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TSA Ends Shoes-Off Rule at U.S. Airports

Upgraded scanners now detect concealed threats with shoes on to streamline the travel experience at U.S. airports

An air traveler places his shoes in a bin before passing through the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security check at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on February 20, 2014 in Los Angeles, California. The TSA recently launched a PreCheck program that allows those enrolled in a trusted traveler network to enter about 100 US airports through a special security lane where they dont have to take off shoes, belts and jackets or remove laptops, liquids or gels. AFP PHOTO / ROBYN BECK (Photo credit should read ROBYN BECK/AFP via Getty Images)
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FILE - In this Aug. 3, 2011 photo, an experienced airline passenger holds his shoes and has an unloosened belt while waiting to go through the Transportation Security Administration security checkpoint at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/Erik S. Lesser, File)

Overview

  • Secretary Kristi Noem announced the immediate nationwide rescission of the nearly 20-year-old shoe removal requirement
  • The policy has already gone live at eight major hubs—including BWI, FLL, CVG, PDX, PHL, PTI, LAX and LGA—with every domestic airport set to follow
  • Newly deployed screening equipment can detect concealed threats without requiring shoe removal; passengers whose footwear triggers alarms will still face additional checks
  • Standard security lanes now offer the footwear-on benefit previously reserved for TSA PreCheck members, raising questions about the program’s future value
  • The change concludes a two-decade drive to modernize post-9/11 screening and aligns with broader TSA checkpoint technology upgrades