My state doesn't have an enhanced DL program so in order to apply I would have to either show my passport or my birth certificate. The first line of Pre-check application says that the name on the application must exactly match "Legal Name must match exactly on all identification documents brought to enrollment." IE my passport name.

I undertand changing the info on the flight booking (name on the reservation is under which I think is where the secure flight data is entered)but when the time came to travel my ID (DL) would not match the name that was on the pre-check.
What am I missing?

PreCheck works even for people in your kind of situation. It's just that the reliability of getting PreCheck LLL may not be as high as if using the name as in the passport and/or birth certificate.

The name field for secure flight data is totally separate from the name on the reservation. You can enroll using passport ne, and get precheck by entering your name as in passport in the Secure Flight Data fields. You don't change the name of your FF account though and thus your reservation/BP will have your name as on your DL but you get PreCheck.

But if you name on the boarding pass does not match the name on the ID it's a trip back to the ticket counter.
Happens all the time when my co-workers get gate passes and they are making up 100 of them bound to be errors. We can't use Pre or KTN's.

Even with GE, passport name doesn't matter: your GE profile name is what matters, and that can be separate from the passport name (similarly with DOB and other personal data).

There is a margin of name differences that don't inhibit PreCheck LLL outcomes by very much; and there is a margin of name differences that very much inhibit LLL outcomes. The specific circumstances can also matter.

And I'm speaking of name differences amongst ticketed name, SecureFlight name, and GOES/GE name.

The name on the reservation needs to match ID. The name in the secure flight data field needs to match what is on file with Precheck/GE. These are NOT the same fields and can be different.

Must I use middle name?
 

My middle name is on my passport. When buying tickets, sometimes I use it sometimes not. Some of my airline profiles have it, some not. I want to apply for GE. Do I HAVE TO use my middle name on the application, because it's on my passport? If so, will I always have to use middle name when buying tickets also? (And change my profiles if it's missing?) Thanks!

GE matches via passport number.

TSA PreCheck does require name matching to a certain extent. I've had tickets booked my corporate TA without my middle name which is on my passport, DL & Nexus card and still received PreCheck. But having a uniformed platform of profiles and such does tend to make it easier.

I alerted a MOD to consider moving this to the Trusted Traveler forum.

Basically no. No one will ever notice or care whether a middle name is being used (or, for that matter, if first and middle names are reversed.)

Thank you for your quick responses! Reading around the forum, it seemed everything had to match the Global Entry info, or risk not getting TSAcheck.
So your experience is that my carrier profiles, tickets and GE info can vary, as to whether my middle name is included - or not?

Thank you for your help!

Well the GE kiosks match by passport number so middle name being present or not isn't an issue.
For TSA PreCheck the info in the airline computer's Secure Flight section is what counts. The name should match what is on your GE/Nexus card. Missing middle names don't necessarily mean you won't get PreCheck. But this varies by experience.

While it remains anecdotal, this is not so if one uses GE for Pre-Check. It appears that there is a significantly higher deselection rate when there is not an exact name match between the name under which the ticket is booked and the name underlying the TTN.

Thus, it makes sense to have an exact match between the name on your passport, GE, and in your air carrier profiles. It is simple to accomplish and eliminate extraneous periods and spaces and only need be done once.

If the question is whether you will be denied entry, you won't. If the question is whether you will be denied boarding, you won't. But, it appears that it you want to maintain 100% Pre-Check (or thereabouts), you should.

Thank you for the info. Just what I needed to know!

TSA precheck: middle name match
 

I want to get TSA precheck. The docs I'll be using are a drivers license and birth certificate.

The DL has my middle initial. The BC has my full middle name. My strong impression reading this forum is that that's not going to work. Is that true?