No REAL ID? Know Your $45 Backup — Sanctifly guide to TSA ConfirmID

No REAL ID? Know Your $45 Backup Before You Fly

Team Sanctifly
No REAL ID or other acceptable identification? TSA ConfirmID can provide a $45 identity-verification backup for adult travelers, but it takes extra time and does not guarantee clearance.
You get to the airport, pull out your driver’s license and discover the problem: it isn’t REAL ID compliant. That no longer necessarily means you can’t fly. But resolving the identification issue at the airport can cost $45—and extra time you probably weren’t planning to spend at security.TSA ConfirmID is available for adult travelers who arrive without a REAL ID, passport or another acceptable form of identification. It can be useful as an emergency backup. It shouldn’t be Plan A.

First: check your wallet before you leave

A REAL ID isn’t the only acceptable identification for TSA screening. A valid passport and several other government-issued documents can also qualify. TSA also says it currently accepts certain otherwise acceptable IDs for up to two years after expiration. Before traveling, check TSA’s current acceptable-ID list.

No acceptable ID? Know the ConfirmID option

For eligible adult travelers without acceptable identification, TSA ConfirmID costs $45 per traveler and covers a 10-day travel period beginning on the selected date. Each adult traveler who needs the service completes the process separately.The fee does not guarantee that TSA will successfully verify your identity or allow you through the checkpoint.

Allow extra time

Travelers using ConfirmID should complete the required process before reaching the checkpoint and bring the electronic or printed receipt to the airport. Identity verification averages about 10–15 minutes but can take 30 minutes or longer, so build additional time into your airport plan.Check the dates carefully, too. Once the 10-day period expires, another trip without acceptable identification may require another payment.

The better travel hack: avoid needing it

ConfirmID is a useful safety net if your wallet disappears during a trip or you discover an ID problem at the last minute. But $45 plus additional checkpoint time is a compelling reason to solve the problem before traveling.Before your next flight: Check the ID. Check the expiration date. Check the name on the reservation. Then check in.Once you’re safely through security, there are much better ways to spend your airport time. Sanctifly connects travelers with access to 1,500+ airport lounges worldwide, giving you somewhere more comfortable to eat, work, recharge or relax before boarding.ConfirmID can save the trip. Good preparation can save you from needing it.— Team SanctiflySanctifly is a separate global travel wellness company and is not affiliated with TSA.