Identification Requirements to Enter West Point.

Here you will find detailed information on who is permitted to access, and what the identification requirements are to enter West Point. These requirements do not effect Department of Defense identification card holders.

DoD Identification Card: If you are in possession of a valid (not expired) Department of Defense-issued identification card, you may enter West Point and other federally controlled installations.

U.S. Military Academy at West Point Crest

Qualified Escorts: Qualified escorts are Department of Defense identification card holders. This includes Common Access Card holders (Military, Civilian Government employees and contractors) or Teslin identification card holders (Retirees, their spouses and Military dependents aged 16 and older.) A qualified escort must accompany each individual he or she is escorting. When riding in a vehicle through an entrance gate at West Point, a qualified escort may only sponsor those individuals who are in his or her vehicle. A qualified escort may not sponsor a vehicle that he or she is not in.

Visitors: If you are not a Department of Defense issued identification card holder you must visit our Visitor Control Center at 2107 New South Post Road, West Point, NY 10996, Tel: (845) 938-0390 or (845) 938-0392. Click here for the » Map Location of Visitor Control Center.

The Visitor Control Center is open Monday-Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. When the Visitor Control Center is closed, visitors will be directed by electronic signs to proceed to Thayer Gate.

If you do not have a Department of Defense issued identification card, you will be considered one of three catagories: Escorted Visitors, Foreign Visitors and Unescorted Visitors. Generally, a current driver’s license or passport will suffice for identification, but driver’s licenses and identification cards from specific territories and states that do not comply with the REAL ID Act of 2005 are not to be used as the sole source for identity verification to access Federal installations. A listing of the current state-by-state compliance is available at REAL ID Act Status of States & Territories.

UPDATE: For those 24 states and four territories whose compliance was to be met by Oct. 10, 2016, a 90-day extension has been granted by the U.S. Army Office of the Provost Marshal General. Anyone with a driver’s license from those states or territories may continue to visit West Point or other Army installations through Jan. 9, 2016, without providing a secondary form of identification. » Official Memorandum from the Office of the Provost Marshal General.

Escorted Visitors: Escorted visitors are persons who enter West Point accompanied by a qualified escort. Escorted visitors do not need to visit the Visitor Control Center but must remain with the qualified escort and have in their possession an approved form of identification at all times.

Foreign Visitors: Foreign visitors must be escorted at all times by a qualified escort in order to enter the installation. That requirement can be met by either entering with a DoD identification card holder or taking a bus tour with an assigned guide provided the bus tour agency presents a valid legible manifest. See below for bus tour information.

Unescorted Visitors: Unescorted visitors are persons 17 years of age and above without a valid (not expired) Department of Defense-issued identification card. Unescorted visitors are asked to report to the Visitor Control Center at 2107 New South Post Road, West Point, NY 10996 to apply for a West Point Local Area Credential (LAC). The Visitor Control Center is open Monday-Friday from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. When the Visitor Control Center is closed, visitors will be directed by electronic signs to proceed to Thayer Gate. Click here for the » Map Location of Visitor Control Center.

To expedite the process of obtaining a LAC, We encourage you to fill out and bring a completed Local Area Credential Request form with you. Click here to download the form »Local Area Credential Request.

Local Area Credential expiration dates vary due to the length of stay and type of visitor. Please inquire at the Visitor Control Center when applying for your credential.

Commercial and private delivery vehicles (e.g., household goods shipments, large package deliveries) who arrive Monday – Friday from 6 a.m. – 6 p.m. should report to the Visitor Control Center to be issued a LAC. If a delivery vehicle arrives on Saturday or Sunday, proceed directly to Stony Lonesome Gate. Click here for the »Map Location of Stony Lonesome Gate.

Requirements for Unescorted Visitors: For visitors 17 years of age and above you will need to have in your possession a valid photo ID (e.g., a driver’s license) containing biographical information such as name, address, gender, eye color and height. Generally, a current driver’s license or passport will suffice for identification, but driver’s licenses and identification cards from specific territories and states that do not comply with the REAL ID Act of 2005 are not to be used as the sole source for identity verification to access Federal installations.

Acceptable primary forms of identification, not including a driver’s license, are:

United States Passport or United States Passport Card.
Permanent Resident Card/Alien Registration Receipt Card (Form I-551).
Foreign passport with a temporary (I-551) stamp or temporary (I-551) printed notation on a machine readable immigrant visa.
Employment authorization document that contains a photograph (Form I-766)
U.S. Military or draft record.
U.S. Coast Guard Merchant Mariner Card.
Transportation Worker Identification Card.
Native American Tribal Document.
In the case of a nonimmigrant alien authorized to work for a specific employer incident to status, a foreign passport with Form I-94 or Form I-94A bearing the same name as the passport and containing an endorsement of the alien’s nonimmigrant status, as long as the endorsement has not yet expired and the proposed employment is not in conflict with any restrictions or limitations identified on the form.

Anyone who does not possess a driver’s license or identification card compliant with the REAL ID Act of 2005 is not allowed access onto West Point unless they have a secondary form of identification (see approved list below). A listing of the current state-by-state compliance is available at » REAL ID Act Status of States & Territories.

Acceptable secondary forms of identification are:

Select university, library, or school cards containing a photograph, name, and expiration date.
Non-government photo identification with a person’s name and address.
Birth certificate or document with a person’s full name and date of birth.
Utility bill or other documentation showing the person's name and address of principal residence.
Vehicle registration with name and address.

Bus Tours: Visitors who elect to sign up for a scheduled West Point bus tour will be escorted on the installation by an assigned tour guide. For information on scheduling a bus tour, call West Point Tours, Inc. at (845) 446-4724 or visit their website »» West Point Tours Website.

The Visitor Control Center is located at 2107 New South Post Road, West Point, NY 10996, Tel: (845) 938-0390 or (845) 938-0392.
Click here for the » Map Location of Visitor Control Center. When the Visitor Control Center is closed, visitors will be directed by electronic signs to proceed to the Thayer Gate.

Questions? Before you ask, click here for our » Frequently Asked Questions, or join in the conversation on our » West Point Visitors Discussion Forum.