What to do if you forget a document at home

Why flight type matters

From the ENAC protocol launched in 2025, on domestic flights and those to a Schengen area country it is no longer necessary to show an identity document when boarding: a boarding pass is enough. The document remains mandatory, however, to pass security checks that precede the gate, so if you notice its absence in the queue there, you still have a problem to solve. For non-Schengen flights the situation does not change: a passport must be shown both at security checks and at boarding, with no exceptions. For a broader comparison between the two documents, the guide Identity card or passport: which one you need to fly clarifies when one is enough or when you need the other.

Options when time is tight

If several hours remain, returning home or having a family member bring the document is the most direct option, realistically calculating also the time to pass security checks again. At Rome Fiumicino and Milan Malpensa there are dedicated counters, "Identity card in flight," which issue a replacement document the same day to those who already have a plane ticket: useful also for those who discover the problem too late to go back home. For international flights with a forgotten passport, however, alternatives are almost non-existent and the only realistic path is to reschedule the flight, often negotiating with the airline a modification at a reduced fare if the problem is communicated immediately.

Only CIE or passport, no longer the paper card

From August 3, 2026 the paper identity card is no longer valid for leaving national borders, even to other Schengen countries, regardless of the expiration date on the document: to travel abroad you need the Electronic Identity Card (CIE) or a passport. Anyone who still has at home only the old paper card would not have been able to use it for that flight anyway.

A quick check on the presence of the right documents, done before leaving home, almost always prevents the problem. If it happens anyway, the first useful call is to your airline, not attempting to solve everything yourself at the check-in counter.