Washington travelers can use standard ID at airports until October 2020. Will not be allowed to pass TSA. Enhanced driver's licenses will be permitted to enter. Use standard ID at airports. The act established minimum security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses. Under the law, state driver's licenses and ID cards have to be issued only to people who can prove they are legally living in the United States. If state licenses don’t meet the standards, then federal agencies -– such as the TSA - will not accept them.
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Take a quick look at your driver's license. Does it have a star in the upper right corner? The TSA is preparing to take a page out of Dr. Seuss's The Sneetches and allow only those with starred licenses to fly within the United States.
Newfangled driver's licenses with stars are REAL ID compliant, meaning that they are more secure than what were previously issued. The new rules were announced back in 2005, when Congress passed the REAL ID Act on the recommendation of the 9/11 Commission. The law is intended to create a national standard and make sure every state has a more secure driver's license.
“TSA is doing everything we can to prepare our partners and the traveling public for the REAL ID deadline next year,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske in a statement. “The security requirements of the REAL ID Act will dramatically enhance and improve commercial aviation security.”
What does this mean for travelers? Beginning October 1, 2020, travelers who present a driver's license that is not REAL ID compliant will not be permitted to fly. They'll have to bring another form of acceptable ID to the airport instead or be turned away. The list of acceptable IDs includes a passport; a military ID; a border ID card; a trusted traveler card, such as Global Entry; a permanent resident card; and other documents.
The good news: If your license is not REAL ID compliant, you've got about 18 months to get an updated license.
The bad news: You need to visit a DMV office to do it and you may need to plan ahead. Getting a REAL ID or EDL requires additional paperwork, which you can find on your state's DMV website. For example, here's what the New York DMV website says is required for a REAL ID:
“You MUST bring to the office the following original or certified proof documents:
Oh, and comb your hair; the REAL ID application process also requires the DMV to take a new photo.
In the beloved Dr. Seuss story, “Those stars weren't so big. They were really so small. You might think such a thing wouldn't matter at all.” But for travelers, those small stars are about to matter an awful lot.
Very soon, we'll start seeing new signs at airports nationwide to remind us that REAL ID-compliant licenses will be mandatory for air travel beginning on October 1, 2020.
Take the hint and don't leave getting yours until the last minute.
'>Beginning in October 2020, only REAL ID-compliant driver's licenses will get past the TSA checkpoint. Photographer: Mark Kauzlarich/Bloomberg
© 2019 Bloomberg Finance LPTake a quick look at your driver's license. Does it have a star in the upper right corner? The TSA is preparing to take a page out of Dr. Seuss's The Sneetches and allow only those with starred licenses to fly within the United States.
Newfangled driver's licenses with stars are REAL ID compliant, meaning that they are more secure than what were previously issued. The new rules were announced back in 2005, when Congress passed the REAL ID Act on the recommendation of the 9/11 Commission. The law is intended to create a national standard and make sure every state has a more secure driver's license.
“TSA is doing everything we can to prepare our partners and the traveling public for the REAL ID deadline next year,” said TSA Administrator David Pekoske in a statement. “The security requirements of the REAL ID Act will dramatically enhance and improve commercial aviation security.”
What does this mean for travelers? Beginning October 1, 2020, travelers who present a driver's license that is not REAL ID compliant will not be permitted to fly. They'll have to bring another form of acceptable ID to the airport instead or be turned away. The list of acceptable IDs includes a passport; a military ID; a border ID card; a trusted traveler card, such as Global Entry; a permanent resident card; and other documents.
REAL ID-compliant driver's licenses have a star in the upper right corner.
California DMVNote that five states (Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont and Washington) also issue an enhanced driver's license (EDL) as a proof of identity and U.S. citizenship. It serves not only as a REAL ID-compliant driver's license for domestic air travel but it also allows re-entry into the U.S. at land and sea borders when coming from Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean. Instead of a star in the upper right corner, EDLs have an American flag in the lower right corner.
The good news: If your license is not REAL ID compliant, you've got about 18 months to get an updated license.
The bad news: You need to visit a DMV office to do it and you may need to plan ahead. Getting a REAL ID or EDL requires additional paperwork, which you can find on your state's DMV website. For example, here's what the New York DMV website says is required for a REAL ID:
“You MUST bring to the office the following original or certified proof documents:
Oh, and comb your hair; the REAL ID application process also requires the DMV to take a new photo.
In the beloved Dr. Seuss story, “Those stars weren't so big. They were really so small. You might think such a thing wouldn't matter at all.” But for travelers, those small stars are about to matter an awful lot.
Very soon, we'll start seeing new signs at airports nationwide to remind us that REAL ID-compliant licenses will be mandatory for air travel beginning on October 1, 2020.
Take the hint and don't leave getting yours until the last minute.