# Arriving at the airport with a bag full of cash **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 2, 2009, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091 "2009-08-02T21:08:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Nippless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/df788c/32.png) [@Nippless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nippless)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2009, 9:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/1 "2009-08-02T21:08:36Z")
Would there be a lot of questions asked? Would you be allowed on the plane with it? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2009, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/2 "2009-08-02T21:17:54Z")
Which airport? ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2009, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/3 "2009-08-02T21:20:24Z")
> [@Nippless](#): > > Would there be a lot of questions asked? Would you be allowed on the plane with it? If your leaving the country (USA) I think that 10,000 is the max allowed out, without declaring it to customs—Flying domestically, I dont know if there is any controls, but I would assume you would want to be able to show any interested authorities that it was come by on the up and up, just like you would if you were driving around and were found with a big pile o’ cash… (I think that you would have the burden of proof that it was “clean” money, and the cops can seize it until you can convince a judge that its legally yours) ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2009, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/4 "2009-08-02T21:40:44Z")
Of course, with the TSA there’s often a big difference between what they’re supposed to do and what they get away with. [Here’s a case](http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/06/20/tsa.lawsuit/index.html#cnnSTCText) of a guy being detained and hassled by the TSA for carrying $4700 in cash and checks. This was at the security checkpoint before a domestic flight. ---
**Author:** ![Risha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5fc32e/32.png) [@Risha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Risha)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/5 "2009-08-03T15:39:35Z")
I don’t know how reliable this is, but my brother (who has all sorts of scurrilous friends, and I have made a policy of not questioning his distant past too closely) taught me years ago how to remove the security strips from bills. He and his friends believed that the airports were tracking and questioning people who were traveling with very large amounts of cash, and this was a way to avoid their scanners. ---
**Author:** ![HorseloverFat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8e8cbc/32.png) [@HorseloverFat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HorseloverFat)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/6 "2009-08-03T15:43:52Z")
The security strip is a tiny piece of metallic film. I doubt a metal sensor can detect it without tons of false positives from fillings in your teeth or little metal parts in your shoes or whatever. That said, I know someone who sometimes goes through security without declaring large sums of money. He just wears a money belt underneath his clothes. No big deal so far. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/7 "2009-08-03T15:44:14Z")
> [@lazybratsche](#): > > Of course, with the TSA there’s often a big difference between what they’re supposed to do and what they get away with. [Here’s a case](http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/06/20/tsa.lawsuit/index.html#cnnSTCText) of a guy being detained and hassled by the TSA for carrying $4700 in cash and checks. This was at the security checkpoint before a domestic flight. One TSA agent got “disciplinary action.” If that action wasn’t immediate firing, then tanj. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/8 "2009-08-03T15:53:56Z")
> [@HorseloverFat](#): > > The security strip is a tiny piece of metallic film. It’s just polyester, imprinted with the denomination on the bill, and designed to fluoresce in different colors for different denominations. No metal at all. > **[Strip in U.S. Banknote](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/cache-point/)** > > Does the plastic strip embedded in U.S. currency enable the government to track it? ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/9 "2009-08-03T16:53:28Z")
I occasionally work with a friend who does retail at events nationally and internationally. It is not unusual for one or both of us to be carrying 10,000 or more in currency. Domestic flights we’ve never been questioned at all. A few thousand in my carry on has given an odd look or two but that is about it. International flights amounts over 10,000 must be declared. We usually avoid doing so.(by not having that amount) When you declare 10’000 plus you have to count it. They pull you into a side room for this purpose. The policy may be customs counts it but both times for me they had me count it with a customs guy present. Questions are asked, being able to provide honest answers moves you along quickly. The amounts I’ve carried hardly count as a ‘bag full of money’ it is pretty compact and usually it’s a stuffed bank bag. Security probably doesn’t care if someone has a bag full of money. There is no reason not to let money on a plane. They may care if they don’t have a legitimate reason for having a bag full of money. Even the 10,000 dollar amount restriction isn’t entirely for security purposes. The feds use it to track money coming into the country for statistics purposes. There is nothing inherently wrong with carrying a large amount of cash. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/10 "2009-08-03T17:17:22Z")
