It has become as predictable as the sun rising and setting each day, that the REAL ID requirement for air travel gets delayed.
The current deadline requiring REAL ID for air travel is May 7, 2025, with no word from the Department of Homeland Security that it will be moved. The Transportation Security Administration will enforce the deadline, while also giving its officers some flexibility at airport checkpoints.
The REAL ID Act of 2005 has now been on the books for 20 years. It was recommended by the 9/11 Commission in response to the terrorist attacks of 2001. It was designed to secure and harden federal buildings, military installations, nuclear power plants and the air system against terrorist threats.
