The REAL ID deadline is Wednesday. It means it will be mandatory for domestic air travelers to have a REAL ID, Enhanced ID or an acceptable alternative, beginning on May 7.
"We have been prepared for this for years, it's been pushed back," said Kelly Khatib, public information officer for the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority. "So we did partner up with the county clerks to go ahead and get the word out, making sure people knew exactly where they could get it from, going to the DMV, things of that nature, and really it's just been all hands on deck for about the past month to get the word out and make sure everyone was properly prepared."
To get the REAL ID-compliant license, you will need to visit a DMV office in person and bring certain documents to prove U.S. citizenship and New York residency, according to the Transportation Security Administration. Required documents include one proof of identity (passport or U.S. birth certificate), proof of legal presence for non-U.S. citizens, two proofs of New York residency, proof of social security number and a current driver’s license if you are applying to exchange one issued by another U.S. state, the TSA says.
If you need to get to the DMV soon to update your identification, you are encouraged to schedule an appointment as branches are expected to be busy in the days leading up to the deadline. Information on scheduling a DMV appointment should be available on your county clerk's website.
If you’ve gotten a new ID in the last few years, it could already be REAL ID-compliant.
“I hear from travelers who are confused as to whether or not they already have a REAL ID,” said Nina Ruggiero, senior editorial director for Travel + Leisure. “Some people who have recently renewed their license may already have a compliant ID and not know it,” so you may want to double-check yours before starting the process.
A REAL ID-compliant driver’s license has a symbol (in most states, a star) in the top corner of the card.
If you live in Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont or Washington, it’s possible you could have an Enhanced ID card instead. You’ll need more documentation for the Enhanced ID and it will cost $30 more than the REAL ID, but it has more benefits. The Enhanced ID permits you to both fly domestically and cross land and sea borders into Mexico and Canada from the U.S. It does not, however, allow you to fly into either of those countries.
Enhanced IDs will have an American flag icon, as well as the word “enhanced” at the top of the card.
After May 7, any passenger who presents an identification that is not REAL ID compliant can expect to face delays, additional screening and the possibility of not being permitted into the security checkpoint. The TSA says all passengers 18 years of age and older must present a REAL ID, Enhanced ID or U.S. passport. Anyone without one of those will be handed a card with details on how to comply.
"Right now, what we are doing at our airport is we are making sure before you even get to this gate, that TSA agents, and even some of our CLEAR agents, are asking people, 'do you have your proper identification? Please bring it out right now, before you get into those lines, so we can make sure those lines continue to go smoothly,'" said Khatib.
When the REAL ID Act was signed into law in 2005, it enacted a recommendation from the 9/11 Commission that the government set security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and IDs.
“REAL ID is a coordinated effort by the federal government to improve the reliability and accuracy of driver licenses and identification cards,” said Bart R. Johnson, TSA’s federal security director for the airports across upstate New York. “The improvements are intended to inhibit terrorists’ ability to evade detection by using fraudulent identification.”
The REAL ID Act was supposed to begin rolling out in 2008, “but has faced repeated delays due to state implementation challenges and the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Ruggiero. “The combination of varying state processes and shifting deadlines has added to the overall confusion around REAL IDs and likely led some travelers to take the deadlines less seriously.”
In mid-April, a group of state senators from Kentucky asked the agency to delay implementing the new requirements yet again. They said the state has limited appointments available to people seeking the new cards and that there has been a rush to meet the May 7 deadline.
However, TSA spokesperson Dan Velez said that the agency does not intend to delay the REAL ID deadline again.
As of late April, 81% of travelers at TSA checkpoints were presenting acceptable identification, including a state-issued REAL ID, according to DHS.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
