International Air Transport Association (IATA) standards have two different formats:
- Resolution
- Recommended Practice
A Resolution requires a unanimous affirmative vote and creates binding agreements for all member airlines.
A Recommended Practice requires a two-thirds majority vote and serves as non-binding operational guidance.
IATA baggage standards are consolidated within the IATA Baggage Reference Manual (BRM) and the Passenger Services Conference Resolutions Manual (PSCRM).
These are the IATA Resolutions and Recommended Practices for baggage:
Resolution 740 Form of Interline Baggage Tag
This mandatory resolution establishes the foundational, worldwide physical and structural requirements for checked airline luggage tags to guarantee they can be uniformly processed by different airlines and international airport systems.
Core Physical and Technical Standards
- Physical Tag Specifications: It sets precise manufacturing rules for the tag’s dimensions (maximum width of 54.00 mm), non-adhesive sections, tear-away perforations, and printer form-feed holes.
- Scanning Interoperability: The standard dictates how text layout, barcodes, and numeric representations must be printed so the tag successfully supports automated laser scanning, manual entry, RFID reading, and Optical Character Recognition (OCR).
- The “License Plate” Framework: It outlines the structure of the data printed on the tag, which forms the basis of the 10-digit License Plate Number (LPN) further defined under Resolution 751. This includes the unique combination of the airline baggage tag issuer code and the tag serial number.
Special Case Labels Defined
- RUSH Baggage: It specifies the automated, print-on-demand format and distinct visual coding needed for expedited or mishandled luggage so scanning systems immediately flag them for priority routing.
- Passenger Contact Labels: It sets guidelines for separate passenger name and address labels, mandating that they feature a distinct design so baggage handlers do not confuse them with official airline routing tags.
Resolution 741 Passenger Name and Address Labels.
Resolution 743 Found and Unclaimed Checked Baggage
Resolution 743a Forwarding Mishandled Baggage
Resolution 743b Baggage Identification Chart
Resolution 743c On-Hand Baggage Summary Tag
Resolution 751 Use of the 10 Digit License Plate
This mandatory resolution establishes the precise framework for the License Plate Number (LPN). The LPN is the10-digit numeric code assigned to every checked bag. It ensures a single piece of luggage can be recognized globally by any airline, airport, or automated baggage system.
Breakdown of the 10-Digit Structure
Per IATA guidelines, the 10 digits are split into three strict mathematical components:
- Leading Digit (1 digit): Indicates the specific type of bag tag being deployed (e.g., 0 for conventional tags).
- Baggage Tag Issuer Code (3 digits): The unique numeric airline identifier (also known as the BTIC), such as 001 for American or 016 for United.
- Serial Number (6 digits): A sequential number automatically generated by the airline’s Departure Control System (DCS).
Resolution 752 Electronic Baggage Claim Receipt
This resolution establishes the global guidelines, framework, and digital specifications for creating, issuing, and processing luggage claim checks electronically rather than relying solely on traditional printed stickers.
Core Functions & System Specifications
- Digitizing the Claim Check: It details how airlines can issue a legally binding electronic receipt to a passenger’s smartphone, digital wallet, or email, confirming that the airline has taken custody of their baggage.
- Linking to the LPN: The electronic receipt integrates seamlessly with Resolution 751 by embedding the bag’s unique 10-digit License Plate Number (LPN) directly into the digital receipt.
- Real-Time Data Access: By establishing a standardized electronic format, it allows passenger-facing apps to quickly pull up matching information from an airline’s Departure Control System (DCS).
- Paperless Interlining: It ensures that if a passenger transfers across multiple airlines on a single trip, their electronic claim receipt contains uniform, cross-compatible data that any participating carrier can read and update.
Resolution 753 Baggage Tracking
To satisfy Resolution 753, an airline must log a digital event record when a bag passes through these four milestones:
- Acceptance: Initial acquisition of the bag from the passenger (e.g., at the airport check-in counter, self-service kiosk, or off-site drop).
- Load: Successful delivery and loading of the bag onto the aircraft.
- Transfer: The exact moment custody changes between airlines or ground handlers during a connecting flight itinerary.
- Arrival: Delivery of the bag to the arrival facility, such as a baggage claim carousel or a secure holding area.
Core Legal Obligations for Airlines
Beyond just scanning bags, the official IATA framework requires member airlines to achieve three data capabilities
- Prove Custody Changes: Show clear, electronic “proof of delivery” and “proof of acquisition” whenever a bag shifts between different operators or airport partners.
- Provide Departure Inventories: Generate an exact manifest of every bag loaded in the cargo hold prior to aircraft departure.
- Interline Interoperability: Maintain systems that can freely exchange this tracking data with code-share airlines, global alliances, and international airport handling teams.
RP 1701 Series – 14-step end-to-end passenger processing timeline
RP 1701f Self-Service Baggage Check-in
RP 1739 Passenger-Baggage Reconciliation Systems (BRS).
