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I'm currently out of status and want to travel to New York from Los Angeles. I came here in the US with a tourist visa. I've been out of status for five years. I got married recently with a immigrant resident here is US. I have a valid driver's license because of the law that was given last year for non immigrant visa to obtain a driver's license. I also have a valid passport but my visa and status are no longer up to date.

I'm scared to travel by plane because they might question me regarding my status because President Trump has a lot of new policies and laws being enforced. The travel is for our honeymoon I just want to make sure I can pass through the airport without being questioned about my status.

pnuts
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Ailee
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2 Answers2

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The TSA does not care about your immigration status or lack thereof. The border patrol sometimes operates at TSA checkpoints, but I'm only aware of this happening at airports closer to the Mexican border (for example McAllen, TX, or San Diego, CA).

I've flown several times between LA and NY without any indication of immigration checks. I've used a non-US passport with no indication of immigration status at TSA checkpoints (I'm a dual US citizen); they've never looked at anything other than the ID page.

Still, the trip increases your risk of exposure. Border Patrol can change their practices without warning. The safest thing to do is to refrain from traveling to New York.

phoog
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There is no requirement to use or show your passport while travelling by plane on a domestic flight within the US. If you have a valid driver's license, that will be sufficient to fly. Airline employees are not immigration officers and probably wouldn't even know what questions to ask you.

The above answer was written before it became clear that the current US administration (February 2017) will be much more strongly enforcing checks of immigration status for all persons. As a result, it's no longer safe to assume that domestic travellers will not need to show proof of immigration status.

Greg Hewgill
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