Good news! Beginning today, if you have a Real ID-compliant Louisiana state-issued driver’s license or identification card, you can use the LA Wallet app on your phone to pass through TSA checkpoints at airports in the U.S. that currently accept Digital IDs. Louisiana becomes the 8th state to offer the digital IDS with TSA CAT-2 information systems and joins Arizona, California, Colorado, Georgia, Iowa, Maryland and Utah. 

The process to set it up is pretty simple, especially if you’ve already got LA Wallet on your phone and your driver’s license uploaded. Look for a tab in the app titled “Share mDL with TSA”. Click on the tab and the app will walk you through taking a picture to match your face with the one on your driver’s license. Once you see the green check mark with the words “Accepted by the TSA”, you’re all set. The next time you’re in a participating airport and going through security, you’ll open the LA Wallet App, click on the “Share mDL with TSA” tab, and hit the blue Share button, which will open a QR code. This is what will be scanned by the TSA agent as you go through. 

Of course, you’ll still need to carry your physical Driver’s License or state identification card with you in case the technology doesn’t work. And for now, the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport is the only airport in Louisiana that accepts Digital IDs.

So what’s the point of offering this feature? Officials believe that it will speed up security screenings, reduce reliance on physical credentials, and offer a more secure verification process. 

But remember - you can’t use the app to go through TSA checkpoints if you don’t have a Real ID-compliant driver’s license, and anyone wanting to fly through domestic airports after May 7, 2025 will need one. 

For more information, visit https://appengine.egov.com/apps/la/realid or https://www.tsa.gov/travel/digital-id/map#DCA.