What’s Going On With REAL ID? Things To Know In VA

VIRGINIA — The deadline to get a REAL ID-compliant driver’s license has changed so many times it’s almost a punchline for a joke. Now, the date Virginia residents need to remember is May 7, 2025.

After that date, if things stand as they are now, Virginians will no longer be able to board domestic flights or enter nuclear power plants and certain federal buildings if they don’t have a REAL ID. One exception: A valid passport works as well as a REAL ID when boarding domestic flights. Additionally, these federal documents are accepted.

Congress passed the REAL ID Act, a recommendation of the 9/11 Commission, in 2005. It “establishes minimum security standards for state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards, and prohibits federal agencies from accepting for official purposes licenses and identification cards from states that do not meet these standards.”

Here are some things to know about REAL ID and the new deadline:

How Do I Know If I Have A REAL ID?

A REAL ID is an optional, upgraded version of your driver’s license or ID card that has a star in the right corner.

The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles offers an online pre-application for REAL ID on its website, dmv.virginia.gov.

This application is part of DMV’s “start anywhere” services, which allow customers to begin certain applications from the comfort of their own home or on the go. The services available to start online include: original driver’s licenses or renewals or replacements, name change, and now original IDs. Customers can also choose to upgrade their credential to a REAL ID.

Customers log in to their DMV account and begin their application from home. The application is electronically submitted to DMV and a customer service representative will review the pre-filled application.

This new process also walks customers through exactly what documents they need to bring with them so that their DMW visit is successful, officials said.

How Do I Get A REAL ID?

Customers can find the pre-application for IDs on DMV’s website under “Online Services.” Residents must visit a DMV customer service center to complete the process. Make an appointment, reserve your spot for same-day service or stop by during office hours.

Virginians must visit a DMV customer service center to provide required documents for a REAL ID compliant driver's license or ID card. Customers will need to bring several documents from three categories:

• An unexpired U.S. passport or U.S. birth certificate.
• A Social Security card or W-2 form with the number.
• A valid Virginia driver’s license, recent utility bills, mortgage statement, or rental lease agreements displaying current residential street address.

Please bring the following items to DMV:

1. One proof of identity.
2. Two proofs of Virginia residency.
3. One proof of legal presence.
4. Proof of your Social Security number, if you have been issued one. If you know your SSN, DMV can verify it electronically.
5. If your name appears differently on your proof documents: Proof of name change
6. $10 fee, plus the cost of the driver’s license or ID card you’re applying for. See fee chart. Note: For example, a standard driver's license renewal costs $32, while a standard driver's license replacement costs $20.

See acceptable documents guide.

Have more questions?

Get answers at REAL ID FAQs.

Why Is The Deadline So Fluid?

The Department of Homeland Security has extended the deadline for REAL ID-compliant driver’s licenses multiple times, most recently in late 2022 when the agency moved the implementation date back two years to May 7, 2025.

Homeland Security officials said COVID-19 pandemic-related backlogs have slowed states’ progress in issuing REAL ID-compliant driver’s licenses.

Those backlogs are greater in some states where driver’s license expiration dates were automatically extended, or by shifting operations to appointment only.

Should I Just Wait Until 2025?

With the extended deadline now about a year and a half in the future, the temptation to put off getting a REAL ID may be great. But that could mean longer lines and more competition for appointments in places that require them.

Homeland Security officials estimated that by May 2023, the REAL ID compliance deadline before the latest extension, only about 56 percent of the U.S. population over age 18 would have obtained one.