Flying with a teenager-- ID required? (2024)

FAQs

Flying with a teenager-- ID required? ›

It's always a good idea to have some ID on you though like school ID just in case TSA or an airline employee questions but usually all your child will need to do is tell the TSA agent I'm under 18 they may ask the child for their age and they can proceed through security and to the gate. Hope this helps!

Children. TSA does not require children under 18 to provide identification when traveling within the United States. Contact the airline for questions regarding specific ID requirements for travelers under 18.

Children 13-17 may access the TSA PreCheck lanes if they have a TSA PreCheck logo on their boarding pass. To be eligible to receive the TSA PreCheck logo on their boarding pass, the passenger between the ages of 13 and 17 must be on the same airline reservation with a TSA PreCheck-eligible parent or guardian.

If you don't have any acceptable alternate form of ID, a TSA employee will ask you to complete an identity verification process by filling out a TSA Form 415, also known as a Certification of Identity form. It asks for your full name, current address, signature and date.

Even though most airlines don't require photo I.D. for children or teens under 16, some parents run into trouble if they're traveling with a teen who looks older than they are. In such cases, having a birth certificate handy will solve any foreseeable troubles with proving your traveling companion's age.

Family members ages 12 and under traveling with an eligible parent or guardian with a TSA PreCheck® indicator on their boarding pass can join them in the TSA PreCheck® lanes without applying.

Yes. Currently, all passengers must continue to have their physical IDs on hand. If a digital ID cannot be verified at the TSA security checkpoint, a passenger must use an acceptable physical identity document (e.g., driver's license, passport) to proceed through the identity verification process.

Original or photocopies of government-issued identification (e.g., passport, birth certificate, government-issued photo identification card) are the only acceptable forms of proof of age. Electronic screen shots, phone images, or immunization records are not acceptable.

You may have to present proof of age like a birth certificate for any children under the age of 18. Families with children under 2 years old can ask to board early at the gate.

Accordingly, our UM procedures do not apply to travelers ages 12 through 17. A Young Traveler must have the maturity and capability to travel alone, including but not limited to checking in, passing through the security checkpoint, boarding, deplaning, and claiming luggage.

Can you use a social security card to fly? ›

If you don't have it, you can get a new copy. But your social security card is not valid ID. It used to say so right on the card. A birth certificate is not valid ID.

TSA will accept only the following birth records:

A birth certification card that meets the requirements of a Birth Certificate or abstract (see below) (Birth Registration or Notification cards are not acceptable); or. An electronic “Birth Certify” birth record obtained through NAPHSIS/EVVE.

In the event you arrive at the airport without proper ID, because it is lost or at home, you may still be allowed to fly. By providing additional information, TSA has other ways to confirm your identity, like using publicly available databases, so you can reach your flight.

To prove your child's age to an airline, one of the following documents will suffice: Child's passport (how to get a U.S. passport for an infant and things to know about children's passports) Child's birth certificate. Child's immunization form or other medical records may also work domestically.

There is no official letter that must be used, but rather just have both parents acknowledge the travel is known to them in whatever format you want. The grandparents may never be questioned, but the signed letter does give them something to refer to if they do get asked about the child.

The TSA Minor Travel Consent Form is used to provide permission for a minor to travel unaccompanied by a parent or legal guardian. This form is required for minors who are traveling without a parent or legal guardian on a domestic or international flight.

Most U.S. airlines will permit children who have reached their fifth birthday to travel unaccompanied. Kids ages 5 through 11 who are flying alone must usually travel pursuant to special “unaccompanied minor” procedures. On some airlines, these procedures are required for unaccompanied children as old as 14.

TSA does not require ID for any traveller younger than 18.

CHILD AGE AT THE TIME OF UNACCOMPANIED TRAVEL

Children ages 15-17 are permitted to travel as a standard passenger, Go to footer note, provided they can present a valid ID to security personnel. If parents or guardians prefer, they can also travel as an unaccompanied minor.