05/07/24 O‘ahu residents reminded of approaching deadline for upgraded driver’s licenses

Harold Nedd: (808) 225-0716

O'ahu residents reminded of approaching deadline for upgraded driver's licenses

HONOLULU - O'ahu residents now have about a year to get the Real ID driver's license or state identification card that every U.S. air traveler 18 and older will need to board domestic flights or enter federal facilities.

Beginning May 7, 2025, only state-issued driver's licenses and IDs that meet federal Real ID requirements will be accepted for airport check-in and to enter a federal facility.

Real ID Hawai'i driver's licenses have a gold circle with a star outline in the center of the upper portion of the card.

As of May 2024, about 92 percent of the 656,631 driver's licenses issued in the City and County of Honolulu have the Real ID marking.

"We are extremely encouraged that a significant number of O'ahu residents have a driver's license that complies with federal security standards, and will help our efforts to minimize any last-minute rush in 2025 as well as avoid a domestic air travel nightmare for our residents," said Kim Hashiro, director of the city's Department of Customer Services.

To get a Real ID-compliant driver's license on O'ahu, make an appointment -- up to six months prior to expiration -- at a driver licensing center. Appointments can be made online at Alohaq.org

The Real ID enforcement has been delayed at least three times, in part, to address the lingering impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the ability for residents to obtain compliant state-issued driver's licenses or state ID cards. For example, the enforcement deadline was extended from April 2021 to May 2023, then again from May 3, 2023 to currently May 7, 2025.

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