The travel document checklist
What to check, copy, and carry before you fly, from the passport to the identification you show at the airport.
Most document problems are found at the airport, when they are hardest to fix. A few checks weeks ahead remove nearly all of them. This guide is written for travelers flying from the United States, and for U.S. passport holders where it covers entry rules. If you hold another passport, use your own government's travel site. We checked the government pages linked below in October 2026. Rules change, so confirm them before you go.
Flying within the United States
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) says adult passengers 18 and older must show valid identification (ID) at the airport checkpoint. Since May 7, 2025, state driver's licenses and IDs that are not REAL ID compliant are no longer accepted. A REAL ID-compliant license is accepted, and so is a U.S. passport. TSA also lists a paid identity verification process for travelers who arrive without an accepted ID, but says that travelers whose identity cannot be verified are not allowed into the screening checkpoint. Read the TSA's identification page.
Flying abroad
- A passport. USAGov, the U.S. government's official guide to government information and services, says you need a passport to travel to most countries outside the United States.
- Its expiry date. Look up your destination's entry requirements for any rule about how long a passport must stay valid beyond your trip, and check the date about four months ahead, so a renewal has time to arrive.
- A visa or other entry document, if the country asks for one. USAGov says you may need a visa to enter a foreign country, and that the State Department's country information page for your destination lists its entry, exit, and visa requirements. Read the USAGov guide to visas, then look up your destination on the State Department's country information pages.
Copies, kept apart from the originals
Save a photo of your passport's main page offline on your phone, and keep a paper copy in a different bag from the passport. If a passport is lost or stolen, USAGov says to report it to the State Department right away.
Health papers
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) advises carrying prescriptions, preferably in their original bottles, along with copies of the prescriptions. It also notes that some countries restrict certain medications. Read the CDC's packing guidance. The CDC's destination pages list health information for each country.
Trip papers
Boarding passes, booking confirmations, the address of your first night, and your return details, all saved offline. See how to keep all your trip confirmations in one place.
Optional: register your trip
USAGov describes the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) as a free State Department service. After you register a trip, you receive news and alerts for your destination, and the local embassy can help your family and friends reach you. Registering asks for details including your passport number. Read about STEP.
When to check what
- About four months ahead: your passport's expiry date
- About three months ahead: entry requirements, on the destination government's official site
- The day before: offline copies, boarding passes, and the address of your first night
These are planning defaults, not rules. A visa that takes weeks to process needs more time.
Put it into practice
Tick Crossing a border in the planner, and the booking timeline adds a passport expiry check about four months before your first day and an entry requirements check about three months before. It also adds a step to save your confirmations offline the day before. Set a first day and export the calendar file, and each step becomes an all-day event with a 9 a.m. reminder. The packing list adds your passport, with a photo of its main page, and a second photo ID.