Short answer: no. Since July 8, 2025, travelers at every US airport can keep their shoes on in standard TSA screening lanes. The requirement that had been in place since 2006 is gone, and it is gone for everyone, not just PreCheck members.
That is the headline. The useful part is the fine print, because a meaningful number of travelers still end up barefoot at the checkpoint, and it is almost always for one of a small number of predictable reasons.
What Actually Changed
The shoe removal mandate dated to 2006, three years after a failed attempt to detonate explosives hidden in footwear on a transatlantic flight. For nearly two decades it applied to every adult in a standard lane, with narrow exemptions for children under 12 and travelers 75 and older.
TSA ended it nationwide, effective immediately, in July 2025. The reasoning given was that checkpoint technology had moved on: modern scanners and advanced imaging can resolve footwear without asking 2 million people a day to unlace their boots.
Three things did not change with it:
- The 3-1-1 liquids rule is still in effect. Officials have publicly floated revisiting it, but as of 2026 the federal standard is unchanged: 3.4 oz containers, one quart bag, one bag per traveler. Our 3-1-1 liquids guide covers what still counts as a liquid.
- Laptops still come out in standard lanes unless your checkpoint has a CT scanner.
- Officers retain full discretion. The rule is now “shoes stay on by default,” not “shoes never come off.”
Shoes-on was one of several checkpoint changes since 2025. The one most likely to cost you money is the $45 ConfirmID fee for travelers without acceptable ID; the full list is in the new TSA rules for 2026.
Who Still Has to Take Their Shoes Off
This is the part most articles skip. Shoes still come off in four situations.
1. Something alarms
If the walk-through metal detector or the body scanner flags your feet or lower body, the officer has to resolve it. Removing the shoes and running them through the X-ray is the fastest way to do that. This is the single most common reason travelers still end up in socks.
2. Your footwear is full of metal
Some shoes are effectively metal objects with fabric attached. The usual offenders:
- Steel-toe boots and work boots
- Cowboy boots and riding boots with metal shanks in the sole
- Vintage or heavy dress shoes with metal heel rods
- Chunky buckles, heavy eyelets, and metal-plated soles
- Some orthopedic inserts and custom orthotics with metal reinforcement
- Very thick platform or wedge soles, which are hard to see through regardless of metal content
A thick sole is not itself prohibited. It just gives the imaging less to work with, which raises the odds an officer decides to look directly.
3. You were selected for additional screening
If your boarding pass carries the SSSS marker, or you are randomly pulled for enhanced screening, expect shoes off along with a lot else. Our guide to what SSSS means on a boarding pass explains the full sequence and how long it takes.
4. You are not flying out of a US airport
This rule is a TSA rule. It governs US checkpoints only. Screening authorities in other countries set their own footwear policy, and several still ask travelers to remove shoes. If you are connecting through a foreign hub or flying home from abroad, do not assume the US rule travels with you.
Then Why Doesn’t the Line Feel Faster?
Because shoe removal was never the main bottleneck.
A checkpoint has three separate delays stacked on top of each other, and they scale differently:
- The queue itself. How many people are ahead of you, which is driven by flight bank timing and how many lanes the airport actually staffed. This is the big one, and shoes have nothing to do with it.
- Divestiture. Getting your belongings into bins. Shoes were one item among laptops, liquids, belts, jackets, and the contents of your pockets.
- Bag resolution. Every carry-on that gets pulled for a manual search stops that lane’s X-ray belt for a minute or more.
Removing one divestiture step helps, but a checkpoint running four lanes at 6:45 a.m. on a Monday is going to be slow whether or not your sneakers are on your feet. That is why checking the live wait before you leave still matters more than anything you do at the bin.
What This Means for TSA PreCheck
A fair question: if everyone keeps their shoes on now, what is left of the PreCheck advantage?
Quite a lot, as it turns out. In a PreCheck lane you still:
- Leave your laptop and large electronics in the bag
- Leave your 3-1-1 liquids bag in the bag
- Keep your belt and light jacket on
- Use a dedicated, usually much shorter queue
That last point is the real value and always was. The shoes change removed one of the smaller items from the list, not the reason people enroll. If you are weighing it, our is TSA PreCheck worth it in 2026 breakdown runs the actual math, and how to apply for TSA PreCheck walks through enrollment.
One related consequence worth knowing: the old age-based exemptions are now moot. Travelers 75 and older and children under 12 kept their shoes on before the change and still do, along with everybody else. The other modified-screening provisions in our TSA rules for seniors and travelers with limited mobility guide are unaffected.
Practical Advice Now That Shoes Stay On
Still wear socks. The odds are low, but the cost of being the one person sent through the metal detector barefoot on an airport floor is high enough that a pair of socks is cheap insurance.
Pick low-metal footwear anyway. Plain sneakers, flats, canvas shoes, and simple leather shoes are the safest bets. The point is no longer convenience of removal, it is not alarming in the first place.
Reconsider your boots on travel days. Steel-toe and heavy western boots are now the footwear most likely to cost you time, precisely because everyone else is walking straight through.
Empty your pockets properly. With shoes off the table, pocket contents and belts are now the leading cause of a secondary look. Our what to wear through airport security guide covers belts, jewelry, underwire, and the rest, and 12 proven tips for getting through security faster covers the rest of the routine.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you still have to take your shoes off at TSA in 2026?
No. TSA ended the shoe removal requirement on July 8, 2025, at every US airport in standard screening lanes. You may still be asked to remove your shoes if something alarms during screening, if your footwear contains significant metal, or if you are selected for additional screening.
Why did TSA stop making people remove their shoes?
The mandate dated to a 2006 response to a failed shoe bomb attempt. TSA ended it because checkpoint imaging and detection technology improved to the point that footwear can be screened without removal for most travelers.
What shoes will still get you pulled aside at airport security?
Steel-toe boots, cowboy and riding boots with metal shanks, shoes with metal heel rods or heavy buckles, some orthopedic inserts with metal reinforcement, and very thick platform soles. These either alarm the detector or are difficult for imaging to see through.
Is TSA PreCheck still worth it if everyone keeps their shoes on?
Yes. PreCheck still lets you leave laptops and your liquids bag inside your carry-on and keep your belt and light jacket on, and it gives you a dedicated lane that is usually far shorter than the standard queue. The shorter line was always the main benefit.
Do you have to take your shoes off at airports outside the US?
Often, yes. The shoes-on policy is a TSA rule and applies only at US checkpoints. Other countries set their own screening rules, and shoe removal is still standard at some foreign airports.
Do I still need to take my laptop out if my shoes stay on?
In standard lanes, usually yes. The shoe change did not affect electronics. At checkpoints equipped with CT scanners, laptops can often stay in the bag, and PreCheck travelers leave them in regardless.
Should I still wear socks to the airport?
Yes. Most travelers will not need to remove anything, but alarms and additional screening still happen, and airport checkpoint floors are not somewhere you want to stand barefoot.
Know the Line Before You Leave
The shoes rule removed a step. It did not remove the reason people miss flights, which is showing up with a buffer sized for an average checkpoint on a day when the checkpoint is not average.
Look up your airport on Airport TSA Times to see when its checkpoints are busiest, from TSA’s own hourly counts, so you leave with a buffer built on how your airport actually runs rather than a national average.