There wasn’t a long line at the Uniontown DMV for its REAL ID day Monday, but there was a steady flow of people stopping by to get one.
“I wanted it in case I want to travel, in case I want to fly, and so I decided I better just get it and have it,” said Michelle Keslar of Fayette County.
It is optional in Pennsylvania to get a REAL ID, but without one, you won’t be able to take domestic flights or enter government offices or military bases unless you have a passport.
On Mondays, PennDOT is opening different DMV locations across the Commonwealth for the sole purpose of getting a REAL ID. If you go to a DMV during its REAL ID day — and have the right documents — you’ll get your REAL ID that day.
If you go during regular business hours, you’ll get the ID card within 15 days.
“I had everything, so it wasn’t difficult for me, but I’ve seen a lot of people going in and coming back out today,” Keslar said.
Keslar and her aunt said they checked online to make sure they had their documents in order.
“I had my passport, and then I had my car registration, an electric bill, and my driver’s license,” Keslar noted.
PennDOT’s website has a checklist of all the items you need to bring with you.
You need proof of being a U.S. Citizen — something like your birth certificate, passport, or citizenship certificate.
Then you will need proof of your full Social Security Number — whether that’s on your Social Security card or a W-2.
You’ll also need to bring two proofs of Pennsylvania residency, like a utility bill and a current driver’s license.
“It’s been a disaster,” said Raymond Grote of Connellsville.
Grote and his wife both tried to get their REAL IDs on Monday, but ran into a problem.
His wife needed proof of her name change from marriage and divorce certificates, but she didn’t have the original copies. They’ll have to go to the courthouse to pick those up.
“I could not get mine because on my birth certificate it has my name, but it does not have my confirmation initial on it,” Grote said. “So everything after my birth certificate is no good, so I have to get all of those forms again.”
But if you have a current passport with an up-to-date name, you won’t need forms to prove your name change.
“All you’ll have to do is show that,” said Aimee Inama, Press Officer at PennDOT.
Even though the enforcement deadline by the federal government for REAL IDs is May 7, if you want or need one and can’t get to the DMV by then — they’ll still be available, as they’re now part of normal DMV operations.
“If they’re not going to be traveling into late in the year and they don’t want to get it right now, they have time to get their REAL ID,” Inama said.
For a link to the checklist of documents you need to bring to the DMV for your REAL ID, click here
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