No REAL ID? That'll be $18.

[Skippy918]

I have a passport and it was one of the IDs I took with me. They did not accept it because the name did not match my DL.

I have never taken my passport for travel in the US because I don't need it. I have never had an issue with using my DL as ID for security at the airport, so I didn't take my passport for this trip. I have flown multiple times since Real ID was required with this license and no issues.

ETA - I find it absurd that my DL with a name that does not match my birth certificate or marriage license could be used to get my passport, but my passport could not be used to get my Real ID license because it did not match the name on my birth certificate or DL.

What you went thru sounds awful!

 

[Skippy918]

I didn’t have to do anything special to get a real ID. I renewed my license online and it got upgraded to a real ID. Now when I first moved here and got a DL, I did show all the docs (passport, SS card, etc) So I’m guessing they had it already listed in the system.

 

[sam_gordon]

And you can't do international travel without a passport. What's your point? I need a DL to drive. I need a passport to travel outside of the country. REAL ID is not a substitute for a passport or DL (lots of people with state ID and no DL get REAL IDs) but a passport is a substitute for REAL ID.

You realize how many people have no desire, not enough funds, or no interest in traveling internationally? Therefore, they don't need a passport. A Real ID absolutely can be a DL. That's what I use. I've travelled all of the country with just my DL (that's a Real ID). One ID, handles all my needs.

Yes, I also have a passport. Even if I got the PP card though simply to use as a Real ID, I'd also have to carry my DL. So, okay, I don't need to make my DL a RealID. It costs me an extra $5 for the RealID feature.

The RID is just not worth the hassle for me when I'm already covered with the documents I possess. Given the many hoops that my state requires married women to jump thru (or anyone with a name change for that matter) coupled with the limited locations and hours of service for obtaining that little star on my license, I see no need to bother.

And that's totally fine. I personally don't care what anyone does. I simply pointing out the negatives (cost & having to carry two IDs) of using a passport (or pp card) as a RealID.

 

[EACarlson]

It surprises me, but maybe it shouldn't, how difficult some states make it to get a RealID. The map earlier in the thread is not correct. MN had Enhanced DL, which are RealID compliant before 2018. My wife had one in I want to say it was 2014. I got a RealID compliant DL in 2017 when I moved to WI. I'm currently looking into it for my son and what is needed. I need to bring his Birth Certificate, my DL and a printout of his online bank statement. That's it.

 

[MillauFr]

Dont forget the $130 for a passport. Can you get just a card? And still, the PP card isn't good as a DL.

Just charge the fee to one of the credit cards that reimburses you for those costs.

 

[mikehn]

I get why some people just dont wanna deal with getting a real ID and it has to do with dealing with your local DMV office. Not all DMVs are created equal. I recently moved and the DMV I had to deal with was a complete and utter joke and Im gonna leave it right there.

 

[sam_gordon]

Just charge the fee to one of the credit cards that reimburses you for those costs.

Please list a credit card that reimburses for a passport.

 

[MillauFr]

Please list a credit card that reimburses for a passport.

You are correct. I was wrong. They reimbursed my Global Entry fee. Not my passport fee.

 

[ncc1701]

I just googled, 17% of NJ drivers had real id this spring. Folks here really want to get it, but are unable. It’s not laziness, technophobes, those who have it went through great lengths, trying to snag appointments, spending hours driving and waiting. Fortunately I believe many here have passports with several international airports close by.

A fellow NJ resident here. It was a hassle to get ours. Our closest DMV doesn't do Real ID. We were lucky since we are both retired & had free time to get them. I was able to get an appointment for both of us last year. DH's license was expiring, but mine had another year. I was able to get a 1 year Real ID. But my suggestionto anyone from NJ is to take more documents than you need. And a printout of the list . On of the items I took was on the list but the staff lady said no. I didn't have the list so just gave another that she said worked. If I had the list on me I'd have shown it to her.

 

[greeneyedchick]

All of this! I lived in NJ for about 20 years, until 3ish years ago. We knew about RealID; it wasn't ignorance. It wasn't being technophobes. It wasn't being lazy. It was no access. The last time I renewed in NJ, RealID was NOT an option. The state kept pushing it back.

When I moved 3.5 years ago, I did make a choice to not get RealID immediately. I knew that I was going to be moving three times within the year with no set address for the final (long-term) place. Because I have a valid passport, there was no reason to spend extra money for RealID at the time. The entire time RealID has been talked about (20 years or much less depending on your state), we have been told that you'll need RealID OR a passport to fly domestically. I'm sure there are plenty of people with passports who decided not to shell out the extra money for RealID before needing to renew.

I now live in a state where BMV access is much easier than it was in Jersey, but I'm still waiting months for an appointment. And from the five states I've lived in, the NJMVC was the worst motor vehicles organization. I couldn't even tell you how many hours I spent in line outside the Springfield MVC over 20 years.

