Seven years.
That’s how long Massachusetts residents have had to obtain a Real ID at the Registry of Motor Vehicles. After several delays and false starts, the federally recognized identification card will be necessary for boarding domestic flights beginning May 7.
But despite having ample time to prepare, millions of Americans still have not signed up. The Real ID Act was created by Congress in 2005 in response to the 9/11 attacks. Enforcement of the act for air travel was postponed five times, but now, TSA officials say there will be no further delays.
“Currently, 81 percent of passengers who have come through the travel document checker have either supplied a real ID or an acceptable form of ID, which could be a passport or a passport card,” said Daniel Velez, a spokesman for the TSA. “So, only 19 percent of people don’t have Real ID. Does that mean you’re not going to be able to fly? No, we have other acceptable IDs.”
According to the TSA’s website, acceptable forms of identification for boarding domestic flights aside from Real ID include passports, passport cards, Global Entry cards, state-issued enhanced driver’s licenses, permanent resident cards, and border crossing cards. The complete list can be found at tsa.gov. If you’re not sure if you have Real ID, look at the top right corner of your driver’s license. If there’s a star surrounded by a yellow or gold circle, you’re good to go.
If you don’t have any of those documents, and a flight is in your near future, you have options, although they are growing thinner by the day. The wait time to schedule an appointment at most Massachusetts RMV locations is between four-to-six weeks. If you’re getting a Real ID, you must complete the process in person; it cannot be done online. Once you’ve secured the appointment and successfully fulfilled the requirements, the wait time to receive your Real ID is another 10 to 14 days. In short, if you’re reading this, you’ve waited too long.
If you have imminent travel plans, you can take a risk and show up at the RMV without an appointment in hopes of a cancellation or no-show. The agency is accepting walk-ins for those in a bind. If you can’t be helped that day, someone will work with you to find another time to come in. Jacquelyn Goddard, director of communications for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, said that you can also regularly refresh the RMV’s website to look for openings that may arise from cancellations.
For those who have AAA and plan to glide into an office at the last minute to obtain a Real ID (AAA offers this service to its members), you’re also too late. According to AAA spokesman Mark Schieldrop, appointments are booked out two weeks in advance, but much like the RMV, you can regularly check the website for last-minute openings.
“We’re trying to tell folks not to panic and feel free to wait for the demand for appointments to settle down after May 7 if they don’t have immediate travel plans, or if they have a valid US passport,” he said.
If you’ve exhausted all options, don’t have a passport, and you still have travel plans before you can obtain a Real ID, you have one more option: showing up at the airport.
According to Velez, people who arrive at the airport with a license will be taken aside by a TSA agent to avoid holding up the line at the checkpoint and will be screened individually.
“Once we can verify their identity, they’ll have to answer a series of questions,” Velez said. “Then they’ll have to go through additional screening. Once all that takes place, then yes, they will be allowed into the secure area of the airport.”
He said the length of the individual screenings will vary based on the airport.
“Some of the passengers we may be able to identify quite quickly, maybe in five or 10 minutes,” he said. “But then there are others where it’s going to take a little bit longer because we’re going to try to do our best to make sure that we’re taking every avenue that we have to ensure that the person is who they say they are.”
Procrastinators, you’ve been warned. Get to the airport early if you’ve missed the Real ID deadline, and be prepared to get grilled.
Christopher Muther can be reached at christopher.muther@globe.com. Follow him @Chris_Muther and Instagram @chris_muther.