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TSA to start charging travelers without REAL ID
TSA regional spokesperson Jessica Mayle explains TSA ConfirmID, the agency’s new paid alternate identity verification process for passengers without a REAL ID or other acceptable forms of identification.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Travelers without a REAL ID or passport will soon have a new option to verify their identity at TSA checkpoints, though it comes at a price.
TSA ConfirmID
The backstory:
According to a TSA regional spokesperson at Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport, beginning Feb. 1, passengers without a REAL ID or another acceptable form of identification, such as a passport, will be charged $45 to use TSA’s alternative identity verification system, known as TSA ConfirmID.
This fee must be paid online before arriving at the security checkpoint. Travelers will need to show a payment receipt to TSA officers to proceed. Once verified, passengers will undergo the identity validation process and be screened as usual. However, they may face additional screening due to the lack of a REAL ID.
Passengers who arrive at the checkpoint without proper identification or prior ConfirmID payment will receive a paper QR code directing them to the payment website. The $45 payment is valid for 10 days, allowing multiple uses within that period.
According to TSA’s website, using TSA ConfirmID is optional, but travelers without acceptable identification who choose not to use the service may not be allowed through security and could miss their flight.
The Source: This story uses information from an interview and the TSA website.