Will New Yorkers Need A Passport To Fly Within The Country?

If you fly outside of the United States, you've been used to the fact you need to have a passport. Will you need a passport in 2018 to travel within the country? It looks like that may be the case for many states.

Starting in 2018, the REAL ID Act will tighten requirements to fly within our country. ABC 7 reports that just using a states' driver's licenses might not make the cut. Here in New York, this is currently under review. It could be a real factor for travel in 2018 for us.

First, what is the REAL ID Act?

The REAL ID Act mandates what kinds of IDs can be used to access federal facilities, enter nuclear power plants and board federally regulated aircraft, in order to increase security in these areas. This means that, once the act goes into full effect, your state-issued ID must be compliant if you want to use it to board flights, including domestic."

As of October 2017, New York is under review. This means, as of 2018, residents of those states under review may have to use other forms of identification when the act goes into effect. This means, a passport for many. Unless you have a different form of accepted ID such as a U.S. military ID.

TSA is urging those that are planning to fly using a passport and don't yet have one, start planning soon. The routine processing can take up to 6 weeks. That means, don't wait until the last second.

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