If you have family members whose only ID is issued by one of several states or territories, they won’t be able to use that ID for access to DoD or other federal facilities on Jan 30, 2017.
Also on that date, the list of states may grow to include Montana, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands, unless they’re granted extensions or come into compliance with the Real ID Act. The non-compliant jurisdictions under a grace period till Jan. 30, 2017, are Kentucky, Maine, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and South Carolina; federal facilities will not accept most forms of ID from those states after Jan. 29.
And in just over a year, non-compliant state driver’s licenses and state ID cards won’t be usable for air travel. On Jan. 22, 2018, any driver’s license used to board a U.S. flight must have been issued by a jurisdiction that complies with the Real ID Act or has an extension from the Department of Homeland Security.
The good news is that all DoD military IDs — including for retirees and dependents — are already compliant with the Real ID Act, enforced by DHS. And so is your Common Access Card. Even better, the law does not apply to places where you vote or register to vote.
Some states were under extensions or review that expired last October. DHS allowed federal facilities to continue accepting ID from those jurisdictions after that deadline. However, on Jan. 30, 2017, DHS will no longer permit federal facilities to accept ID issued by localities whose extension or review has expired and still aren’t in compliance.
Minnesota, Missouri and Washington are the three noncompliant states whose non-enhanced driver’s licenses and ID cards federal agencies already won’t accept. However, federal agencies will accept enhanced driver’s licenses from these states. (An enhanced license contains a chip and a barcode.)
On. Jan. 30, 2017, most forms of ID from five additional states will no longer be accepted. DHS considers them to be noncompliant but in a grace period. This means DHS has determined each state’s ID did not come into compliance by a previous deadline. These states, whose non-enhanced ID federal facilities will not accept after Jan. 29, 2017, are Kentucky, Maine, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.
Another three states are under DHS review, meaning they might come into compliance by the Jan. 30, 2017, deadline: Guam, Montana and the U.S. Virgin Islands. But if DHS determines they are still non-compliant by that date, then their IDs will also not be accepted starting Jan. 30.
The states with limited extensions through June 6, 2017, are Alaska, California, Oregon and Virginia.
These states and territories have extensions through Oct. 10, 2017: American Samoa, Arkansas, Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Northern Marianas, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island and Texas.
The following states’ ID already complies with the Real ID Act: Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, Ohio, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
For the full list of each state and territory’s compliance status and other information, go to this DHS page.
The Real ID Act (full text here) was prompted by a recommendation in the 9/11 Commission’s final report. It set security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and ID cards and prohibits federal agencies from accepting ID that doesn’t meet those standards.
- On Jan. 22, 2018, any non-enhanced driver’s license or ID card issued by a state or territory not compliant with Act and not under an extension, presented to board any domestic flight, will be rejected. The passenger will need to show another form of ID to board the flight. A passenger with a license issued by a compliant state (or a state under an extension) will still be able to use the license or ID card to board.
- On Oct. 1, 2020, every airline passenger will need a compliant license or other form of compliant ID for domestic air travel. (Foreign travel will still require a valid U.S. passport.)
Non-compliant ID can still be used to obtain a CAC or a DoD ID card but can’t be used for unescorted access to DoD or other federal facilities.
DHS’ full, illustrated 20-page guide on implementation can be found here in PDF format.