By Michelle Hackman and Allison Pohle
Air travelers without a REAL ID will be required to pay a $45 fee to pass through airport security starting on Feb. 1.
Under the new policy, travelers who hold an older form of ID will be required to pay the fee on pay.gov and show a receipt at an initial Transportation Security Administration checkpoint, the agency said Monday. They will then need to confirm their identity through a TSA system known as TSA Confirm ID, which can check a person's identity against passport data and other personally identifying information.
TSA officials said they felt that the public has been given enough time to acclimate to the new rules for REAL IDs. They set the enforcement date for after the holiday season to ensure that families, who travel less often, learn about the change.
The fee will cover a 10-day period -- sufficient for most round-trip flights -- and must be paid before the traveler arrives at the airport.
The TSA began requiring a REAL ID-upgraded driver's license, identification card or another compliant ID, such as a passport, on May 7. Since then, the TSA said, compliance has been high. Roughly 94% of fliers have presented an acceptable form of identification since the requirement went into effect.
Travelers who don't have a compliant ID have been subject to additional screening measures, and can be denied access to their flights if their identities can't be confirmed.
The federal government pushed the REAL ID enforcement deadline back three times during the Covid-19 pandemic. The federal government set out the REAL ID requirements in 2005 through legislation crafted in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Write to Michelle Hackman at michelle.hackman@wsj.com and Allison Pohle at allison.pohle@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 01, 2025 11:54 ET (16:54 GMT)
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