O can sympathize....The Springfield MVC made me cry so much. Last time I was there you had to pay for parking, but there was a 2 hour limit. I had to go out to put more money in the meter. I had been waiting for 2 hours with 2 toddlers by that time. I was told that if they happened to call my name while I was out putting money in the meter, I would lose my spot. The choice was hold your spot or risk getting a ticket (and they did have parking enforcers). I ended up having to hire a babysitter and come back another day. Never again! Thank goodness I live in FL now. We have such a fast and efficient DMV here.

 

[Skippy918]

It surprises me, but maybe it shouldn't, how difficult some states make it to get a RealID. The map earlier in the thread is not correct. MN had Enhanced DL, which are RealID compliant before 2018. My wife had one in I want to say it was 2014. I got a RealID compliant DL in 2017 when I moved to WI. I'm currently looking into it for my son and what is needed. I need to bring his Birth Certificate, my DL and a printout of his online bank statement. That's it.

When I took my son for his permit (it’s also a real ID) I had to bring his passport, BC (to prove he was my child), SS card, bank statement (for address), affidavit signed by me to prove he lives with me because he doesn’t get bills in his name, my DL, and verification of enrollment from the school.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

FWIW it's been happening for years that people lacked all documentation. That's not talking about the various examples people can use to show how difficult their state is or their own unique situation but just that more documentation has always been better.

I remember being in the DMV back in 2013 and in 2016 where people were on their 2nd to 3rd appointments because they didn't have all the documentation even though the state advised what you needed to bring although some DVM clerks are better than others verbally telling people what they needed the state still told people what they needed too.

Over the years my state had been collecting information necessary for REAL ID and then updated as time went on when more information was part of the REAL ID initiative so by the time they started issuing REAL ID in August 2017 (most licenses 21+ renew with a 6 yr cycle) they advised chances are people had to provide less documentation IF they had provided necessary documentation over time. Much of this is based on when people renewed though.

With a name change in 2013 and a renewal in 2016 by the time 2022 rolled around I only had to provide my updated passport (in my married name and used as proof of citizenship) and my renewal postcard the DMV sent out (which can be and often is used as proof of residency) to get my REAL ID. This is because over the past renewals I had already provided proof of name change, the SSN in my married name and prior proof of residency (as you need two documents one of which can be the DL renewal postcard).

However, at my REAL ID appointment just in case I brought 2 proofs of address (deed information from the county via property tax notification and my renewal postcard), my SSN and my passport with my married name along with a certified copy of my marriage license (that I actually used in 2018 to get my updated passport). The only reason I had to show my passport is because in 2016 I used my passport with my maiden name to renew so I needed to have the documents match if using my passport as proof of citizenship. I just brought a manila folder with it all in there and the DMV clerk only asked for the renewal postcard and my passport.

The differences between states don't surprise me in the least because one of the intents behind REAL ID is to bring a more uniform means of having shared data on people with 50 states with no uniform requirement it means every state had the right to be different. Some states already communicate between each other in DMV records but not all. But to be fair it was never really well thought out how REAL ID was going to work on a logistical level and state's DMV systems (both computer and physical locations) vary in quality and functionality. And if anyone thinks we're really unique here just look at the EES system over in majority of Europe.

 

[bluezy]

I get why some people just dont wanna deal with getting a real ID and it has to do with dealing with your local DMV office. Not all DMVs are created equal. I recently moved and the DMV I had to deal with was a complete and utter joke and Im gonna leave it right there.

Totally agree. The DMV I went to (20 minutes from home) to get my RID was tiny, dark, not super clean and the workers more like the ones at the DMV in Zootopia -- everyone moved slowly, they were not very organized, the person at the registration desk constantly had to refer to his notes to make sure every person had the proper paperwork with them (and I had been at that DMV several times over the years for kids to get learner's permits and DLs -- that guy had been there for years), and the registration desk was right inside the door so if a line formed, you were waiting outside. Fortunately I had done my research and had all the paperwork I needed (plus extra stuff just in case) and my transaction went smoothly, just very slowly. The next closest DMV location to us was even worse than this one (I went there once just to see if it was any better). But then they built a whole new facility for that location. It's a dream come true. Huge, plenty of space for a line to form inside the building; the person at the registration desk was highly knowledgeable, helpful, and friendly. There are at least 15 "windows" to go to after registration and all clearly marked as to what transactions they did at those windows (name/address change, road test, learner's permit, etc.). Three photography set-ups. Large waiting area. Beautiful and clean bathrooms. This is the only DMV I will go to anymore. I don't care that its a 30 minute drive.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

The Real ID Act became law in 2005. Doesn't looks like DHS certified compliance for any states until 2012.

View attachment 1026353

Also compliance is not the same as issuing REAL IDs. Compliance just means your state started collecting the necessary information under the REAL ID act and then stayed compliant when more information was then being required (or sued or asked for an exemption and that had to play out through the legal system).

The states that have been compliant does not mean that's when they actually issued REAL IDs

My state, fully compliant since 2013, did not start issuing REAL IDs until August 2017. My mother-in-law unfortunately had a renewal date a mere month prior to REAL ID licenses being issued. I had renewed a year and a half prior to them being issued in 2016 so if following my renewal cycle the first time I got a REAL ID was in 2022 (after the Act was pushed off further and further in enactment date). When the date had been 2021 for enactment date it was advised approximately half of our state would be caught by that not that people would choose that but that the renewal date would line up with being able to get a REAL ID without going in for an off-renewal cycle appointment.

