If you’re traveling by plane this week, you’re probably using your driver’s license to get through security. But next summer, that ID may not be good enough.
The Real ID deadline requirement is coming up. By May 7, travelers must be Real ID compliant to board domestic flights.
Lisa Farbstein, with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), said that if you haven’t started the process already, you shouldn’t delay any longer.
“I would suggest you do that sooner rather than later, because the closer we get to that May 7, 2025, deadline, the more challenging it’s going to be to get a Real ID, because so many more people are going to be trying to go to their local DMV,” she said.
The Real ID law was passed in 2005 after the events of Sept. 11, 2001, when 19 terrorists boarded planes using fraudulently obtained IDs.
“We want to make sure there are no fraudulent licenses — that people are not trying to pass themselves off as somebody else,” said Farbstein.
The deadline to become Real ID compliant has been extended several times since the law was first passed, and could be extended once again to 2027, under a recent TSA proposal.
Farbstein said more information is available on the Real ID Website.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to clarify the terrorists who carried out a plot on 9/11 used fraudulent IDs.
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