The Real ID deadline is just weeks away. Here’s what travelers need to know

Travelers take observe: The federal authorities says it is going to begin imposing Real ID necessities at U.S. airports beginning Might 7 — for actual this time.

Which means travelers will need a Real ID-compliant license or different accepted type of identification like a passport to get by means of safety earlier than a home U.S. flight.

The Transportation Safety Administration mentioned 81% of individuals approaching airport checkpoints have already got Real ID-compliant identification, although it varies by state.

Federal and state officers in latest weeks have urged travelers to make appointments at motorized vehicle departments to replace licenses and different ID playing cards earlier than the deadline, although availability has change into scarce.

“Make your appointments now as fast as attainable,” John Essig, the Transportation Safety Administration’s federal safety director for New York Metropolis-area airports, mentioned at a information convention at LaGuardia Airport earlier this month. “We actually don’t need to maintain up anybody with out Real ID on the checkpoint,” Essig mentioned.

Indicators reminding travelers at U.S. reviews to apply for a Real ID have been up for years, although the deadline has been pushed again repeatedly. A TSA officer this week was handing out flyers to travelers with a QR code for Real ID info at LaGuardia Airport.

Airways have additionally been reminding travelers of the brand new necessities by means of buyer emails and different channels. Frontier Airways has a grey banner operating alongside its web site informing travelers of the Real ID necessities.

A Real ID is an identification card, like a driver’s license or state-issued ID, that is compliant with federal guidelines initiated within the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror assaults. These hijackers had been utilizing state IDs and driver’s licenses, a few of which had been obtained fraudulently.

In 2005, Congress handed the Real ID Act, permitting the federal authorities to set requirements for state IDs. It was initially supposed to go into impact in 2008, however has been repeatedly postponed, together with through the pandemic.

The ID playing cards have a gold or black star, or in California, a yellow bear, on the highest proper.

“If the cardboard doesn’t have one among these markings, it is not REAL ID-compliant and will not be accepted as proof of id so as to board business plane,” the Division of Homeland Safety mentioned.

Travelers 18 or over need the ID, or one other type of accepted ID, for U.S. home flights.

If you cannot get a Real ID by Might 7, there are alternatives.

The TSA says you should utilize a U.S. passport; a everlasting resident card, often known as a inexperienced card; or a trusted traveler ID, like a International Entry card, and others.

No. However you possibly can go for an “enhanced ID” that is additionally Real ID compliant, which you should utilize to journey to Mexico and Canada.

The TSA says that the deadline is professional and that travelers with no Real ID or different accepted doc may expertise delays when going by means of safety as a result of it is going to take longer to confirm their id.

They may face “further screening and the opportunity of not being permitted into the safety checkpoint,” the TSA mentioned in a information launch on Friday.

The company recommends travelers arrive not less than three hours earlier than home flights if they do not have Real ID or an alternate.

“Id verification is a lynchpin in safety and we’ll guarantee that passengers are verified as being who they are saying they’re earlier than they will transcend the checkpoint,” mentioned spokesman Carter Langston.