While the act was signed into law more than a decade ago, most states didn’t get around to creating and issuing compliant IDs until 2018. (Some of the 9/11 terrorists obtained state licenses through fraudulent documents by taking advantage of certain loopholes to prove their identity and residency.) As DHS writes on its website, “The purpose of Real ID is to make our identity documents more consistent and secure.” The legislation aimed to effectively change how these documents are issued and produced to reduce the possibility of forgery and fraud. In response to the 9/11 terror attacks, the House of Representatives passed the Real ID Act in 2005 to establish a federal standard for driver’s licenses and identification cards. Here are some answers to the questions you might have about the Real ID. Still, despite Americans’ uncertainty surrounding these new ID requirements, the law is on track to be implemented in about eight months - nearly 15 years after the original legislation was approved in Congress.
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More than half said they didn’t know about the previous October 1 deadline, and 39 percent said they didn’t have an alternative like a passport. If you choose to not get a Real ID this year, your driver’s license is still valid for other things besides plane travel, like driving, age verification, or voter registration.Īccording to a survey by the US Travel Association in September, most Americans are confused about the Real ID requirements. As of 2016, 32 states were still not compliant with Real ID requirements, which led DHS to extend the time frame for the program. The Department of Homeland Security has spent years trying to implement federally standardized identification at the state level.
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#Do you need an enhanced drivers license to fly domestically upgrade
That means there are still 181 million people who need to upgrade their licenses, and as the pandemic spreads across the country, obtaining one will likely be a distant priority for most people. As of January 2020, DHS reported that 95 million driver’s license holders have been issued Real IDs. California’s DMV is really, really behind in issuing Real IDs” and “Need a new driver’s license to fly? Prepare for a real wait” sent people scrambling to schedule appointments to secure a new ID. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, stories of bureaucratic chaos at local DMVs had emerged, and airports were bracing for October 1, 2020. The result of this impending change? Overcrowded DMVs, long lines and waits, and mass confusion.
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The rule also affects people looking to access federal facilities and nuclear power plants. When that date arrives, most current driver’s licenses will no longer be accepted by the Transportation Security Administration, which means travelers will need to show another form of federally accepted ID, like a US passport or permanent resident card, to make it past security and onto their flight. The nonprofit association, which advocates for the travel industry, cited concerns that only a little more than a third of Americans currently have a Real ID and that “full compliance is not realistically within reach in time for the Octodeadline.” While the new deadline - Octois roughly a year away, the US Travel Association recently called upon the federal government to push back the date once more. Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, the Department of Homeland Security has extended the deadline for Americans to acquire a Real ID, a new type of identification card required to fly domestically.