Real ID Act

Real ID Act of 2005
Long title	An Act to establish and rapidly implement regulations for state driver's license and identification document security standards, to prevent terrorists from abusing the asylum laws of the United States, to unify terrorism-related grounds for inadmissibility and removal, and to ensure expeditious construction of the San Diego border fence.
Enacted by	the 109th United States Congress
Effective	Immigration provisions:; May 11, 2005; Identification document provisions:; May 11, 2008 (original); April 21, 2014–January 22, 2018 (state-based); May 7, 2025–May 5, 2027 (card-based)
Citations
Public law	109-13
Statutes at Large	119 Stat. 302
Codification
Acts repealed	Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act §§ 5402, 5403, 7212
U.S.C. sections amended	Immigration provisions:; 8 U.S.C. § 1101, § 1103, § 1153, §§ 1157–1159, § 1182, § 1184, § 1227, §§ 1230–1231, § 1252, § 1356; Identification document provisions:; 49 U.S.C. § 30301 note
Legislative history
	Introduced in the House as H.R. 418 by Jim Sensenbrenner (R–WI) on January 26, 2005; Committee consideration by House Judiciary, House Homeland Security, House Government Reform, Senate Judiciary; Passed the House on February 10, 2005 (261–161; appended to H.R. 1268, passed 388–43 on March 16, 2005); Passed the Senate on April 21, 2005 (99–0, as part of H.R. 1268); Reported by the joint conference committee on May 3, 2005; agreed to by the House on May 5, 2005 (368–58) and by the Senate on May 10, 2005 (100–0); Signed into law by President George W. Bush on May 11, 2005;
Major amendments
	Court Security Improvement Act of 2007 § 508; Real ID Act Modification for Freely Associated States Act; CARES Act (PDF) § 16006; Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (PDF) § 1001
United States Supreme Court cases
	Kucana v. Holder, 558 U.S. 233 (2010); Guerrero-Lasprilla v. Barr, No. 18-776, 589 U.S. ___ (2020); Nasrallah v. Barr, No. 18-1432, 590 U.S. ___ (2020); Wilkinson v. Garland, No. 22-666, 601 U.S. ___ (2024);

The Real ID Act of 2005 is a United States federal law that standardized requirements for driver's licenses and identification cards issued by US states and territories in order to be accepted for accessing US government facilities, nuclear power plants, and for boarding airline flights in the United States.

The requirements include verification of the personal information presented when applying for the identification document, security features on the document, and electronic sharing of databases between states. The act also made modifications to US immigration law regarding asylum, border security, deportation, and specific work visas.

Enacted in response to the September 11 attacks, the provisions regarding identification documents were originally intended to take effect in 2008, but enforcement was repeatedly delayed due to widespread opposition and refusal by many state governments to implement them. Eventually states began to comply in 2012, and enforcement based on the issuing state or territory began from 2014 to 2018 depending on the facility. After numerous extensions, by 2020, all states were certified as compliant, and by 2024, all territories were certified. Enforcement based on the identification documents began on May 7, 2025, and is scheduled to be implemented in phases until complete enforcement begins on May 5, 2027.