I do believe the states that became compliant later (generally 2019 and after) got hit pretty hard with the pandemic creating delays that which would not necessarily be as egregious as they became.

 

[gmi3804]

As an aside, some credit card companies (my AMEX Platinum, for example) reimburse for Clear security screening membership, and I highly recommend it. While it seems that a growing number of people have TSA PreCheck, there are far fewer Clear members, probably because of the high cost, about $200/year. The lines are virtually non-existent, and the Clear service members not only get you through the ID process, but whisk you right over to the security screening. A no-brainer if you get reimbursed for it.

 

[sam_gordon]

As an aside, some credit card companies (my AMEX Platinum, for example) reimburse for Clear security screening membership, and I highly recommend it. While it seems that a growing number of people have TSA PreCheck, there are far fewer Clear members, probably because of the high cost, about $200/year. The lines are virtually non-existent, and the Clear service members not only get you through the ID process, but whisk you right over to the security screening. A no-brainer if you get reimbursed for it.

I understand the thought, but there's been a number of times (last week most recently) where there was a group of people waiting on the Clear machines, I went to Precheck and was through before that group got there.

When my precheck is up, I'll consider Clear, but would only get it of CC reimburses (they do precheck).

 

[Sykes]

As an aside, some credit card companies (my AMEX Platinum, for example) reimburse for Clear security screening membership, and I highly recommend it. While it seems that a growing number of people have TSA PreCheck, there are far fewer Clear members, probably because of the high cost, about $200/year. The lines are virtually non-existent, and the Clear service members not only get you through the ID process, but whisk you right over to the security screening. A no-brainer if you get reimbursed for it.

Personally, I very very rarely find Clear to be worth bothering with. It depends a lot on where and when you travel, but usually when I'm traveling the PreCheck lines are so short that the additional time it takes to do the Clear identity verification actually makes it slower, and when I'm at an airport like SFO with long PreCheck lines, the wait for the Clear line is often somehow as long or longer than PreCheck line. The 1 in 20 times it's actually useful is really nice, but I doubt I'd pay for it if Amex Platinum didn't give it to me for free.

 

[bluezy]

I understand the thought, but there's been a number of times (last week most recently) where there was a group of people waiting on the Clear machines, I went to Precheck and was through before that group got there.

When my precheck is up, I'll consider Clear, but would only get it of CC reimburses (they do precheck).

Kind of the same thing, but not exactly. I saw a news story the other day -- I think it was out of the Philadelphia Airport -- and they were showing the overhead digital signs indicating the wait time for TSA Precheck and Standard TSA check. The Precheck line was a 13-15 minute wait while the regular line was 5-7 minutes. My son has Precheck but his wife doesn't. There have been a few times over the last year where she will get through the standard line faster than he gets through Precheck (at various airports). He now thinks Precheck was a waste of his money...especially since no one has to take their shoes off anymore.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

Kind of the same thing, but not exactly. I saw a news story the other day -- I think it was out of the Philadelphia Airport -- and they were showing the overhead digital signs indicating the wait time for TSA Precheck and Standard TSA check. The Precheck line was a 13-15 minute wait while the regular line was 5-7 minutes. My son has Precheck but his wife doesn't. There have been a few times over the last year where she will get through the standard line faster than he gets through Precheck (at various airports). He now thinks Precheck was a waste of his money...especially since no one has to take their shoes off anymore.

Since we've gotten pre-check at least at airports where it's run in a functional manner we don't look at it so much as saving time but for not having to take things out of our bags.

At our home airport pre-check most of the time is about the same time or only a smidge less than normal line. But the security is, especially as the new terminal (de facto new airport) has had time to get the kinks out) is much less volume than other airports can be. With being able to not worry about liquids, laptops, kindles and majority of the year light jackets it's just an overall easier process in pre-check. The shoes is a relatively new thing but that was also good about pre-check. Clear customers at our home airport is minimal so it's not usually too many "cut to the front" that we see.

As time goes on especially if they get the machines to work better that allow people to not have to take things out of their bags pre-check will start to lose more value but it was always more than just not having to take your shoes off.

When we were flying out of Atlanta in September back to our home airport that is probably the single worst experience we've had thus far in pre-check (which we've had now for several years). They were the most incompetent I've seen even worse than Chicago was in the pre-check. They were using the newer and very slow machines which add on time but it was a big issue with line management and everyone was really starting to grumble about how they were doing it because it was clearly not efficient.

Back when pre-check was newer and before more credit cards covered it yes the amount of time it took you to get through could be a significant difference at more higher volume airports but it's been a while since that's been the case so I don't think it's the best to compare just wait times. Pre-check has evolved in number of people who have it, regular TSA has evolved in what security procedures are being used and eventually pre-check will need to figure out what perks will be over the years.

That said most of the stories you hear about really backed up security lines at the airport is that for those who didn't have pre-check it was almost assuredly they missed their flight.