program.
Children can join an eligible parent or guardian, but they must be added during the Gateside registration. Don't assume a child who can normally accompany an adult through a PreCheck lane can simply appear with an adult's approved visitor pass.
The new pass doesn't make TSA PreCheck free or change enrollment requirements. If you don't already have eligible access, you'll still need to apply through an authorized provider, complete the identity and background-check process and pay the applicable enrollment fee. TSA's current PreCheck page lists the providers and prices.
What the Pass Is Actually Good For
Walking Someone to a Departure Gate
This is the most obvious use. A parent can help an adult child navigate a large airport, a family can spend more time together before a deployment or long trip, and a friend can accompany a nervous traveler until boarding begins.
Gateside isn't a replacement for an airline-issued escort pass when someone needs formal assistance. Airlines have their own procedures for unaccompanied minors and travelers with disabilities. If the purpose is assistance rather than a social visit, contact the airline and airport first.
Meeting Someone During a Long Layover
A local friend or family member can apply to meet a connecting traveler airside. This can be especially useful when the traveler doesn't have enough time to leave the secure area, travel into the city and clear security again.
Terminal layout matters. At an airport with disconnected secure areas, the pass may not get you to the terminal or concourse where the traveler arrives. Check the airline's terminal, airport map and participating checkpoint before promising an airside lunch.
Greeting an Arriving Traveler
For a domestic arrival, an approved visitor may be able to wait near the gate. International arrivals are more complicated because passengers may move through sterile corridors and customs areas that a Gateside visitor can't enter.
The safest expectation is that the pass provides access to ordinary post-security concourses—not controlled Customs and Border Protection processing areas. Confirm where the arriving passenger will become accessible before choosing a meeting point.
Using Airport Dining and Shopping
TSA explicitly identifies post-security restaurants and stores as valid uses. Whether that is worth parking costs, an advance application and a security screening is a personal call. It may make sense for a special meal or an airport-specific attraction, but most people shouldn't turn a terminal sandwich into a destination.
A Gateside Pass Is Not Lounge Access
Getting through security and getting through a lounge door are two different approvals.
Most airline and credit-card lounges require a same-day boarding pass in addition to the membership, eligible card, status or premium-cabin ticket that normally provides entry. A Gateside pass doesn't replace any of those requirements.
Even if a lounge admits eligible arriving passengers, terminal access alone doesn't prove that a non-flying visitor qualifies. Read the lounge's current entry rules before going to the airport. Don't pay for parking or build a day around a lounge visit based on the security pass alone.
ThePointsPage's Sapphire Lounge access guide is a good example of how specific those rules can be: eligible credentials, same-day travel, entry windows, guests and capacity all matter independently.
What Gateside Does—and Doesn't—Provide:
- Provides: Permission for an approved non-traveler to pass a participating checkpoint on the approved date.
- Provides: Use of the TSA PreCheck lane for Gateside entry.
- Doesn't provide: A plane ticket or authorization to board a flight.
- Doesn't provide: Automatic lounge admission.
- Doesn't provide: Access to every terminal, gate or international-arrivals area.
- Doesn't guarantee: Approval when the airport's daily limit or operational conditions intervene.
You Still Go Through Airport Security
Gateside restores access to the concourse, not the pre-2001 version of airport security.
Visitors are screened and must follow carry-on rules. Liquids, weapons and other prohibited items don't become acceptable because you aren't boarding. TSA's What Can I Bring? database remains the right place to check an item before packing it for the visit.
Bring identification from TSA's current acceptable-ID list. A KTN establishes trusted-traveler eligibility; it isn't a photo ID by itself. Security officers can also require additional screening, and PreCheck never guarantees an identical screening experience every time.
How Gateside Differs From an Airport Visitor Pass
Several airports already run local visitor programs, and airlines may issue escort passes in limited situations. Gateside doesn't erase those programs.
- Gateside by TSA PreCheck: Centrally managed application for eligible KTN holders, with approved users directed to a PreCheck lane.
- Airport visitor program: Local airport rules, eligibility, hours and capacity; users generally go through standard screening unless the program says otherwise.
- Airline escort pass: Issued for a specific operational need, such as assisting an unaccompanied minor or a traveler who needs help.
If Gateside isn't available at your airport, check the airport's official site rather than assuming non-ticketed access is impossible. If you're assisting a traveler, ask the airline which process fits the situation.
Your Day-of-Visit Checklist
- Confirm the approval: Check the live dashboard before leaving home.
- Charge the phone: Be ready to sign in instead of relying on a screenshot.
- Bring acceptable ID: Match the information used in the application.
- Check the terminal: Make sure the participating checkpoint connects to the gate or concourse you need.
- Review checkpoint hours: PreCheck lanes and individual checkpoints don't stay open all day at every airport.
- Pack like a traveler: Follow checkpoint rules for liquids, sharp objects and prohibited items.
- Allow time: Parking, terminal transfers and security screening still take time.
- Set a public-side backup: If access changes or the pass doesn't work, know where you'll meet outside security.
The free thePointsPage Travel Planning Checklist can keep terminal details, arrival times, documents and backup meeting points with the rest of the itinerary. The Tools of the Trade guide helps organize the accounts and travel information that shouldn't live only in a text-message thread.
Getting to the Point(s)
Gateside by TSA PreCheck brings back one of the most human parts of air travel: saying hello or goodbye at the gate.
The program is free, the application is centralized and approved visitors can use PreCheck lanes at 13 currently named airports. The tradeoff is planning. You must apply one to three days ahead, have an eligible KTN, receive approval and carry acceptable identification.
Use the pass for the moment it was designed to improve—a family send-off, a reunion or a meal with someone on a long connection. Just don't mistake access to the concourse for a flight reservation, a guaranteed lounge visit or permission to ignore the normal security rules.
Put the Meeting Point Beside the Flight Details
Use the free travel-planning checklist to record the airport, terminal, visit date, identification and backup meeting point. Follow The Runway as TSA adds airports or changes the Gateside process.
Sources & Further Reading
- Transportation Security Administration — Gateside by TSA PreCheck
- Transportation Security Administration — TSA PreCheck Overview and Enrollment
- Transportation Security Administration — Finding a Known Traveler Number
- Transportation Security Administration — Acceptable Checkpoint Identification
- Transportation Security Administration — What Can I Bring?
- One Mile at a Time — Gateside Program Launch and Participating Airports
- Travel Market Report — Gateside Rollout at 13 Airports
- MilesFeed — Points and Miles News Feed
This article reflects information available on September 8, 2026. TSA currently displays 13 named participating airports, although one sentence on its FAQ refers to 14. Airport participation, pass limits, eligible KTN categories, application timing, checkpoint hours, terminal access and screening procedures can change. Approval isn't guaranteed. Confirm the live airport list and your approval directly through TSA before visiting.
