Hoosiers reminded that REAL ID enforcement starts May 7

INDIANAPOLIS — Starting this Wednesday, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will enforce new REAL ID requirements at airports across the United States.

“It’s been a long time coming,” said Mike Flockenhaus, who flew into Indianapolis from D.C. Tuesday. “I know that they have often delayed it, but I think it’s a good idea.”

“It’s very easy—you just go to the BMV, and they will help you with the process and everything,” Indianapolis resident David Andino said. Andino updated his driver’s license to a REAL ID before his flight to Puerto Rico last week.

But before you head to the BMV, make sure you have all necessary documents needed to apply.

“Proving your citizenship or your identity, whether that’s through a passport or birth certificate,” TSA Regional Spokesperson Jessica Mayle said. “If you’ve had any name changes due to a marriage or divorce, you’ll need to document those. Proof of residency, so, sometimes those are bank statements or bills, and your Social Security number as well.”

If you recently applied for an Indiana driver’s license, you’ll need to bring another form of ID in addition to your temporary license, according to Mayle.

“If you’ve gone into the BMV and you only have that temporary paper copy right now, the paper on its own is not an acceptable form of ID,” Mayle said.

And if you need to catch a flight soon but don’t have a REAL ID, don’t panic. Mayle recommends you bring your current driver’s license with you to the airport—just make sure you budget extra time to get through security.

“We do have ways to process those passengers, it’s incredibly time-consuming,” Mayle said. “We don’t anticipate most people are going to need to go through that full ID verification process, but you need to have some sort of government document.”

According to the TSA, you can also use other documents such as a passport, a DHS Trusted Traveler card, or Veteran Health Identification Card for domestic flights. For a complete list of approved documentation, click here.