Before Your Trip Back to the US: Checklist for Americans Abroad (2026)

Three numbers decide how smoothly two weeks back in the US go. $45 is what TSA charges at a domestic checkpoint if you can't show an acceptable ID. A 90-day supply is the rule of thumb US Customs gives for medicine you carry in. And an extra 10% for every year you could have had Medicare Part B and didn't is the penalty if you let it lapse.

This checklist is the boring part of the trip, done in advance: health cover, medicines, your US phone number, cards and mail, passport and REAL ID, and the tax dates that land around the visit. Tick boxes and blank lines for your own details: policy number, which accounts use which 2FA method, card expiry dates, your medicines by generic name.

Fill it in on screen or print it. Every rule lists the official page it came from (CBP, FDA, TSA, Medicare, the State Department, the IRS), so you can check whether anything has changed before you book.