[QUOTE=Risha] but my brother … taught me years ago how to remove the security strips from bills. He and his friends believed that the airports were tracking and questioning people who were traveling with very large amounts of cash, and this was a way to avoid their scanners. [/QUOTE] For starters, those strips are not RFID tags and they’re not remotely detectable. Second, how did your brother plan to unload all of that defaced currency? What’s the first thing a store clerk or bank teller does when handed money? Nine times out of ten, they hold it up to the light and look for that strip. No strip = no good. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/11 "2009-08-03T17:49:59Z")
I sometimes carry up to $10k in cash for work. I’ve never declared it and no one has ever come across it and asked about it. In 100s it’s not that big of a bundle. ---
**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/12 "2009-08-03T19:07:43Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > Even the 10,000 dollar amount restriction isn’t entirely for security purposes. The feds use it to track money coming into the country for **statistics** purposes. . also for [purposes of tracking criminals](http://www.cftc.gov/industryoversight/antimoneylaundering/index.htm#P58_16162) ---
**Author:** ![Risha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5fc32e/32.png) [@Risha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Risha)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/13 "2009-08-04T01:36:53Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > Second, how did your brother plan to unload all of that defaced currency? What’s the first thing a store clerk or bank teller does when handed money? Nine times out of ten, they hold it up to the light and look for that strip. No strip = no good. I don’t think I’ve ever had a cashier do that, actually, so I don’t think that it’s much of a barrier. I’ve seen (and spent) any number of bills without that strip (and it’s not like I’m removing them myself). Are you in a high crime area? ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/14 "2009-08-04T02:13:06Z")
> [@Risha](#): > > I don’t think I’ve ever had a cashier do that, actually, so I don’t think that it’s much of a barrier. I’ve seen (and spent) any number of bills without that strip (and it’s not like I’m removing them myself). Are you in a high crime area? Whenever I take bills $50’s or higher I check for the strips. ---
**Author:** ![Risha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5fc32e/32.png) [@Risha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Risha)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/15 "2009-08-04T02:16:12Z")
> [@boytyperanma](#): > > Whenever I take bills $50’s or higher I check for the strips. Ah, that could explain it. I can’t recall the last time I used anything higher then a twenty. (I do most of my banking at the ATM.) ---
**Author:** ![boytyperanma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4491bb/32.png) [@boytyperanma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/boytyperanma)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/16 "2009-08-04T02:35:37Z")
> [@Risha](#): > > Ah, that could explain it. I can’t recall the last time I used anything higher then a twenty. (I do most of my banking at the ATM.) Most cashier are not going to check on 20’s and I doubt most companies make a policy of checking 20’s that’s not very efficient. ---
**Author:** ![Cerowyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/82dd89/32.png) [@Cerowyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cerowyn)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/17 "2009-08-04T02:37:55Z")
Many countries also require you to declare the amount of cash you bring with you when you arrive. After some close questioning when I brought my per diem for a business trip to Japan in cash, I’ve resorting to just carrying enough for the first day or two and leaving the rest accessible via my bank card. ---
**Author:** ![gazpacho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/6f9a4e/32.png) [@gazpacho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gazpacho)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/18 "2009-08-04T02:43:38Z")
In my experience the only places trying to verify the authenticity of bills are small businesses, and then the test is one of those iodine pens. I don’t remember anyone looking for the strip. But like boytperanma I tend to use only twenties. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/19 "2009-08-04T04:19:58Z")
I work retail, and we have to check for the strip and check the pictures on all 50’s and 100’s. We don’t use the pen. But I have been in lots of stores that test every twenty with the pen. ---
**Author:** ![Silophant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a698b9/32.png) [@Silophant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silophant)\ **Post date:** [August 4, 2009, 4:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091/20 "2009-08-04T04:34:11Z")
Another retail worker here (well, movie theater). We are theoretically required to use the pen on 50s and 100s, but when we don’t have a pen available (often), the watermark and strip work too. Twenties aren’t worth it. Too inefficient. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/arriving-at-the-airport-with-a-bag-full-of-cash/505091.md?page=2)