CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Beginning on Oct. 1, 2020, a regular driver’s license or ID card won’t be enough to board a plane as an adult to fly within the United States or enter some federal facilities.
Instead, a REAL ID driver’s license or another type of REAL ID-compliant credential will be required.
To help West Virginia residents who don’t yet have a REAL ID or “for federal” or “gold star” driver’s license or ID, the state Division of Motor Vehicles has launched a website with information about requirements HERE.
“There’s an urgency now to go ahead and get that information out a little bit more and encourage people to take a look at their driver’s license,” said Natalie Holcomb, a spokesperson for the state Division of Motor Vehicles.
REAL ID compliance is signified with a gold star in the top right corner of a West Virginia driver’s license.
Those not compliant are labeled “Not For Federal Identification” and have no gold stars.
For applicants renewing IDs, seeking duplicates, getting a new ID, transferring an ID or addressing an expired ID, requirements include the following:
– one proof of identity document,
– one proof of Social Security number document,
– two proofs of West Virginia residency documents with name and physical address,
– and proof of legal name change document(s) if their name has ever changed or is different than the provided proof of identity document.
Many West Virginians, just more than 40 percent, are already in compliance.
The DMV started issuing driver’s licenses and ID cards meeting the requirements of the federal REAL ID Act in Jan. 2012.
Since then, people have had the option of the “for federal” ID which take additional steps.
There is also a $10 REAL ID surcharge on top of standard license fees.
Those getting REAL IDs will at first be issued a temporary license or ID card until a hard copy is made and mailed within ten to 14 business days.
For those not wanting to update a driver’s license or ID card, the following list from the Transportation Security Administration includes other acceptable forms of ID for air travel:
• U.S. passport
• U.S. passport card
• DHS trusted traveler card (Global Entry, NEXUS, SENTRI, FAST)
• U.S. Department of Defense ID, including IDs issued to dependents
• Permanent resident card
• Border crossing card
• DHS-designated enhanced driver’s license
• Federally recognized, tribal-issued photo ID
• HSPD-12 PIV card
• Foreign government-issued passport
• Canadian provincial driver’s license or Indian and Northern Affairs Canada card
• Transportation worker identification credential (TWIC®)
• U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Employment Authorization Card (I-766)
• U.S. Merchant Mariner Credential
“The key is you’ve got to have a REAL ID credential of some sort (by Oct. 1),” Holcomb said.