TSA Quietly Phasing Out Shoe Removal At Security Checkpoints

Miami, Florida, Miami International Airport MIA terminal, Transportation Security Administration TSA, Department of Homeland Security, anti-terrorism passenger check-point sign instructions show ID, take-off shoes, show liquids and laptops

Source: Jeff Greenberg / Getty / TSA

One of the more hated security checks at the airport, removing your shoes, is quietly being phased out by the TSA. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has quietly reversed a decades-old security check that required air travelers to remove their shoes during screenings.

TSA began encouraging airline passengers at airport security checkpoints in February 2002 after a failed shoe bombing attempt by Richard Reid two months earlier. According to the Wall Street Journal, the agency will start unveiling new procedures that allow passengers to keep their shoes on during standard airport screenings, but hasn’t officially announced the change. “TSA and DHS are always exploring new and innovative ways to enhance the passenger experience and our strong security posture. Any potential updates to our security process will be issued through official channels,” TSA told the Wall Street Journal in a statement. Shoe removal became mandatory in August 2006, along with a liquid restriction, following the disruption of a liquid explosives plot in the United Kingdom. The 20-year-old practice has seemingly come to an end, with many passengers taking to social media to boast about not having to take off their shoes. But it’s not being widely implemented just yet. The TSA is slowly rolling out the new security procedures, and the first airports with expiring no-shoes requirements are Baltimore/Washington International Airport, Fort Lauderdale International Airport, Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, Portland International Airport, Philadelphia International Airport, and Piedmont Triad International Airport in North Carolina. According to CBS News correspondents traveling from Los Angeles International Airport and New York City’s LaGuardia Airport, they and other passengers did not have to take off their shoes.

Is TSA PreCheck Still Worth It?

While this sounds like good news, some people are now wondering if TSA PreCheck, which already allows passengers to go through airport screenings without having to remove their shoes, is still worth it. TSA PreCheck also allows travelers to go through screenings without having to take out their laptops, iPads, or gaming devices from their carry-on bags.

Another user on X, formerly Twitter, pointed out how this could lead to travelers having to deal with increased security measures using AI surveillance.