After more than 20 years, it appears the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is no longer making passengers in general security lines take off their shoes for screening, according to a new report.
There's been no formal announcement from the federal government, but TikToker and self-described former TSA Officer travelwiththeharmony first reported the news over the weekend that all travelers – with or without TSA PreCheck® – can keep their shoes on during screening as of Monday, July 7. That change came from an internal memo from the TSA.
The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the supposed policy change.
Keeping your shoes on has long been a major selling point of TSA PreCheck. If this change is true, it's a huge (and long-awaited) change that should make every travelers' next trip through the airport faster … and cleaner. But there's one exception.
Travelers without a compliant Real ID will have to face additional screening before their flights, which includes the removal of their shoes. The additional screening has been in effect since the Real ID enforcement began in May, but only now has the TSA dangled the carrot of keeping your shoes on to upgrade non-compliant identification methods.
The move should help speed up security lines in major airports. And while it removes one major perk of having PreCheck, the ability to keep all liquids, gels, laptops, and tablets in your bag, as well as coats and belts on your person, is still a perk reserved only for travelers with PreCheck.
More than 24 years ago, Richard Reid boarded a flight from Paris to Miami with homemade bombs hidden in his shoes. According to the FBI, he tried to ignite the fuse, but failed. When other travelers saw what he was doing, they constrained him before he could do any damage and he is now serving a life sentence in federal prison. After the incident, he was dubbed “The Shoe Bomber” and his actions on that day in December 2001 are why travelers had to remove their footwear during security screening all these years later.
There have been no other shoe-related incidences in the skies since the policy was implemented, which is likely why it's been sunsetted in 2025.
This is a developing news story. Check back in to Thrifty Traveler for updates.
