REAL ID Deadline Extended Again For Virginia, Rest Of Nation

VIRGINIA — U.S. residents will have an additional 19 months to get their REAL ID after the Department of Homeland Security delayed the requirement for air travelers to have a REAL ID-compliant form of identification by Oct. 1.

The deadline has been postponed until May 3, 2023, for Virginia and all other states. Officials said the new delay is due to the pandemic, which is making it harder for people to get into state motor vehicle departments and get the new IDs. Fewer than 50 percent of Americans have obtained their REAL ID.

The REAL ID Act was passed after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to establish minimum security standards for state-issued driver's licenses and identification cards. The Department of Homeland Security initially postponed the enforcement date for REAL ID from Oct. 1, 2020, to Oct. 1, 2021, in response to COVID-19.

"Extending the Real ID full enforcement deadline will give states needed time to reopen their driver’s licensing operations and ensure their residents can obtain a Real ID-compliant license or identification card,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement.

Real ID compliant cards are issued after a more thorough check of an applicant's identification and incorporate new security features that make them harder to counterfeit. Under the Real ID Act, passed by Congress after the 9/11 attacks of 2001, travelers 18 or older wanting to board an airplane by using a driver's license for identification must have one that conforms with the law's stricter requirements.

On Twitter, Americans reacted to the new delay by urging the federal government to ditch the REAL ID program entirely.

“They should just scrap the Real ID altogether. The document requirements for getting one are difficult or even impossible for many people (especially older and/or poor) to obtain,” one person said.

Another person tweeted: “My Real ID is gonna expire before it’s actually required.”

Currently, in Virginia, all applicants for a REAL ID must make an appointment at dmvNOW.com to apply in-person and provide DMV with physical documentation.

Virginia residents who want a REAL ID compliant credential can start the process by selecting the documents that they will bring to DMV and then make an appointment at dmvNOW.com/appt.

The DMV charges a $10 one-time surcharge in addition to standard fees for a driver's license. A standard driver's license renewal costs $32.

To get a REAL ID, here are the documents that you'll need.

One from this category:

• Unexpired U.S. passport or U.S. birth certificate

One from this category:

• Social Security card or W-2 form displaying full number. Note: You will not be required to present proof of your Social Security number if you know the number and DMV is able to electronically verify it.

Two from this category:

• Valid Virginia driver's license, recent utility bills, mortgage statement, or rental lease agreements displaying current residential street address, not a P.O. Box. Note: You may redact (blackout/whiteout) sensitive financial information.

For more information on obtaining a REAL ID in Virginia, go here.

The DHS said it is continuing to work with all U.S. states and the District of Columbia to implement REAL ID Act requirements. For more information on REAL ID, visit www.dhs.gov/real-id.