REAL ID Act
The REAL ID Act is a cooperative effort between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. states and territories. It sets federal standards for the issuance of driver’s licenses and other forms of identification.
Once fully implemented, the REAL ID Act will make it difficult or impossible for terrorists and other criminals to forge identity documents and gain unlawful access to federally-regulated commercial aircraft, nuclear power plants, and certain federal facilities.
Starting May 7, 2025, travellers must present a valid REAL ID driver’s license or ID card (or a TSA-approved alternate document) to board any commercial flight in the United States. On this page, you can find information about REAL ID per state.
What you need to know:
- Compliant states meet all REAL ID criteria for documentation of identity, security features of cards, and control of facilities that store and issue licenses and ID cards.
- All enhanced driver’s licenses and ID cards are REAL ID-compliant
The types of REAL ID symbols currently in circulation:
Gold star
Black star
Star cutout in gold circle
Star cutout in black circle
Star cutout in gold grizzly bear
Gold outline of the state Maine
Star cutout in the state Nevada
Star cutout of the state Michigan
States are grouped in alphabetical order by name, and U.S. territories are grouped together. Simply click on the corresponding grouping below to jump to the state (or territory) you are interested in.
U.S. States A-H
Alabama
- Issued starting:2013
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“Not for Federal Identification” (if issued on or after 04/25/22)
Alaska
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:"FEDERAL LIMITS APPLY"
Arizona
- Issued starting:2016
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION” (if issued before 07/09/18) “NOT FOR FEDERAL ID” (if issued 07/09/18 to March 2023) “NOT VALID FOR OFFICIAL FEDERAL PURPOSES” (if issued March 2023 or later)
- Digital ID/DL:Yes - https://azdot.gov/
Arkansas
- Issued starting:2016
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION” (if issued before 07/09/18) “NOT FOR FEDERAL ID” (if issued on or after 07/09/18)
California
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“FEDERAL LIMITS APPLY”
Colorado
- Issued starting:2013
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT VALID FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION, VOTING OR PUBLIC BENEFIT PURPOSES”
- Digital ID/DL:Yes - https://dmv.colorado.gov/
Connecticut
- Issued starting:2011
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“Not for Federal Identification”
Delaware
- Issued starting:2010
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION” (If issued before 06/04/18) “NOT FOR FEDERAL ID” (If issued on or after 06/04/18)
- Digital ID/DL:Yes - https://www.dmv.de.gov/
District of Columbia
- Issued starting:2014
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard cards:“NOT VALID FOR OFFICIAL FEDERAL PURPOSES”
Florida
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
Georgia
- Issued starting:2012
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:No indicator
- Digital ID/DL:Yes
Hawaii
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT ACCEPTABLE FOR OFFICIAL FEDERAL PURPOSES”
U.S. States I-M
Idaho
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“Not For REAL ID Purposes” (if issued before 04/12/23) “NOT ACCEPTABLE FOR REAL ID OFFICIAL PURPOSES” (if issued on or after 04/12/23)
Illinois
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“Federal Limits Apply”
Indiana
- Issued starting:2010
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:No indicator (if issued before 05/20/19) “NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES” (if issued on or after 05/20/19)
Iowa
- Issued starting:2013
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:No indicator
- Digital ID/DL:https://iowadot.gov/driversvehicles
Kansas
- Issued starting:2017
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL ID”
Kentucky
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES”
Louisiana
- Issued starting:2016
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
- Digital ID/DL:Yes - https://www.expresslane.org/
Maine
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES” (before October 2019) or “NOT INTENDED FOR FEDERAL PURPOSES” (starting October 2019)
Maryland
- Issued starting:2016
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
- Digital ID/DL:https://mva.maryland.gov/Pages/MDMobileID_Apple.aspx
Massachusetts
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL ID”
Michigan
- Issued starting:2011
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
Minnesota
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
Mississippi
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
Missouri
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES”
- Digital ID/DL:Yes
Montana
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
U.S. States N-R
Nebraska
- Issued starting:2013
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:None will be issued
Nevada
- Issued starting:2014
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL OFFICIAL USE” (if issued before August 2021) “NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES” (if issued starting 2021)
New Hampshire
- Issued starting:2017
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOR FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
New Jersey
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:NOT FOR “REAL ID” PURPOSES
New Mexico
- Issued starting:2016
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL PURPOSES” (if issued before 2019) “NOT INTENDED FOR FEDERAL PURPOSES” (if issued starting 2019)
New York
- Issued starting:2017
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL PURPOSES”
North Carolina
- Issued starting:2017
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
North Dakota
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION” (if issued before 08/02/23) “NOT ACCEPTABLE FOR REAL ID OFFICIAL PURPOSES” (if issued on or after 08/02/23)
Ohio
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL ID” Note: Prior versions of Ohio credentials may have a gold star but are not REAL ID-compliant.
Oklahoma
- Issued starting:2020
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES”
Oregon
- Issued starting:2020
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard: “Not for REAL ID Act”
Pennsylvania
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES”
Rhode Island
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
U.S. States S-W
South Carolina
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
South Dakota
- Issued starting:2010
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:No indicator (if issued before 2018) “NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION” (if issued 2018 or later)
Tennessee
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
Texas
- Issued starting:2016
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:None will be issued.
Utah
- Issued starting:2019
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard :"NOT VALID FOR IDENTIFICATION" ("DRIVING PRIVILEGE ONLY")
- Digital ID/DL:Yes - https://dld.utah.gov/
Vermont
- Issued starting:2014
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“Drivers Privilege Card”
Virginia
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“FEDERAL LIMITS APPLY”
Washington
- Standard:“FEDERAL LIMITS APPLY” (if issued on or after 07/01/2018)
West Virginia
- Issued starting:2013
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION”
Wisconsin
- Issued starting:2015
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR FEDERAL PURPOSES”
Wyoming
- Issued starting:2014
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:None will be issued
U.S. Territories
American Samoa
- :American Samoa is under review for REAL ID enforcement, allowing Federal agencies to accept driver's licenses and identification cards from American Samoa at Federal facilities, nuclear power plants and federally regulated commercial aircraft.
Guam
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:NOT FOR FEDERAL IDENTIFICATION
Northern Mariana Islands
- Issued starting:2020
-
REAL ID symbol:
Puerto Rico
- Issued starting:2016
-
REAL ID symbol:
- Standard:“NOT FOR REAL ID PURPOSES.”
US Virgin Islands
- Issued starting:2018
-
REAL ID symbol:
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