Ep. 146: Do You Need a Real ID to Fly to Hawaii After May 7, 2025?

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[00:00:00] Bryan Murphy: In this episode, we’ll uncover everything you need to know about the real ID deadline as it relates to traveling to Hawaii from everything about what you need to know about the May 7th deadline before flying to Hawaii, and how many travelers don’t realize that their current ID might not get ’em through TSA checkpoints after the deadline.

[00:00:19] Bryan Murphy: So stay tuned. I’ll explain exactly what this means for your next trip to Hawaii.

[00:00:27] Bryan Murphy: Aloha and welcome to Hawaii’s Best. My name is Brian Murphy, and as a husband, data three and certified Hawaii destination expert, it’s my joy. To help you discover the best of Hawaii here, we often feature local businesses and voices to give you the best travel tips, up to date news and everything you need to plan an unforgettable trip to Hawaii

[00:00:53] Bryan Murphy: loha. And in today’s episode, we’ll discover what exactly the real ID requirement means for your trip to Hawaii. Which forms of identification will actually get you on the plane after May 7th, 2025, and why millions of Americans might be turned away at airport security if they don’t prepare now. Welcome to episode 1 46 of Hawaii’s Best Happy Monday again, and I mentioned in the last episode, if you’ve been listening to Hawaii’s Best for a while, I typically will release episodes on Wednesdays, but based on your feedback from our latest listener survey, I’ll be releasing episodes every Monday and Thursday through the month of April.

[00:01:36] Bryan Murphy: And today we’re talking all about what the upcoming Real ID deadline. Is and what it can mean for your Hawaii trip. At the time of this recording. Today is April 12th and the This episode is being released on April 14th. The May 7th, 2025 deadline is getting closer and closer and many travelers. Don’t realize that they might have the wrong ID to fly.

[00:02:01] Bryan Murphy: By the end of this episode, you will know exactly what identification you need to board your flight domestically to Hawaii. After this deadline, how to check if your current ID is compliant. What alternatives exist If you can’t or don’t want to get a real id, this information obviously could save you from being turned away at TSA checkpoints and nobody wants to start their Hawaii trip like that being stuck, not even getting through TSA, this has been something that has been pushed back.

[00:02:31] Bryan Murphy: The deadline meeting about real id, I don’t know if you remember, but I think it was like 2020. The deadline was then, and then they pushed it back. Like two years, maybe 2021 or 2022, and now this is it. This is the deadline. May 7th, 2025. It’s happening. The REAL ID Act is being enforced and the REAL ID Act establishes minimum security standards for state issued driver’s license and ID cards.

[00:03:00] Bryan Murphy: This is a federal mandate that all states within the United States must follow. Now, if you’re one of our international listeners, thank you so much, especially Japan. You guys listen a lot to Hawaii’s best, and I just wanna say thank you so much from the bottom of my heart for listening. And this episode will be geared more towards domestic travel within the United States.

[00:03:21] Bryan Murphy: So bear with me on this one. Maybe you want to, uh, go ahead and follow ’cause the next one, oh man. I’m excited for this coming Thursday because I’m gonna have a Maui expert on the podcast and we’re gonna talk about all things where to eat on Maui. So be sure to hit follow in your podcast player, Spotify or Apple or wherever you’re listening for that episode.

[00:03:46] Bryan Murphy: International listeners, thank you so much. Feel free to keep listening to this episode, but I just wanna give you a heads up that this episode. It is geared more towards those who are within the United States starting on May 7th, 2025. You’ll need either a real ID, compliant license or an acceptable alternative such as a passport to board any domestic flight within the United States, and that’s including flights to Hawaii.

[00:04:13] Bryan Murphy: This requirement also applies when visiting federal facilities or entering nuclear power plants. And I’m not sure how many of you are visiting nuclear power plants, but a real ID is gonna be required to visit that. One quick way to identify if your current identification is real ID compliant is by looking for a star marker.

[00:04:33] Bryan Murphy: I’m gonna look at mine ’cause I just got mine in California. And yeah, top right corner for me, there’s a star within the, uh, the bear, the California Bear logo. I got mine last year just because I knew this was coming and my license was happened to actually be due. So if your license doesn’t have that star marker, it’s not compliant.

[00:04:55] Bryan Murphy: You would know if you went to convert your ID to a real id. It’s something you have to actively do. So after May 7th, 2025, TSA agents will no longer accept non-compliant IDs for domestic air travel. This requirement applies to all domestic air travel, not just Hawaii. So if you’re traveling anywhere, this coming summer, wherever you’re gonna vacation, this is not just about Hawaii.

