After two extensions due to the coronavirus pandemic, the clock is now running on the date when only a driver’s license that meets federal Real ID requirements will be accepted at airport checkpoints.
Federal officials warned at a press conference at Newark Liberty airport Wednesday that there’s now less than one year to go until the May 3, 2023 start date.
Their advice: don’t procrastinate getting your Real ID driver’s license, because it will be needed for domestic air travel for travelers without a passport or other federally-approved form of identification.
“If you don’t have it, don’t wait till April 2023,” said Thomas Carter, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) federal security director for New Jersey at Newark Liberty Airport Wednesday morning.
The original Oct. 1, 2020 deadline was pushed back twice, first to Oct. 1, 2021 and then to May 3, 2023 due to the coronavirus pandemic and the backlog it caused at motor vehicle departments across the country.
New Jersey started issuing Real ID licenses and non-driver ID cards in September 2019, gradually phasing it in to more state Motor Vehicle Commission agencies as staff was trained.
After a final extension, May 3, 2023 is the date fliers need to remember when Real ID security standards take effect to fly domestically.
Travelers shouldn’t count on another extension.
“Deadline extensions are a possibility, but I don’t see any delay,” Carter warned procrastinators. “You need to prepare for that date.”
Showing up at security without a Real ID license, passport or other form of acceptable federal identification can result in a penalty no traveler wants – they’ll be denied access to their flight, he said.
Carter did not have figures for how many Real ID licenses have been issued nationally.
Where does New Jersey stand?
So far, the state Motor Vehicle Commission has issued 291,000 Real ID licenses or non-license ID cards, said William Connolly, an MVC spokesman. New Jersey has 6.2 million licensed drivers.
Jersey drivers have two options to obtain a Real ID license. One is to make an appointment at an MVC licensing center to have your current license upgraded to a Real ID. That will cost $11 for the upgrade. A driver’s license renewal fee holiday proposed by Gov. Phil Murphy does not apply to the Real ID upgrade fee, officials said.
Those appointments aren’t easy to come by, which is another reason why Carter recommended travelers start the process early.
Option two is a work around.
“The best way to get a Real ID now is at a license renewal appointment, and those appointments are widely available at all of our Licensing Centers within a day or two,” Connelly said.
Only 70 Real ID appointments were available statewide on Wednesday, however 67,162 appointments were available for license renewal, according to the MVC website.
“We will be adding a significant number of Real ID opportunities in coming months,” Connolly said. “We are already using our Mobile Units for dedicated Real ID events, and plan to continue that initiative.”
Regardless of which one a driver chooses, they have to bring nine types of identification to prove who they are and where they live.
The MVC has an online document selector tool for drivers to use to be sure they are bringing the correct number and types of documents.
Currently even if a license is labeled a non-Real ID or not for federal identification purposes, travelers can still used it until May 3, 2023.
You will not be forced to get a Real ID license. Standard driver’s licenses will continue to be issued. Both are valid for driving, officials said. A passport or military ID are also accepted as proof of identity to fly.
Another factor is an expected rebound of air travel this summer. “What we expect is volume to increase if not exceed 2019,” Carter said.
Some of those signs were seen on Wednesday. Short term parking lots at Newark airport’s three terminals were full. While there were no lines, there was a constant flow of travelers at a TSA security line in Terminal B.
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