RP1740c Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Specifications for Interline Baggage
This standard lays the technical groundwork that allows airlines, airports, and ground handlers worldwide to seamlessly scan, track, and exchange data for checked bags using radio frequency technology.
Core Air Interface Technical Protocols
- Global Hardware Standard: RP 1740c establishes the universal selection of the ISO 18000-6C protocol and the EPCglobal UHF Gen 2 Class 1 subclass as the standard for airline tracking.
- Frequency Specification: It mandates the use of passive Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) RFID chips, enabling high-speed baggage sorting and batch reading without requiring an internal battery or a direct line of sight.
RP 1743 Series – Baggage Irregularities
RP1743a Tracing Procedures for Missing Checked Baggage
RP1743b Tracing Unchecked Baggage and Handling Damage to Checked and Unchecked Baggage
RP1743c Exchange of Information on Interline Baggage Tagging Errors
RP1743d Baggage Theft, Pilferage and Fraudulent Claim and Prevention
RP1743e Baggage Irregularity Report
RP1745 Baggage Information Messages
- Type B Messaging Protocol: It establishes strict structural layouts for legacy Type B text strings, which have guided automated sortation and security reconciliation for decades.
- Acronyms defined: The practice standardizes the precise text syntax for highly common baggage messages, including:
- BSM (Baggage Source Message): Triggered when a bag is checked in.
- BTM (Baggage Transfer Message): Issued when a bag is moving between connecting flights.
- BPM (Baggage Processed Message): Sent when a bag passes an tracking checkpoint or scanner.
- BUM (Baggage Unload Message): Deployed if a bag must be pulled off an aircraft.
- System Bridging: It allows Departure Control Systems (DCS), airport Baggage Handling Systems (BHS), and airline Baggage Reconciliation Systems (BRS) to speak a single language to verify that a bag’s owner is safely on board before flight departure.
System Evolution
Because RP 1745 relies on rigid, character-limited legacy text strings, the industry is gradually shifting toward RP 1755 (Baggage Logistics and Conformance Event Services). The newer standard replaces text files with XML and JSON data streams via the Baggage Information eXchange (BIX) to offer more robust, real-time tracking metrics.
RP1745a Automated Baggage Handling Based on the Messaging of RP 1745
While RP 1745 defines the raw syntax and data format of the text-based Type B strings, RP 1745a establishes how airport automation systems should act upon those messages to physically move bags.
- Physical Routing and Sortation: It provides the standardized procedural logic that airport Baggage Handling Systems (BHS) use to automatically sort, divert, and merge luggage across conveyor belts, laser tunnels, and security chutes.
- Security Reconciliation: It integrates closely with hold baggage security procedures, outlining how a Baggage Reconciliation System (BRS) should process security screening instructions, authority to load, or bag removal requests.
- Standardizing Operational Terminology: It explicitly defines automation-specific terminology to prevent errors during flight transfers or delays, such as:
- RUSH BAG: Expedited, unaccompanied baggage that has been authorized and added to an alternate flight.
- UNAC: Unaccompanied baggage that is explicitly flagged because it is not traveling on the same aircraft as its ticketed passenger.
- System Integration Framework: It provides the operational roadmap that enables an airline’s Departure Control System (DCS), the airport’s BHS, and the ground handler’s BRS to sync seamlessly without manual intervention.
RP1754 Form and Function of the Electronic Baggage Tag (EBT)
- Mandatory RFID Integration: RP 1754 requires EBTs to feature built-in Ultra-High Frequency (UHF) RFID chips to ensure compliance with global baggage tracking initiatives.
- Wireless Syncing: The standard mandates that electronic tags use wireless protocols—primarily Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or Near-Field Communication (NFC)—to receive flight data directly from passenger smartphones or airline apps.
- Display Requirements: It specifies the use of a bi-stable electronic paper display (similar to an e-reader). This ensures the traditional linear barcode and flight information remain visible even if the tag completely loses battery power.
- Fail-Safe Mechanism: The practice requires a permanently printed QR code on the physical shell of the device. This code houses the tag’s Global Unique Identifier (GUID), allowing baggage handlers to scan and return the bag manually if the digital screen fails.
RP 1755 – Baggage Logistics and Conformance Event Services
- Modern Messaging Standard: It establishes the foundation for the Baggage Information eXchange (BIX) standard.
- Legacy Replacement: It is designed to modernize and eventually replace the older, text-based RP 1745 (Baggage Information Messages)
- Modern Data Formats: Instead of legacy string formats, it utilizes the IATA Airline Industry Data Model (AIDM) to construct messages using modern, structured languages like XML and JSON.
- Compliance Support: It works hand-in-hand with IATA Resolution 753 to ensure secure, real-time, end-to-end baggage tracking throughout a passenger’s journey
2019 IATA AGM RESOLUTION ON RADIO FREQUENCY IDENTIFICATION (RFID) IN BAGGAGE
RFID Bag Tag Initiative Fact Sheet
IATA Launches Global Bagagge Roadmap