[00:05:24] Bryan Murphy: It’s about all domestic air travel within the United States. Now, there are some state specific requirements. While federal standards are uniform, states must manage the process of issuing real IDs, creating variations in implementation. All states require proof of identity, social security number, and residency, but accepted documents vary from state to state, for example.

[00:05:49] Bryan Murphy: New York requires two proofs of residency, and I think that was California as well, such as a utility bill or bing statement. Other states may accept different forms of identification, so it’s important to. Visit your state’s DMV site for all of that, and I’m, I’m pretty sure it’s gonna be like front page, bold, how to get your real id.

[00:06:12] Bryan Murphy: Most states require you to apply in person at your DMV or licensing agency. This was a case for me. I pre-filled everything at home electronically, and then I had to go into the DMV, kinda like if, if I had to renew my license in person, I had to go to the DMV. You know, I got an appointment, had to go show all of my, my documentation and then take a new picture.

[00:06:36] Bryan Murphy: I think it took about a week to two weeks to actually physically get the real ID in through the mail. I. Now fees vary by state. Some states charge an additional fee for real ID upgrades. Of course, California is gonna charge and I, I think I paid like $35 for mine while others include it in the standard license renewal cost with no extra charge.

[00:07:01] Bryan Murphy: Now what’s interesting is that some states, including New York, Michigan, offer enhanced IDs and these are real ID compliant and provide the additional benefit of allowing land and sea border crossings to Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean without a passport. That’s pretty cool. These enhanced IDs have additional requirements and obviously some higher fees.

[00:07:23] Bryan Murphy: After some 20 years, all states and territories in the US are now fully compliant with the real ID Act. Meaning this wasn’t always a case for years after the 2005 Law passage, many states delayed implementation and some states initially resisted due to concerns about cost, privacy, and really. Kind of federal overreach is the case that some states made, others obviously needed time to update, implement their systems and procedures to meet these requirements.

[00:07:54] Bryan Murphy: And it goes without saying. Probably if you’ve traveled to Hawaii or have done any domestic air travel, you probably have already heard about. Real ID and your state. DMV has a system in place for issuing real IDs regardless of where you live. So the May 7th deadline is less than a month away, and it will be strictly enforced across all airport checkpoints nationwide.

[00:08:18] Bryan Murphy: I remember a couple years ago traveling and passing those little kiosk signs that say, you know, get your real id, bye, blah, blah, blah, blah, and kind of just roll my, yeah, I’ll get it. I’ll get it next time. I’ll get it next time. Well, it’s here. I’m so glad I did it. Finally got my wife Ali to do it a couple months ago, so she’s ready to go.

[00:08:36] Bryan Murphy: Some of the key takeaways just to take from this episode as simple as I can make it for Hawaii Travel in particular, after May 7th, federal standards apply to all states, including Hawaii, travel to Hawaii and from Hawaii. The May 7th, 2025 enforcement date is fixed nationwide with no special extensions or anything else down the pike.

[00:08:56] Bryan Murphy: This is the date. Again, the process to get a real ID varies by state application procedures, fees, and accepted documentation. So check your state DMV website for specific instructions if you don’t want or can’t get a real ID before the deadline, you have alternatives. You can fly domestically such as to Hawaii using a valid US passport, passport card, DHS, trusted traveler card, military id, or federally recognized tribal photo id.

[00:09:27] Bryan Murphy: I. And back to my international listeners. International travelers are not affected by real ID requirements. If you’re visiting Hawaii from another country, continue using your passport and Visa or ESTA authorization. Real ID regulations only apply to domestic travel within the United States. So that’s a simple and quick episode, but I felt it, it was necessary.

[00:09:52] Bryan Murphy: These Monday episodes are more content driven and give you travel news as needed. And I felt I just had to get this one out there because we’re about three, three and a half weeks or so from the deadline of May 7th, and I really just wanted to get this out to you. So bottom line is simple. May 7th, 2025 is coming, but now you know exactly what you need to do to focus on.

[00:10:16] Bryan Murphy: And to have that be less of a stressor before your trip to Hawaii. If you found today’s episode helpful and you also want to be notified about our Ultimate Maui Food Guide the next two weeks, you wanna be notified for that. The easiest way to do that is to follow this podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to stay up to date on future episodes.

[00:10:42] Bryan Murphy: Thank you so much for listening all the way through, and until next time, my friend as always live with Aloha

[00:10:53] Bryan Murphy: Mala for listening to this episode of Hawaii’s. Best to stay up to date on future episodes. Hit follow on your podcast app. Hawaii’s Best is a production of shore break media group with editing by easy podcast solutions and music courtesy of our friends. Stick figure.