TSA rules, REAL ID, PreCheck and Global Entry, in plain English

Liquids, aerosols, gels, creams and pastes in your carry-on must be in containers of 3.4 ounces (100 milliliters) or less, all of them fitting inside a single quart-size, clear, zip-top bag — one bag per passenger. Toothpaste, shampoo, conditioner, mouthwash, lotion and similar items all count. Anything bigger than 3.4 oz goes in checked baggage.

Medications and infant/child nourishment are exempt from the bag, but tell the officer and present them separately. Pack your liquids bag in an outer pocket so it is the first thing you reach for.

Full rule: TSA Liquids, Aerosols and Gels Rule.

Firearms and ammunition are checked-baggage only, must be unloaded, locked in a hard-sided container, and declared to the airline. Fireworks are prohibited in carry-on and checked bags. Box cutters, utility knives and loose razor blades do not belong in a carry-on — enclosed safety-cartridge razor blades are fine.

Lithium batteries and power banks generally travel in the cabin, not the hold. If you are carrying anything unusual, look it up before you pack on TSA’s “What Can I Bring?” list.

On an inbound international trip you may carry duty-free liquids over 3.4 oz in your carry-on if they were purchased internationally, sealed by the retailer in a transparent, tamper-evident bag, and you have the original receipt showing a purchase within the last 48 hours. If the bag looks opened or an item alarms, it will not be allowed through — so when in doubt, put it in checked baggage.

TSA’s AskTSA team answers questions 365 days a year, with live help from 8 am to 6 pm Eastern: on X at @AskTSA, on Facebook Messenger at fb.com/AskTSA, or by texting the word “Travel” to 275-872. Ask us too — we deal with these questions every week and can often save you a bag being confiscated at the checkpoint.

REAL ID enforcement began May 7, 2025. To board federally regulated commercial aircraft, your state-issued driver’s license or ID card must carry the REAL ID compliance star marking — or you must present another acceptable document such as a U.S. passport, passport card, Enhanced Driver’s License, permanent resident card, or federal/military ID.

A standard license without the star is still a valid ID for other purposes; it just cannot be your only document at the checkpoint. If you show up with an expired or non-compliant ID, TSA may run additional identity verification and you should plan for extra time. Details: TSA REAL ID FAQ.

Look for a star marking, usually at the top of the card. A gold or black star in the upper corner means compliant. If yours has no star, your state’s licensing agency can upgrade it — or you can travel with your passport instead. We flag this in your trip checklist so it never becomes a day-of-travel surprise.

TSA does not require passengers under 18 to present ID when traveling with a companion who does. Your airline’s own rules still apply, and international travel always requires the child’s own passport. If you are traveling with a minor who is not your own child, ask us about a notarized consent letter — some countries are strict about it.

Tell the TSA officer at the checkpoint. They can run identity verification against public and private databases and, if you clear it, you can still fly — expect additional screening and give yourself a wide time buffer. A passport or passport card in your bag is the cleanest backup.

It gives you access to dedicated, faster security lanes at participating U.S. airports: you leave shoes, belts and light jackets on, leave laptops and 3-1-1 liquids bags inside your carry-on, and walk through without the full unpack. TSA reports that about 99% of PreCheck passengers wait less than 10 minutes.

Five years of benefits for $85 or less. The exact price depends on which authorized enrollment provider you use (CLEAR, IDEMIA or Telos) — for example, IDEMIA currently lists new enrollment at $76.75 for five years, with cheaper online renewals. Renewal pricing also varies by provider. Fees change, so confirm on the provider page before you pay.

Start the application online (about five minutes), then book an in-person appointment or walk in to a location near you. The in-person step takes roughly ten minutes: they check your documents, take fingerprints and a photo, and collect payment.

Once approved you receive a Known Traveler Number (KTN). Put that KTN in every airline reservation and frequent-flyer profile — PreCheck only appears on your boarding pass if the number is attached to the booking. Official starting point: TSA PreCheck at tsa.gov.

No. Children 17 and under can come through the PreCheck lane with an enrolled adult at no cost, as long as the PreCheck indicator is on the child’s boarding pass. Enrolling a child is only worth it if they sometimes travel without you.

