Attention, traveler, your next flight may cost you more because the TSA wants to fine users who arrive at the checkpoint without a Real ID, without a passport or without any approved document… 18 dollars you would have to pay for a biometric machine to confirm who you are. This is not new, of course, it already appeared in the Federal Register, and they want to speed up the checkpoints and prevent agents from continuing to verify identities by hand, a process the TSA describes as “slow, heavy and exhausting.”

And with this payment, the passenger would have permission to fly for a maximum of 10 days, but even if you pay it, if the alternative verification has any problem, you would be stuck on the ground.

A new charge?

Yes. The TSA wants to “punish” those people who arrive without the proper documentation at TSA checkpoints, and they will use a biometric kiosk called “Modernized Alternative Identity Verification.” Here they will verify that your face is yours and not somebody else’s, and this process will cost you 18 dollars. Money that is not refunded, that gives you the right to fly for 10 days but does not guarantee anything at all if the system does not manage to verify you.

Yes, you could pay and still not fly just because the system does not recognize you (and you would lose the money, as we told you before). Of course, the agency shields itself and insists that this payment would cover part of the cost of implementing these kiosks and would greatly reduce the workload of current staff…

It is Real ID’s fault

Since May 2025, to fly within the United States you have to carry your Real ID, your passport or a compatible license approved by DHS, you already know this or we assume you know this, because it has been in place since May 7 and postponed for almost 20 years!!

Well, after so many years with the proposal, many travelers still have not updated their identification, and this causes chaos, lines, anger and agents even more overwhelmed than usual. So, now that the holiday season is coming, the TSA wants to make sure it reduces waiting times as much as possible(because they estimate that many millions of travelers will move around the country to celebrate Thanksgiving), and the solution they came up with is that users who still have not joined Real ID must pay.

How does the biometric kiosk work?

It will be like an ATM but one that scans your face, very simple. You will approach the kiosk, you will pay the 18 dollars, your biometric data will be analyzed and if it matches with official databases, you will pass as if nothing. If not, you will stay in the airport.

What do they intend?

In order:

1. Reduce waiting times,
2. Prevent fraudulent identifications,
3. And free agents for more critical tasks at the checkpoints

But they also admit and warn that this system will not replace real documents and that it will only be a “patch” for those who arrive without them.

What do the experts say?

For many experts, like Daniel Green (Faye Travel Insurance), it is not surprising, but others believe that it is a very aggressive push to force passengers to get up to date with Real ID (had they not had time???).

Sarah Silbert, from Points Path, warns travelers that they must update their information as soon as possible to avoid these scares when passing the checkpoint.

When will they start charging the 18 dollars?

There is still no date because the public comment period has now opened, they will test the opinion of travelers and will officially announce when the program begins once they analyze the data. Even so, many believe that it will begin to be activated in January, just before the peak of travel between winter and spring.

If you are still without a Real ID at the end of 2025, then you cannot complain about having to pay 18 dollars for facial recognition, we have spent months explaining how Real ID works and how necessary it is to take domestic flights!