It’s time to master the viral heatless curls hack before your next vacation: Cordless curling irons and hair straighteners are now banned from checked luggage as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) continues to place limits on highly flammable lithium battery-powered devices.
Cordless styling tools that use gas cartridges, butane, lithium metal, or lithium-ion batteries can now only be transported in carry-on bags, according to updated TSA guidelines. If the TSA finds one in your checked bag, it will confiscate it and give it to the airline as a “hazmat item,” the agency said on X in August. TSA has also outlined special requirements for how the tools should be packed within your carry-on: the heating element must have a safety cover, and the device must be protected from accidental activation, the new guidelines say.
If your curling iron or hair straightener has an old-school plug-in cord, you’re off the hook. These are still allowed in both carry-on and checked bags. But if you’re an overly prepared traveler, leave your additional gas cartridges at home. The agency will confiscate them, no matter the bag they’re in.
Over the last year, the TSA has increasingly set limitations on lithium metal and lithium-ion-powered products, including portable chargers, electric toothbrushes, and electronic cigarettes. And for good reason: They can easily overheat and ignite, and have already been the source of more than 60 fire, smoke, or “extreme heat” aviation incidents since the start of 2025—nearing 2024’s record of 89 incidents, according to data from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Limiting these products to carry-on bags makes the flammable items easier to access in the event of an emergency compared to luggage stored away in the cargo hold.
The FAA has recorded a total of 660 incidents involving lithium batteries since 2006. The most recent was in September, when a portable charger started smoking on a Japan Airlines flight from Tokyo to Chicago. And in August, when two electronic cigarettes began smoking (to clarify: unprompted) on a United Airlines flight from Newark, New Jersey, to Punta Caucedo, Dominican Republic—one of 11 lithium battery-related aviation incidents recorded that month.
Vapes were the primary cause of lithium-ion-related aviation issues in 2024, accounting for almost 30% of that year’s reported cases, according to a report from safety organization UL Standards & Engagement.
If these restrictions are starting to feel increasingly difficult to remember, the TSA has an online searchable database that clarifies what you can and can’t pack. Just remember: If it’s cordless, it’s carry-on.
Shop TSA-approved hair tools:
Dyson
Airwrap multi-styler complete long
Shark
FlexStyle air drying and styling system
Dyson
Airstrait straightener
Bondi Boost
2-in-1 hair straightener brush & curling iron
Mane
This Totally Blows! Ionic compact hair dryer
BaBylissPro
