No REAL ID? That'll cost you $45 under a new TSA rule

TSA agent holding a real ID. — The TSA plans to charge flyers who don't have acceptable ID, like a passport or a REAL ID, $45. Jessica Christian/San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images

The TSA announced a $45 fee for travelers without acceptable ID at airport security checkpoints.
The alternative identity verification system, TSA Confirm.ID is set to be implemented on February 1.
It's unclear how TSA Confirm.ID will work, but it's intended as an option for flyers without a REAL ID.

The Transportation Security Administration has taken a page from the budget airline playbook.

The agency said Monday it is implementing a new alternative identity verification system, TSA Confirm.ID, that would charge travelers $45 at security checkpoints if they show up without a REAL ID or another acceptable government-issued ID, such as a passport or permanent resident card.

The new fee option is set to begin on February 1. The TSA said the fee would cover a 10-day travel period. Details about how the fee and identity verification would work were not yet available. The TSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"TSA urges all travelers who do not have a REAL ID to pay the fee online before traveling," according to a press release about TSA Confirm.ID and the new fee. "For passengers who arrive at the airport without paying the fee, information about how to pay for the TSA Confirm.ID option will be available at marked locations at or near the checkpoint in most airports. Travelers who undergo TSA Confirm.ID processing at an airport should expect delays."

The TSA had previously proposed an $18 fee that would cover the costs for a biometric kiosk system designed to verify a traveler's identity more quickly than the current manual process.

Under that proposal, the TSA said the new technology would be less time and resource-intensive than the current process when a flyer lacks these IDs, which involves providing personal information or answering detailed questions to match flyers to government databases.

"This notice serves as a next step in the process in REAL ID compliance, which was signed into law more than 20 years ago," a TSA spokesperson previously told Business Insider about the $18 fee proposal.

Congress passed the REAL ID Act of 2005 in response to the 9/11 attacks, but it just rolled out in 2025.

In May, the TSA began requiring travelers to present a REAL ID or another government-approved identification to pass through airport security checkpoints.

The TSA says 94% of flyers already use REAL ID or another acceptable form of identification.

The agency is encouraging travelers who do not have a REAL ID to schedule an appointment with their local DMV to update their ID as soon as possible. A REAL ID card shows a star inside a circle in the upper right corner.