REAL-ID-Sample-Image.png

A sample of a current REAL ID compliant South Carolina driver's license, which is set to change this fall. (Photo courtesy of the S.C. Department of Motor Vehicles)

COLUMBIA — Anyone planning to fly needs a REAL ID or other accepted form of identification to avoid paying fees at airports starting next month, the Department of Motor Vehicles warned this week.

Starting Feb. 1, adults who do not present a REAL ID, passport or military ID will have to pay a $45 fee to get through airport security.

REAL IDs are required only to fly, get on a military base or enter a secure federal building. They are not required to drive, vote, access federal benefits or enter non-secure federal buildings, such as a post office.

Getting a REAL ID, which has a gold star in the corner, requires more paperwork verifying a person’s identity than a standard ID. The cost for most South Carolinians is $25, the same as renewing a standard driver’s license.

Nearly 69% of IDs in circulation in the state meet the requirements for a REAL ID. Around 1.4 million South Carolinians have IDs that do not qualify, said DMV spokesman Mike Fitts.

Anyone planning to travel should plan ahead. The DMV no longer prints IDs at branch locations. Receiving an ID through the mail can take up to two weeks.

Congress passed the law requiring REAL IDs to standardize identification in 2005, following the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks that killed about 3,000 people in New York City, Washington, D.C., and rural Pennsylvania.

For 12 years, South Carolina refused to comply, before reversing course in 2017 when it seemed enforcement would begin. But federal officials kept pushing back the start date until May 2025.

Even then, travelers with only a standard ID could go through additional security screening.

The $45 fee travelers will have to pay starting Feb. 1 is for the TSA ConfirmID process, which Travel Security Administration officials use to attempt to verify the identity of a traveler.

People planning to fly can complete the process online ahead of time and bring a printed or electronic copy of their receipt to show the TSA officer at the airport’s security checkpoint. The process can take up to half an hour.

Confirmation of a traveler’s identity is valid for up to 10 days, so anyone returning to the airport within those 10 days has to pay the fee only once.

What do I need for a REAL ID?

  • Proof of identity and citizenship, such as a government-issued birth certificate or unexpired U.S. passport.
  • Two proofs of address. This could include an unexpired South Carolina driver’s license, a utility bill showing name and address, state or federal tax records, a current lease agreement, and/or a letter delivered through the U.S. Postal Service. The addresses on both items must match.
  • Proof of all legal name changes, if applicable. This could be a court order or divorce decree, a government-issued marriage license or an unexpired passport.

Source: South Carolina DMV

SC Daily Gazette is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. SC Daily Gazette maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Seanna Adcox for questions: info@scdailygazette.com.