The REAL ID Act and passports

Your passport is valid for 10 years, and a child’s passport is valid for five. However, many countries require you to have validity through six months after your return date in order to travel. So, check your expiration date this month and mark down when you should renew your passport, especially if you travel overseas frequently. Passports can take anywhere from four to six weeks to renew, or three weeks via expedited service that’ll cost you an extra $60.

The REAL ID Act means that U.S. state IDs must have certain security features and data attached to them in order to be valid, and IDs are typically necessary to get on a plane. Not all states currently have standardized these enhanced security features, yet the REAL ID Act is set to take effect in early 2018 — so all states that are not compliant have been granted an extension. The full list of states with non-complying features can be found on the Department of Homeland Security’s website. If your state is one, you’ll need to make sure you’re flying with a REAL ID-compliant id by October 2020.

The Department of State is encouraging people to use a U.S. passport book or card as a compliant form of ID. According to the agency, “The U.S. passport book and the U.S. passport card are REAL ID compliant and are acceptable identification to board domestic flights.”

Note that a U.S. passport card is the same size of a driver’s license, but won’t cover you for international travel, just domestic.

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