Ahead of Thanksgiving Travel, TSA Restates ConfirmID Rules: Travelers Without Acceptable ID May Pay a $45 Fee for Alternative Verification, Valid for a 10-Day Travel Period
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA), headquartered in Springfield, Fairfax County, Virginia, has restated its ConfirmID arrangement ahead of the Thanksgiving travel period: since February 1, 2026, passengers who do not present an acceptable form of identification and still want to fly may pay a $45 fee to use TSA ConfirmID, a modernized alternative identity verification system, to establish identity at security checkpoints. Thanksgiving falls on November 26 this year, and the Sunday after the holiday is typically among the busiest air travel days of the year.
TSA says the $45 fee covers a 10-day travel period. The agency urges travelers who do not have a REAL ID to schedule an appointment at their local motor vehicle department to update their ID as soon as possible, and urges ConfirmID users to pay the fee online before traveling.
Under the process, all travelers without an acceptable ID, including those presenting a non-REAL ID-compliant state driver's license or ID, are referred to the optional ConfirmID process upon check-in and before entering the security line. Travelers using ConfirmID are subject to additional ID verification, screening measures and potential delays, and those who have not paid in advance face longer delays that may result in a missed flight, TSA says.
Adam Stahl, the senior official performing the duties of deputy administrator of TSA, said in the agency's announcement that ConfirmID is an option for travelers who do not bring a REAL ID or other acceptable form of ID, and that the fee ensures non-compliant travelers, rather than taxpayers, cover the cost of the process. Acceptable forms of ID include REAL ID-compliant driver's licenses, U.S. passports and passport cards, Department of Defense IDs and DHS trusted traveler cards; the full list is published on TSA's website. REAL ID enforcement at U.S. airports began on May 7, 2025.
来源：美国运输安全管理局 TSA（官方） https://www.tsa.gov/news/press/releases/2026/01/15/45-fee-option-for-air-travelers-without-real-id-begins-february-1 ；ConfirmID 说明页 https://www.tsa.gov/tsaconfirm-id/about-confirmid
Source: Transportation Security Administration
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：TSA安检通道。DHSgov，公共领域，经 Wikimedia Commons。 / Photo: A TSA security checkpoint. By DHSgov, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
