The Biden administration on Thursday proposed delaying full implementation of new ID rules for Americans boarding airplanes or entering federal buildings for another two years.
Federal rules for issuing ID cards were passed by Congress in 2005 following a recommendation from the commission set up to determine safeguards following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. However, their implementation has been postponed several times. The last time they were extended was in December 2022, when the deadline was set for May 7, 2025. Now, the Biden administration is seeking to postpone it until May 7, 2027.
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) released a “Notice of Proposed Rulemaking” on Thursday, one day after the 23rd anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
The TSA emphasized that the “proposed rule does not extend the REAL ID deadline.”
The notice aims to ensure that federal agencies “have appropriate flexibility to implement the card-based compliance provisions of the REAL ID regulations after the compliance deadline of May 7, 2025, by explicitly allowing agencies to implement card-based compliance in phases,” according to the proposal summary. “This rulemaking proposes that agencies may implement the card-based compliance provisions through a phased compliance plan if they determine it is appropriate after considering relevant factors, including security, operational feasibility, and public impact.”
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TSA security checkpoint, Real ID sign at Miami International Airport. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
“The proposed rule would also require agencies to coordinate their plans with DHS, make them publicly available, and achieve full implementation by May 5, 2027,” the summary said.
The REAL ID Act, passed by Congress in 2005 following a recommendation from the 9/11 Commission, sets minimum security standards for state-issued driver's licenses and identification cards. The security standards include incorporating anti-counterfeiting technology, preventing internal fraud, and using documentary evidence and background checks to ensure a person is who they say they are, according to DHS.
Under the new regulations, “every traveler 18 years of age or older will need a REAL ID-compliant driver's license or identification card, a state-issued enhanced driver's license, or another form of identification acceptable to TSA at airport security checkpoints for domestic air travel,” according to the DHS website.
Information about security screening at Miami International Airport. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
“TSA is working with the public, licensing jurisdictions and states to facilitate a smooth transition to REAL ID enforcement beginning May 7, 2025,” TSA Administrator David Pekoske said in a statement. “REAL ID provides an important security enhancement, and this rule allows us to plan for a variety of scenarios to help minimize the potential impact to travelers, industry stakeholders, and states during implementation.”
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The U.S. Department of Homeland Security's website, as of Thursday morning, listed the countdown until REAL ID goes into effect as 237 days.
“On May 7, 2025, U.S. travelers will be required to meet REAL ID requirements to board domestic flights and access certain federal facilities,” the website reads.
Transportation Security Administrator David Pekoske testifies before the Senate Subcommittee on Infrastructure, Safety and Security of Surface Transportation and Merchant Marine on Capitol Hill January 23, 2018 in Washington, DC (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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In December 2022, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas announced that DHS intended to extend the full REAL ID implementation date by 24 months, from May 3, 2023, to May 7, 2025, citing how state driver's license agencies were having to work through backlogs created by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This extension will give states the time they need to ensure their residents can obtain a REAL ID-compliant license or identification card,” Mayorkas said at the time. “DHS will also use this time to implement innovations that make the process more efficient and accessible. We will continue to ensure the American public can travel safely.”