Not always. It is not guaranteed on every trip — it depends on the airline participating, the airport, and whether your KTN is attached to that specific reservation. Occasionally a traveler is selected for standard screening even with an active membership. If your boarding pass does not show PreCheck, head to the regular lane.

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection program for pre-approved, low-risk travelers. On arrival from abroad you use a kiosk or face technology instead of standing in the passport line, and it includes TSA PreCheck for your departures. Minors can be added by a parent or guardian at no cost.

A $120 one-time, non-refundable fee for five years, paid when you submit the application. Every traveler — including children — needs their own Trusted Traveler Programs account.

The steps: create a TTP account, complete the application and pay, wait for conditional approval, then schedule an in-person interview at an enrollment center. Bring your valid passport plus one other form of ID. Apply only through the official site: ttp.cbp.dhs.gov.

CBP says about 80% of applications are approved within two weeks, but some take twelve months or longer. That is exactly why we recommend applying before you book an international trip rather than after — and why interview appointments are worth grabbing early.

CBP may deny applicants who give false or incomplete information, have a criminal conviction, charge or pending warrant, have violated customs, immigration or agriculture laws in any country, are under active investigation, have been denied a firearm purchase, have received a criminal pardon, or are otherwise unable to satisfy CBP of their low-risk status. Approval is never guaranteed — the fee is non-refundable even if you are denied. Full criteria: Global Entry FAQ at cbp.gov.

If you leave and re-enter the U.S. by air more than about once a year, Global Entry is the better value because it bundles PreCheck with expedited arrival clearance for the same five-year term.

If you only fly domestically, PreCheck alone is cheaper and skips the interview wait. Related programs, all five years: NEXUS ($120) for frequent Canada crossings, SENTRI ($120) for frequent Mexico crossings, and FAST ($50) for pre-approved commercial truck drivers.

Many premium travel cards credit the application fee as a stated benefit, usually once every four or five years and often only when the fee is charged to that card. Check your card’s benefit terms before paying — it is one of the easiest ways to make the program free. We can’t approve your card, but we can remind you to look before you apply.

Routine and expedited processing times change with demand and season, so check the current clocks on travel.state.gov before you book. Tell us your travel dates and we will tell you honestly whether the timeline is realistic, or whether you should shift the trip.

A passport book is required for international air travel. A passport card is cheaper and handy, but valid only for land and sea travel between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda — it cannot be used to fly internationally.

Many countries require your passport to be valid for six months beyond your stay, and some require blank pages. A passport that is technically valid can still get you denied boarding. We check both rules for every destination on your itinerary and flag them in your trip checklist.

It depends on your citizenship and your destination — some countries require a visa in advance, some sell one on arrival, some use an online travel authorization, and some are visa-free for short stays. Never assume. Send us your passport nationality and full route and we will tell you exactly what each stop needs, with the official government page for each one.

The Smart Traveler Enrollment Program is a free service from the U.S. State Department that lets the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate contact you if there is an emergency abroad, and helps family reach you. Enrollment takes about five minutes at step.state.gov. We recommend it for every international trip, and it is especially useful for cruises and multi-country routes.

For general safety, entry requirements and embassy contacts, the authoritative source is travel.state.gov.

Book under the name on the ID you will actually carry on travel day. If your passport still shows your previous name, book in that name — even if your driver’s license has already changed. Airlines and TSA only care that the reservation and the ID match each other, character for character.

If you have already booked in your new name but your documents are still in your old one, contact the airline about a name correction immediately — many allow a legal name-change correction with documentation, but it gets harder and more expensive as departure approaches, and some tickets cannot be changed at all.

If your current passport was issued less than a year ago, you can usually update it by mail with form DS-5504, your marriage certificate or divorce decree, and a new photo — at no fee for routine service. Older passports use form DS-82 (renewal by mail) or DS-11 (in person) with the same legal proof of the name change.

Processing takes weeks, so sequence it around your trips: travel on the old passport with matching tickets first, then update. Full instructions: Change or Correct a Passport at travel.state.gov.

Each one has to be updated separately, and the order matters:

1. Driver’s license or REAL ID. Start here, because other agencies ask to see it. Bring your marriage certificate or court order to your state BMV or DMV and they will reissue the card in your new name.

