Arizonans will soon face travel drawbacks in 2020, as their state driver’s license will no longer be accepted by TSA airport security.
Starting in October 2020, Arizona residents will need to show federal identification to board a flight. For Arizonans, this means a passport.
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“On October 1, 2020, the TSA is going to have more rigorous identification requirements for people that want to go through the checkpoints at the airports,” said Doug Nick with the MVD told Fox 10 News.
Arizona residents do have the option of obtaining a new driver’s license from the MVD, which will be considered “federally acceptable.”
“With the travel ID, it would be your driver’s license, it replaces your current license, it has a gold star on the right-hand corner to show you’ve gone through the various requirements to show your ID,” said Nick.
Obtaining this new ID will not come without hassle. Arizona residents will have to go to the MVD or a third-party location and provide forms of ID and proof of Arizona residency to get the new license. It will also cost $25.
“If you don’t have the appropriate federally accepted identification, you’re going to get delayed at the airport and we don’t want to see that happen to anyone,” said Nick.
This announcement to Arizonans is part of the REAL ID act initiated in 2005, which mandates that every state issues secure ID cards to its residents.
It’s a lengthy and costly process for many states and it’s being implemented over the course of many years, which is why Arizona residents have until October 1, 2020, to obtain new IDs that will allow them to travel domestically without hassle in TSA security lines.
