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REAL ID: States Granted Extensions

REAL ID went into effect May 11, 2008. Recognizing that states needed more time to implement REAL ID, the department offered extensions to allow time to meet the requirements.

U.S. Map of State Extensions Granted

U.S. map of state extensions granted

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States and Territories Granted Extensions

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Delaware

District of Columbia

Florida

Georgia

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

North Carolina

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

South Dakota

Tennessee

Texas

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

American Samoa

Guam

Puerto Rico

N. Mariana Islands

Virgin Islands

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More Information on State Extensions

What does it mean if my State has been granted a REAL ID extension?

That means your State will be moving toward more secure driver's licenses.  Secure identification is a 9/11 Commission recommendation that will help combat terrorism and identity theft.

According to the REAL ID Act, if an individual chooses to present a State-issued driver’s license or identification card for an official purpose as of May 11, 2008, that driver’s license or identification card must be issued by a State that is complying with the REAL ID Act.  Those official purposes include: accessing a Federal facility, boarding federally-regulated commercial aircraft, and entering nuclear power plants. Any person presenting a driver's license or state identification card from a State with an approved extension will be able to use the document for official purposes. 

The Department recognizes that States could not meet the full requirements of the Act by May 11, 2008 so it granted extensions for those States that requested them.  The extension is good through December 31, 2009.  In addition, States that meet certain benchmarks for the security of their credentials and licensing processes will automatically be granted a second extension until May 11, 2011 to complete full implementation of REAL ID. 

Federal agencies will continue to accept licenses for official purposes from those States who have been granted extensions, as well as those who have been certified as compliant with REAL ID.

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This page was last reviewed/modified on November 10, 2008.