2. Passport. Follow the steps in the previous answer once your license is updated.

3. TSA PreCheck and Global Entry. Your membership stays in your old name until you update it. Log in to your Trusted Traveler Programs account to start the change — Global Entry members usually finish it in person at an enrollment center with the legal document. Until the change is complete, keep booking flights in the name your membership is under, or PreCheck may not appear on your boarding pass.

4. Loyalty accounts. Update your airline frequent-flyer and hotel profiles too, so your points and PreCheck keep attaching to new reservations.

Yes — carry a certified copy of your marriage certificate or divorce decree whenever any of your documents are mid-transition. If a cruise line, resort or border officer questions a mismatch between bookings and ID, that document resolves it in seconds. Tell us about a recent name change when you book and we will make sure every reservation, transfer and excursion uses the right name from the start.

Domestically, TSA does not require ID for travelers under 18 flying with an adult companion, though airlines may ask for proof of age for lap infants (a birth certificate copy works). Internationally, every child needs their own passport book — no exceptions, and children’s passports are only valid for five years.

Passports for children under 16 require both parents or guardians to consent, usually in person with the child. Details: Passports for Minors at travel.state.gov.

For domestic flights within the U.S., no consent letter is required — a copy of the child’s birth certificate is enough to show the relationship if you and your child have different last names.

For international travel, there is no single U.S. requirement, but many other countries ask for proof that both parents approve of the trip. The safe default is a notarized consent letter from the other parent with their contact details and the travel dates and destinations. If you have sole legal custody, carry the custody order instead; if the other parent is deceased, a copy of the death certificate. Requirements differ by destination — some countries (Canada, Mexico and much of Central and South America among them) ask for these documents at check-in or the border, so check the destination country’s entry rules before you fly. Official guidance: Traveling with Children at travel.state.gov.

The same rule applies: a notarized consent letter signed by both parents or legal guardians, plus copies of the child’s birth certificate and a letter authorizing the accompanying adults to make medical decisions in an emergency. Include insurance cards and any medication details. We provide a checklist for this exact situation whenever a minor travels without both parents on a trip we book.

Check your custody order first — many require the other parent’s written permission or advance notice before international travel, and leaving without it can have serious legal consequences, including international parental child abduction rules under the Hague Convention. When a passport application is involved, either parent can also enroll the child in the State Department’s Children’s Passport Issuance Alert Program. We are not attorneys and cannot give legal advice — for custody questions, talk to your lawyer before booking.

Yes, under each airline’s unaccompanied-minor program — typically for ages 5 to 14, with an extra fee, escorted handoffs, and restrictions on connections and red-eye flights. Teens 15–17 can usually fly alone as adults or opt into the program. Rules and fees differ widely by airline, so tell us the child’s age and route and we will match you with the airline whose program fits best.

No — those applications must come from you, with your own documents and biometrics, and are reviewed by the government. What we do is tell you which one fits your travel, flag the fee-reimbursement benefit on your card, keep your KTN and TTP details on file so they are attached to every reservation, and remind you to apply before your next international trip instead of after.

Yes. Before you fly, your trip checklist covers the documents, ID, passport-validity, visa and checkpoint items that apply to your specific route and dates — plus your destination’s local laws, safety notes and the nearest hospitals and clinics. You are never left to piece this together from a search engine the night before.

We are typically paid a commission by the travel supplier when you book, at no added cost to you. For non-commissionable arrangements — such as some private rentals — a service charge may apply for the research and planning involved. You can see how we are compensated on the compensation section of our home page.

Sometimes — that decision belongs to the supplier, not to us. Resorts, cruise lines and tour operators set their own deposit and installment terms, and what is available depends on your travel dates, the date you book and the property you choose. Travel departing within 60 days is usually paid in full at booking, and some properties never offer a payment schedule at all. Before you commit, we tell you the exact deposit, payment deadlines and final-payment date your supplier has confirmed for your trip.

Send it to us. A thirty-minute consultation is free, and there is no obligation to book — some of the best conversations we have are with travelers who just want a second opinion on a document, a layover, or whether a deal is real.