Houston IAH car rental rules: age, debit, deposit and pickup

Houston Intercontinental’s rental companies operate from a consolidated Rental Car Center on Palmetto Pines. Blue-and-white Rental Car Shuttle buses connect the terminals to the facility.

1. Follow Ground Transportation and Rental Car signs to the designated rental-shuttle stop for your arrival terminal.
2. Look for a blue-and-white bus marked Rental Car Shuttle.
3. For your return journey, check the terminal destination on the front of the shuttle before boarding.

Official IAH airport directions · transport source checked 2026-09-30

Match the branch on your reservation to this airport service. Pickup counter hours, vehicle-return hours and after-hours collection are separate conditions.

In George Bush Intercontinental Airport's own words (quoted verbatim from the airport's rental-car page; your rental company's return instructions on the reservation still apply):

• “Signs on John F. Kennedy Boulevard and Will Clayton Parkway direct you to the Rental Car Center.”

• “Address: 17330 Palmetto Pines, Houston, TX 77032”

Official IAH return directions · quotes checked 2026-10-20

These charges and programmes are set by the airport, the state toll agency or state law, not by the rental company. Each line is copied from the official source linked beside it, with the period the source states. Confirm the total on your rental agreement.

• State toll programme

  TxTag, run by Texas Department of Transportation.

  TxDOT directs TxTag account holders to the Harris County Toll Road Authority.

  “Need to manage your TxTag account or get a tag? Visit hctra.org” — TxDOT, Toll roads and managed lanes ↗

  Checked 2026-10-19 · next review due 2027-04-17

• Airport charge

  Customer Facility Charge (CFC): $4 per rental day (as of 30 June 2025).

  “The bonds are payable from Customer Facility Charges (“CFC”) collected by the car rental companies from their customers and remitted to a trustee for payment of debt service and other uses allowable by a trust indenture. As of June 30, 2025, the daily usage charge per customer is set at $4.00.” — City of Houston, Annual Comprehensive Financial Report for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2025 (Houston Airport System) ↗

  Checked 2026-10-19 · next review due 2027-01-17

• State rental charge

  Texas motor vehicle gross rental receipts tax: 10% of the rental (Tex. Tax Code § 152.026).

  10% applies to rentals of 30 days or less.

  “(b) The tax rate is 10 percent of the gross rental receipts from the rental of a rented motor vehicle for 30 days or less and 6-1/4 percent of the gross rental receipts from the rental of a rented motor vehicle for longer than 30 days.” — Texas Tax Code, chapter 152, section 152.026 ↗

  Checked 2026-10-19 · next review due 2027-04-17

Each company’s most common reviewed value across covered airports, with the airports that differ.

• Young-driver fee by company
• Age 20 by company
• Debit card by company
• Deposit by company
• Foreign licence by company
• Additional driver by company
• Tolls and one-way by company
• Young-driver fee waivers by company
• Under-25 Fee Index (CSV)

Open a profile for its age, debit, deposit, document and cardholder conditions. Unreviewed entries are research gaps and do not assert a branch's presence.

• Enterprise

  Exact branch not reviewed

• Alamo

  Exact branch not reviewed

• Avis

  Exact branch not reviewed

• Budget

  Exact branch not reviewed

• SIXT

  Exact branch not reviewed

• Hertz

  Exact branch not reviewed

• National

  Exact branch not reviewed

• Dollar

  Exact branch not reviewed

• Thrifty

  Exact branch not reviewed

1. Confirm the exact collection branch, arrival terminal and pickup time on your reservation.
2. Match your own physical card, age, vehicle and return itinerary to that branch's rules.
3. Bring the original licence and the required passport, IDP or translation. Keep enough available funds for charges still due and the applicable authorization.