ORLANDO, Fla. – American travelers will soon need a specially verified form of identification to board a commercial flight.
It’s called a REAL ID, and it’s been a long time coming.
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Congress passed the REAL ID Act in 2005, and states have had two decades to get in compliance with the federal law. However, unless something changes, on May 7, everyone living in the U.S. will need a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license or identification card to get on a federally regulated plane.
According to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, over 99% of Floridians are REAL ID compliant.
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“The only thing I can think of is someone whose ID has expired and not been renewed,” said Volusia County Tax Collector Will Roberts. “That’s the only thing I can think of to keep us from being at 100%.”
Here’s what you need to know about REAL ID, how to find out if you already have one, and how to get one if you need it.
What is REAL ID?
The REAL ID Act came about as a recommendation from the commission established to examine the 9/11 attacks.
The 9/11 Commission said the federal government should “set standards for the issuance of sources of identification, such as driver’s licenses and identification cards.”
The act went into effect in 2008, but states were given deadline extensions over the ensuing years to get into compliance. Many states also resisted at first.
Aside from flying, a REAL ID-compliant card is also needed to access federal facilities that require an ID to get in, like military bases, federal courthouses, or nuclear power plants.
Only people over the age of 18 need a REAL ID-compliant card. Children do not.
Florida began issuing REAL ID driver’s licenses and ID cards on Jan. 4, 2010. All Florida-issued IDs are REAL ID-compliant.
Five states have special “enhanced driver’s licenses” that are approved as alternatives by the Department of Homeland Security. They are Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont, and Washington
In other states, like North Carolina, getting a REAL ID is optional.
What makes an ID a REAL ID?
The driver’s license or ID card must have the following information to be REAL ID compliant:
- The person’s full legal name
- The person’s date of birth
- The person’s gender
- The person’s driver’s license or identification card number
- A digital photograph of the person
- The person’s address of principal residence
- The person’s signature
- Physical security features designed to prevent tampering, counterfeiting, or duplication of the document for fraudulent purposes
- A common machine-readable technology, with defined minimum data elements.
To get one, the person applying for the card must provide a bevy of identification documents to prove they are who they say they are and they are legally allowed to live and work in the United States.
Finally, a REAL ID-compliant license or ID card has one of these special marks in the upper top part of the card.
Different states use different markings.
Florida, for instance, uses the white star inside the gold circle.
What do I need to do to get a REAL ID?
To apply for a REAL ID-compliant license or ID card, you need to provide documents to establish your identity, proof of legal residence, and date of birth.
If you are a U.S. Citizen, you need one of the following:
- Valid, unexpired U.S. passport
- Original or Certified copy of a birth certificate
- Consular Report of Birth Abroad
- Certificate of Naturalization issued by DHS
- Certificate of Citizenship
- A Social Security Card or proof of social security number
- Two documents that show your principal residence
If you are a non-citizen, you will need the following:
- Valid, unexpired Permanent Resident Card – I-551 for Lawful Permanent Residents
- Valid Passport for non-immigrants except for asylum applicants and refugees
- Other government-issued document showing your full name
- Department of Homeland Security document showing proof of lawful presence
- If your name has changed by marriage/divorce, you must have your name changed on your Citizen and Immigration Services (CIS) documents
- Social Security Card or proof of a social security number
- Two documents that show your principal residence
For Floridians, the FLHSMV has more details on documents needed and how to get them on the state website.
If you don’t have any of these documents available, you need to contact the state or country where they were issued. The federal government has a website to help you find out how to find that information. Go to usa.gov.
What if my name is now different from my birth certificate?
If your current name is different from the name on your main document, you also would need to bring:
- Court-ordered name change document
- Marriage certificate issued by the courts and/or
- Divorce decree, issued by the courts
Tax Collector Roberts says this gets complicated if you’ve been married multiple times.
“A person has been married multiple times and changed their name multiple times per Florida statute and federal regulations, we have to the documentation for each one of the name changes,” Roberts said.
“Depending on where you got married, sometimes it takes time to get all the information together, and it frustrates our customers a lot,” he added.
USA.gov has information on how to get copies of marriage certificates and divorce decrees on its website.
How do I get a REAL ID-compliant card?
To get a license or ID card that is REAL ID-compliant in Florida, you will need to schedule an appointment with your county tax collector’s office and bring the documents above. FLHSMV has links to county offices on its website.
Once you have a REAL ID, you can renew the license or ID card online.
In fact, tax collectors are urging people who already have a Florida REAL ID-compliant to renew their licenses online. They are expecting an influx of driver’s license renewals through 2027.
If I’m moving to Florida from another state, what do I need to know?
If you are moving from another state, even if you have a REAL ID-compliant ID from that state, you will need to go through the verification process in Florida.
“We do request that you have all the identifying documents again,” Roberts said. “We’re following federal law.”
Roberts says the best thing to do is to make sure you have those documents gathered before you come to Florida, especially if you don’t have a certified copy of your birth certificate.
“Each state has their own way of handling birth certificates,” Roberts said. “It has to come from the state, it has to be a state identifying document, it’s very specific on that. So sometimes it takes time to get it.”
The federal government has a website to help you find out how to get those documents. Go to usa.gov.
“There’s not much we can do as far as getting items out of the state, but we can try to point you in the right direction; we have some of those contact numbers,” Roberts said.
What happens if I don’t have a REAL ID-compliant card?
If you want to fly after May 7, 2025, and you do not have a REAL ID-compliant card, make sure you have one of the following to show TSA agents at the airport’s security checkpoint:
- DHS trusted traveler cards (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST)
- U.S. Department of Defense ID, including IDs issued to dependents
- Permanent resident card
- Border crossing card
- An acceptable photo ID issued by a federally recognized Tribal Nation/Indian Tribe, including Enhanced Tribal Cards (ETCs).
- HSPD-12 PIV card
- Foreign government-issued passport
- Canadian provincial driver’s license or Indian and Northern Affairs Canada card
- Transportation worker identification credential
- U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Employment Authorization Card (I-766)
- U.S. Merchant Mariner Credential
- Veteran Health Identification Card (VHIC)
That list is from the Transportation Security Administration website.
Do this mean I can use my REAL ID at international entry points instead of a passport?
No.
Have more questions about the REAL ID requirements? The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has a Frequently Asked Questions section on its REAL ID website.