TSA to Impose $18 Fee on Travelers Without REAL ID
21st November 2025
The Transportation Security Administration has introduced an $18 fee for airline passengers who reach airport checkpoints without acceptable identification, a policy that strengthens REAL ID enforcement as holiday travel picks up.
The agency’s notice says the fee applies to travelers who lack documents such as a passport or a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license. The program creates an alternative identity-verification process that may allow passengers to enter the sterile area of an airport if TSA can confirm their identity.
The fee is nonrefundable and covers the government’s verification expenses.
Yet another reason not to fly … at least on a commercial airling.
If I were President, my first action would be to abolish the TSA.