TSA to impose fees on travelers who violate the rules starting February 1st

Travelers, please note: Starting February 1, you may be required to pay a fee of $45 or more if you go through airport security without a Real ID or other acceptable travel document.

“It’s not nothing,” John Brehaud, vice president of public policy, telecommunications and fraud at the Consumer Federation of America, a consumer advocacy group, said of the fee. “If you ever needed a reason to get a Real ID-compliant ID, now is the time.”

The Real ID Card is an upgraded driver’s license or state identification card that officials say has tighter security and helps prevent fraudulent identification. It is state-issued and has a star.

Starting May 7, 2025, the federal government began requiring travelers to present a Real ID or another document, such as a U.S. passport or passport card, to board domestic flights or enter certain federal facilities and nuclear power plants.

But February 1 will be the first time the Transportation Security Administration will impose a fee to enforce the rule.

Travelers 18 and older without valid travel documents must pay $45 to use an optional alternative identification system (called TSA confirmID) to board the plane.

When announcing the fees in December, the TSA said about 6% of travelers do not have a REAL ID or other acceptable identification.

“This is really an enforcement mechanism,” said Sally French, a travel expert at NerdWallet. “This is a huge punishment for travelers who arrive unprepared.”

According to the TSA, authentication through the confirmID system is valid for a 10-day travel period.

If you go through a TSA checkpoint outside of the 10-day period, you will need to pay the TSA confirmID fee again, an agency spokesperson said in an email. In that scenario, a long-term traveler could pay a total of $90.

“If you go to Honolulu for two weeks, you might have to pay to get back,” Blayault said. “Even if it wasn’t bad enough to get a nickel and dime from the airline, now you’re going to get a nickel and dime from the TSA.”

Travelers who do not have a valid ID can complete the confirmID process before arriving at the airport.

You can visit tsa.gov/confirmID and show your pay.gov receipt (printout or screenshot) and government-issued ID to a TSA officer at the airport, the agency said.

Travelers can also pay on-site. However, TSA recommends that travelers pay online before traveling. Failure to do so could result in delays or flight cancellations, the TSA said.

According to the TSA, “Processing can take up to 30 minutes, so it’s important for airline travelers to plan ahead to ensure they have acceptable identification to avoid these additional delays.”

Congress passed the Real ID Act in 2005. This law established minimum security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Blayault said he understands why the government would choose to impose a fee, calling it a good way to incentivize people to comply with Real ID requirements.

But the burden will be felt the most on low- to moderate-income travelers and families with older children, he said. For example, for a family of four, it could cost more than $200 to fly if the children are over 18 and the trip is long, Breyault said.

TSA will not require children under 18 to show identification when traveling within the United States, even if they are traveling alone, the agency said. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, each airline sets its own ID requirements.

Breyault advises consumers: “Be sure to obtain a Real ID-compliant ID from your company (Department of Motor Vehicles) well in advance of your trip. If you don’t have one, make sure you have one of the other acceptable forms of ID.”

The cost of a Real ID varies by state. For example, in New Jersey, it costs $35 to get a Real ID.

TSA estimates that travelers will use the confirmID program approximately 10.6 million times over the next five years.

The agency said in a Dec. 2 report that the $45 fee would generate about $476 million in revenue to offset administrative costs during that time.

Adam Stahl, the official who performs the duties of TSA deputy administrator, said in a recent press release that the fee ensures that “non-compliant travelers, rather than taxpayers, are responsible for the cost of processing travelers who do not have acceptable identification.”

In a Nov. 13 report, TSA originally estimated that travelers would have to pay an $18 fee, less than half the final fare, to cover administrative costs.

Asked for comment on the fees, a TSA spokesperson declined to say why the estimates changed over the course of several weeks.

TSA plans to reevaluate its fee structure every two years “to take into account changing circumstances and compliance rates,” a spokesperson said in an email.