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The Deadline For Real ID Has Been Extended Again: What To Know

Published on December 4, 2022
The deadline for the implementation of REAL ID has been delayed once again, this time for two more years. This will give travelers more time to update their ID card to the enhanced REAL ID version in order to use it at airport security.
By May 2025, A REAL ID Will Be Required For Travel

By May 2025, A REAL ID Will Be Required For Travel

The new requirements will mean travelers will have to provide an enhanced state-issued driver’s license, identification card, or a passport in order to pass through security. The new deadline will go into effect on May 7th, 2025, as the DHS has shared. It was meant to go into effect in 2023.

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas shared in a statement: “DHS continues to work closely with U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories to meet REAL ID requirements. “This extension will give states needed time to ensure their residents can obtain a REAL ID-compliant license or identification card. DHS will also use this time to implement innovations to make the process more efficient and accessible. We will continue to ensure that the American public can travel safely.”

The DHS shared that the decision to push back the deadline was done partly because of the “lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” and the pandemic related backlogs reported by state driver’s licensing agencies around the country.
The Deadline Has Been Pushed Back Once Again

The Deadline Has Been Pushed Back Once Again

Initially, the REAL ID program was meant to go into effect in the fall of 2020, but as that was right at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was delayed for the first time and several times after that as well.
Travelers will need to visit their local DMV in person in order to obtain a REAL ID. They will have to provide a social security number, two forms of proof of address, and proof of lawful status.
DHS has stated that it will allow travelers to provide their proof of identity online in order to start out the application process, but an in-person visit will be required to finish the process.
According to the organization, 55 states and U.S. territories are “fully compliant with the REAL ID requirements.”
What To Look For

What To Look For


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