N.C. to offer REAL ID cards starting May 1
The state Division of Motor Vehicles will soon begin offering a form of identification that satisfies a new federal ID requirement for boarding planes and entering federal buildings, military bases and nuclear facilities.
The so-called REAL ID looks and works like a driver’s license but will have a gold star in the upper right-hand corner. The star indicates that you’ve met the identification standards spelled out in the federal REAL ID Act. Congress passed the law in 2005 in response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
To get a REAL ID, an applicant must provide documents that show who they are, where they were born, where they live and that they have a Social Security number. The documents that meet the requirements include a birth certificate, a valid U.S. passport or immigration documents, and a Social Security card or W-2 form, copies of which will remain on file at DMV.
The federal government will begin requiring REAL ID for commercial air travel and access to other federal facilities on Oct. 1, 2020. Those without a state-issued REAL ID would still be able to board a plane with a standard driver’s license and one form of identification spelled out in the federal law, such as a passport.
New driver’s licenses that don’t meet the REAL ID requirements will include the words “Not for Federal Identification.”
The new state REAL ID will be available starting May 1 at the same cost as a standard driver’s license or identification card. The new ID can be obtained at the time of renewal or before the renewal period for the cost of a duplicate.
More information on North Carolina’s REAL ID is available at NCREALID.com.
Richard Stradling: 919-829-4739, @RStradling
This story was originally published April 26, 2017 at 2:18 PM with the headline "N.C. to offer REAL ID cards starting May 1."