Despite what you’ve heard, May 7 is not really the deadline for getting a REAL ID
“Deadline” is a word often used to describe May 7, the day people getting on a commercial flight will be asked if they have a REAL ID, the type of driver’s license that meets new national identification standards.
But May 7 is not really a deadline for getting a REAL ID, and understanding why may help you decide when you actually need one.
For starters, REAL IDs will still be available after May 7. That’s why the N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles, which issues REAL IDs, refers to May 7 as “implementation day,” the start of something rather than a deadline.
May 7 is when federal agencies begin enforcing stricter ID standards to board domestic flights or enter certain federal buildings. A REAL ID meets those standards, but when you need one depends on when you expect to fly or visit a federal facility that requires an ID.
“You may not need one yet if you’re not flying until later this summer or even the holidays,” said DMV spokesman Marty Homan. “If you’re not someone who’s flying in May, you have more time to get one.”
And even if you are flying somewhere in May, a U.S. passport will get you through the Transportation Security Administration checkpoint if you don’t have a REAL ID.
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How did REAL ID come about?
Congress passed the REAL ID Act 20 years in response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Lawmakers wanted to make it easier to verify the identity of a person holding a state-issued driver’s license or ID card.
To get a REAL ID, you must provide additional documents that prove your date of birth and identity, such as a U.S. birth certificate, a U.S. passport or any one of a half dozen other documents issued by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security or the Citizenship and Immigration Service.
After years of preparation, North Carolina began issuing REAL IDs in 2017, more than three years before the new standards were to take effect in October 2020. That date was pushed back three times, largely because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but now the law will finally be enforced.
The TSA published a rule in January calling for “phased enforcement of REAL ID requirements.” But what that means hasn’t been spelled out yet, said TSA spokesman Dan Velez, and the TSA is sticking with the May 7 start date.
Those who arrive at airports on or after May 7 without an acceptable ID may face delays at security checkpoints, Velez wrote in an email.
“They will be subject to additional ID verification procedures and screening,” he wrote. “We’re strongly encouraging passengers without a REAL ID to travel with their U.S. passport starting May 7.”
DMV license offices are busy
The DMV has been issuing REAL IDs for eight years, which is how long a driver’s license is valid in North Carolina. That means just about everyone has had the option to get a REAL ID either when they got their first North Carolina license or renewed one.
Many have decided they can do without a REAL ID. Nearly 4.4 million North Carolinians now carry one, but that’s a little more than half of the 8.6 million residents with a state driver’s license or ID card, Homan said.
With May 7 approaching, the DMV has seen an uptick in interest in REAL ID. The state issued 82,000 of them in March, up from fewer than 65,000 in recent months.
“I expect April and May will be high as well, just because the implementation date is so close,” Homan said.
To try to keep up, the DMV began opening an hour earlier this week at 42 driver’s license offices across the state. Renewing a REAL ID can be done online, but getting your first one requires a trip to an office, where appointments are hard to come by and lines are often long, particularly in urban areas like the Triangle and Charlotte.
“We are always busy,” Homan said. “It’s hard to tell if we’re any busier because of the REAL ID than we already have been because of the dramatic population growth that the state is seeing over the last several years.”
This story was originally published April 9, 2025 at 6:15 AM with the headline "Despite what you’ve heard, May 7 is not really the deadline for getting a REAL ID."
