A smart bag with a lithium battery has to travel as a carry-on unless you take the battery out. Once it’s out, the bag can be checked and the battery travels in the cabin as a spare.
What counts as smart luggage
The rule covers any bag with lithium batteries built in, which the FAA calls smart bags. It also covers luggage trackers and bag tags powered by lithium batteries.
Checking a smart bag
Take the battery out before you check the bag in.
If the battery can’t be removed, the bag has to be a carry-on.
A bag whose batteries hold no more than 0.3 grams of lithium metal, or 2.7 Wh of lithium ion, can be checked with them in, and its electronics can stay on.
Other rules can be stricter
The FAA notes that airline, TSA and international rules are sometimes stricter than the US regulation. Check your airline before you fly with a smart bag.
Common questions
Where does the battery go once it's out of the bag?
The FAA treats a battery taken out of a smart bag as a spare battery, so it goes in your carry-on or on you, with its terminals protected from short circuit.
Can a smart bag go in the cabin with its battery in?
Yes, TSA allows smart luggage in carry-on bags, and the FAA rule asks for the battery to come out only if the bag is checked.
The rules are the FAA’s PackSafe chart and the DOT regulation behind it (49 CFR 175.10), with TSA’s checkpoint list. Checked against published data from FAA, US DOT and TSA.
See all 4 sources
FAA, Airline Passengers and Batteries: guidance, FAQs and chart
FAA, Printable PackSafe Chart (PDF, updated November 14, 2025)
US DOT, 49 CFR 175.10, Exceptions for passengers, crewmembers, and air operators (eCFR)
TSA, What Can I Bring?: Smart Luggage
General guidance from airline, TSA and FAA rules, checked on the date shown. Rules change, and the airline and security officers decide on the day: check your airline before you fly.