nhcowboy

The minor is a teenager - old enough to travel on his own with certain airlines, but not yet 18. Is ID required?

According to posted TSA rules, it would appear the answer is "no," but the only discussion I can find on this forum regarding this question pertains to minors who are either accompanied or dropped off at the gate by an adult (who would show his/her own ID).

My instinct would be to err on the side of caution and make sure he has some kind of ID . . . would state ID card be the way to go?

FriendlySkies

State ID card would be fine! Knowing TSA, the rules will probably change about 15 times by the time your son flies!

SATTSO

No ID for your minor, whether alone or with you, is needed.

iluv2fly

I'll take the over on that one.

starlanet

well, but if alone, why not send him/her with some kind of ID? And I don't know their age, but let's say they are 17, but look like 19...in that case, an ID would solve any kind of doubt that may cause delay, especially when your kid is on his/her own. Just saying.

mileena

I know people in their 30's who can pass for 16 or 17 and don't need ID to fly.

nhcowboy

So, just to be clear, the kid should bring ID so he can prove he's young enough that he doesn't need ID? Oh yeah!

jbcarioca

I had a passport for my daughter when she was 4 days old, emergency issuance so she could go to ATH with her mother and me. I would not travel with a child without ID regardless of what the theory is. There are too many ways to have questions without it.

jkhuggins

Understandable. But we're talking about passing through a TSA checkpoint here, not passing through an international border with passport controls. It shouldn't be TSA's business to examine identity documents in order to eliminate the possibility of child abductions.

I'm surprised Phil (paging Phil ... paging Phil ...) hasn't chimed in here yet with his usual list, but I'm sure he'll be along soon. In the meantime, let me recap briefly: technically, flying without ID is permitted even for an adult --- as long as the adult is willing to cooperate and submit to a long and tedious procedure for verifying their identity. So, if ID isn't technically required for adults to fly, it certainly isn't going to be required for minors to fly, either.

Since TSA says that they don't even ask for IDs from minors, I'm assuming that means they're not prepared to conduct that identity verification procedure on a minor, either. Which makes sense ... the procedure basically asks you to verify information about yourself available in various public databases, similar to the information that could be found in a credit check. Most minors don't have enough public records in order to make such a procedure effective.

(At least, I hope my son doesn't have a credit history yet, considering he's not even finished potty training. On the other hand, that might explain those rather large boxes from Toys R Us that keep showing up in the mail ...)

senseker

If someone is under 18, id is not required at all for the checkpoint. Sometimes, kids look older than they really are, and when they say that they're 17 or 16 or whatever, I just let them continue.

pmocek

No.


TSA refuses to publish the rules passengers are required to follow. Best we can tell, no documentation of identity is required for anyone.

Here's what I've been able to find out:

What are the rules concerning airline passenger identification by TSA?

Although TSA refuses to publish all the rules they require passengers to follow at airport checkpoints, from what we can distill from TSA press releases, heavily-redacted information obtained via FOIA requests, TSA blog posts, and other information they publish on the Web, it's relatively clear that your boarding pass is all the documentation that's ever required for domestic flights. It seems that passengers are not required to present documentation of their identities to TSA staff, and that doing so is not a condition of crossing the TSA checkpoint.

TSA won't publish the rules we're supposed to follow. So what do we know about their I.D. policies?

According to a 2008 press release from TSA, TSA's airport passenger identification policy changed on June 21, 2008, but "showing I.D." was seemingly not required before and is seemingly not required now.

Prior to June 21, 2008

Before June 21, 2008, the situation seemed to be: In order to proceed to the "secure area" of an airport after being stopped at a TSA barricade, each passenger must submit to a pat-down and search for metallic objects using a hand-held metal detector, along with a hand-searching of any carry-on baggage, unless he presents documentation of his identity (i.e., unless he "shows I.D."), in which case he must submit only to a search for metallic objects on his person via walk-through metal detector and search of any carry-on baggage using an X-ray machine.

In other words: back then, showing I.D. simply got you a less-thorough search than you'd otherwise receive.

Now

Beginning June 21, 2008, the situation seems to be: Each passenger still has the option of showing I.D. and participating in the less-thorough searches (walk-through metal detector and X-raying of carry-ons), but the alternative now involves not only being thoroughly searched for dangerous items, but also identifying oneself verbally and participating in an interrogation intended to verify one's identity (via phone call from Homeland Security headquarters). Chillingly, it seems from the aforementioned TSA press release that this alternative also requires that someone be "cooperative with officers". What that cooperation entails is not defined.

Initial reports from TSA indicated that while people who claimed that their government-issued I.D. card was misplaced or stolen would be allowed to take the alternate route through the checkpoint (with the questioning), those who willfully refused to show their papers would be barred from proceeding. It's unclear whether or not this is still the case, or if it was ever the case, as TSA's initial press release seems, based on information received from TSA via Freedom of Information Act request, to have been inaccurate.

Summary of present situation and how to exploit it

In short, best we can tell, complying with TSA's "papers, please!" request is not necessary in order to fly domestically, it's simply a way to avoid the hassle of a thorough search for dangerous items, the hassle of providing convincing information in support of your claim to be who you say you are, and having to cooperate with TSA airport staff in any manner they see fit.

