By: Alex Wagenberg
On Saturday, February 21, 2026, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem announced that both TSA PreCheck and Global Entry would be suspended on Sunday, February 22. This is a direct consequence of an ongoing partial government shutdown that began February 13. The rationale offered by Noem was that TSA and CBP should “focus on the general traveling public” rather than offering “courtesy and special privilege escorts.” Within hours of the announcement, however, DHS reversed course on TSA PreCheck after significant industry backlash. Geoff Freeman, the CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, said he is happy that DHS reversed the suspension, avoiding “a crisis of its own making.” As of today, TSA PreCheck is operational, but Global Entry remains fully suspended, with updates coming sparsely as the DHS website is also halted due to the shutdown.
TSA PreCheck is an expedited airport security screening program administered by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) that allows pre-vetted, low-risk travelers to move through domestic security checkpoints faster. It is available only to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, and lawful permanent residents. To enroll, applicants complete an online application, pay a $76.75-$85 fee, schedule an in-person background check at one of more than 1,000 enrollment centers, and then receive a Known Traveler Number (KTN) valid for five years, and thereby become eligible for the expedited lines.
Global Entry is a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Trusted Traveler Program that gives pre-approved travelers expedited re-entry into the United States after traveling abroad. It is more rigorous in its vetting process than PreCheck, with the background check cross-referencing more databases and using internationally available resources. The fee is $120 for five years, and enrollment automatically includes TSA PreCheck benefits. Global Entry also has reciprocal benefits with the other international trusted traveler equivalents.
The legal impact here is significant. Suspending a paid, pre-vetted program while continuing to subject its members to standard screening could constitute arbitrary and disparate government treatment. While air travel itself is not a constitutionally protected right, the withdrawal of a paid government benefit during an unrelated political dispute implicates Fifth Amendment due process. Over 20 million PreCheck members and 13 million Global Entry members enrolled in good faith, paid fees, and underwent background vetting, so they have a cognizable interest in the continued provision of those services. Additionally, suspending these services mid-membership raises potential breach of contract and administrative law claims under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), as enrollees received a government-promised benefit in exchange for payment.
Domestically, DHS’s initial move to shutter PreCheck lanes shows that the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) protected right to receive purchased services can be functionally voided by an executive agency decision during a funding lapse, with no immediate legal remedy for the traveler. There is no compensation mechanism for issues from TSA, as DOT’s refund and compensation rules apply to airline conduct, not government agency failures. Therefore, no present protection rule entitles the traveler to compensation from TSA or DOT.
The suspension of Global Entry also affects international travelers from over 20 countries who rely on automated kiosks, raising potential treaty and administrative obligations. Australia’s SmartGate, the UK’s Registered Traveller, South Korea’s SES, and others are practically disrupted as well. Foreign nationals from countries like Germany and the Netherlands who were enrolled in Global Entry through bilateral agreements with CBP are also now affected. Customs processing times at major airports have already jumped for many returning Global Entry members who are now routed to standard lines.
This Global Entry shutdown illustrates a structural blind spot in international aviation law. The Convention for the Unification of Certain Rules for International Carriage by Air, known as the Montreal Convention 1999 (MC99), is the foundational multilateral treaty governing legal liability in international air travel. As of today, 141 states, including the United States, the entire European Union, Canada, Australia, Japan, and the UK, are signatories. However, MC99 was designed to protect international travelers from negligent airlines, not governments in a shutdown. The Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) generally immunizes the federal government from suits arising from discretionary governmental functions, and the decision to suspend Global Entry during a budget impasse is precisely the kind of executive discretionary act that courts have historically shielded from liability. Even if a creative legal argument could find a way to apply MC99’s provisions to cover customs-induced delay, it would certainly conflict with U.S. sovereign immunity.
Unfortunately for current travelers, the existing legal instruments were not built to address a government suspending its own fee-based programs for political reasons. The FTCA’s discretionary function exception blocks most tort claims, and APA challenges, while theoretically available, move far too slowly to help affected members in real time. Ultimately, this complication to travel is harmful to the travel industry, impacts the economy and, ironically, negatively affects political appeal. The more durable fix is legislative. Congress should protect trusted traveler programs, giving them exemption from shutdown and establishing some form of refund or membership-extension mechanism whenever a suspension occurs.
