It’s Official—Costco’s Rumored Policy Change Is Now Live in Stores

You may not make it past the door.

As a Costco member, you know that your membership card will more than likely be checked by a team member at some point during your visit. It's always been the case that you have to be a member to shop at Costco, despite hacks that have always circulated about how to shop at the big box store without that invaluable card.

One such way was to share memberships, and while it’s always technically been against the rules to do so, certain Costco locations didn’t enforce it heavily. But since last year, the wholesale club has been cracking down on the policy. Rumors of card scanning started a few months ago. And now, Costco has made an official announcement on its site, stating, "Over the coming months, membership scanning devices will be used at the entrance door of your local warehouse. Once deployed, prior to entering, all members must scan their physical or digital membership card..."

Why Is Costco Scanning Membership Cards at the Entrance?

Scanning memberships at the door is a tool to help keep non-members out so they don't get turned down at checkout. Typically, Costco membership cards are scanned at the end of the shopping trip, in line prior to final payment. Checking memberships at the door as opposed to the checkout likely saves the wholesale club employees time restocking items when the membership cards actually belong to someone else.

While the more stringent entrance rules may upset some people, many paying members and employees alike are grateful for the new policy.

When asked for opinions on the update, commentators on a social media post showing a new scanner in the wild explained, "This is a great idea, I'm tired of [waiting] in line at the register for a non-member holding it up arguing with the staff trying to get [their] way."

By and large, members are welcoming the change, simply stating, "love it." An employee even added it's "the best thing ever. I work for Costco."

Whether or not your local Costco now employs a card scanner at the door, not much will change for members. You’ll still be able to access all the food court pizza and bakery goodies you desire. And who knows—maybe the change will even result in some shorter lines at checkout (especially considering membership prices are going up soon).

Read the original article on All Recipes.