This is a great system for people who wish to do harm in airports or on airplanes, since getting a falsified identification document (i.e., a "fake I.D.") is relatively simple, and presentation of one almost guarantees that TSA staff will look at someone with less scrutiny, making it easier for him to take weapons, explosives, or incendiaries past the security checkpoint. Even if TSA could detect such fraud with perfect accuracy, using the Carnival Booth Algorithm, terrorists can probe an identity-based security system like TSA's by sending a number of people on harmless trips through the system, noting who is flagged for extra searches and who isn't. Then they can send those who aren't flagged -- people who almost certainly will get through security with a less-thorough search -- on terrorist missions.

Why does TSA want to identify us? What's wrong with them doing so?

This isn't about your safety. It's about control -- a few people's control over the rest of us.

The primary reason that TSA wants to know who you are is their desire to restrict people's movement based on Homeland Security blacklists. As did every government that has imposed totalitarian rules, TSA repeatedly tells us that their freedom-restricting policies are about safety, security, and rooting out subversives. Of course, this policy is really about extra-judicial punishment, allowing our executive branch of government to sidestep our judicial branch and punish someone for any reason or no reason at all. That's not the way things are supposed to work in the United States. It's ripe for abuse, and it's an infringement on our freedom.

For more on showing I.D. in the general sense, please see the Identity Project's "What's Wrong With Showing I.D.?" page.

Previous discussion on FlyerTalk

For more on TSA airport I.D. policies, see also the following FT threads (the first of which is what brought me to FlyerTalk for the first time):

• 2008-04-08: Article:No ID needed to board plane
• 2008-05-01: new info from TSA re: airlines requesting ID
• 2008-05-01: does the law/courts say ID is not required to...
• 2008-06-06: Starting June 21: Refuse to Show ID, No Entry to Sterile Area
• 2008-06-09: Actually, it looks like you can still fly without ID
• 2008-06-11: TSA blog addresses the new airport ID rule
• 2008-06-20: TSA says new airport ID rule is not about control
• 2008-06-22: No ID - Reports from the Field
• 2008-06-23: Forget ID after 6/21: expect invasive ?s including political affiliation
• 2008-11-19: Are you kidding me: No ID
• 2009-05-01: What is the ID Policy?
• 2009-05-27: TSA SOP re: airport ID requirements provided to IDP via FOIA request
• 2009-07-20: Flying with expired license
• 2009-07-28: Do kids with seats (age 2-10) need ID?
• 2009-08-04: Expired Drivers licence + Temporary One -Can I fly?
• 2009-08-10: Has anyone had a problem without photo ID at the gate of Jetblue at JFK and MCO?
• 2009-10-30: How many times do I show my BP and ID at the checkpoint?
• 2009-11-09: Can I travel with my expired drivers license as ID?
• 2009-11-16: Flyer “Processed” (Arrested?) in NM After Declining to Show ID
• 2009-11-21: What happens if an ID is lost?
• 2009-11-22: No longer using passport as ID for TSA - here's why
• 2009-11-28: Expired ID
• 2009-11-30: Damaged NY State License
• 2009-12-08: Flying with expired id or no id
• 2009-12-20: College ID or Expired License for Check-in ID
• 2010-01-29: Great Safety Screening at EWR!!!
• 2010-02-04: Passport card not accepted by TSA yesterday
• 2010-02-06: Getting selected anyway, should I refuse to show ID?
• 2010-02-15: Flying Without ID & TSA @ SFO
• 2010-02-18: TSA requires Passport on Intl Flights?
• 2010-03-29: Can I travel with my expired drivers license as ID?

ESpen36

In addition, note that many airlines have corporate policies that require passengers to show ID when being issued boarding passes by airport agents, in order to protect revenue. These policies are not the same as the controversy over TSA ID checks (because the airlines are private companies, so if you don't like the policies you can choose a different airline; nobody is forcing you to fly an airline that requires ID).

I would never think of traveling without ID. It would be too easy for an airline to deny boarding. Now, it's unlikely for a minor, but it could happen, especially I think for a UM.

If the teenager could pass for somebody over 18, I think it is very important that he carry ID. Could create all sorts of problems if the airline agents and/or TSA are convinced that the kid is over 18 and he has no way of proving that he is a minor. Furthermore, in many jurisdictions, if a sworn LEO (not TSA) were to approach him and request ID*, he would be required to show it or risk being detained pending confirmation of his identity.



*In some areas, the LEO is required to have reasonable suspicion, probable cause, or a warrant, but in a high-risk area like an airport, I wouldn't play games with something like that.

gj83

The stop and identify laws require a person to state name and other identifying information. There is no requirement to carry ID so there can be no requirement to produce ID.

To the OP: does your son have a school ID? That should be good enough. I wouldn't pay money for an ID just for a trip.

senseker

Unless you're traveling internationally ^__~

Scubatooth

Yes but that falls outside of TSA and your employers scope of authority.