This is the last holiday travel season before REAL ID starts in 2025

Anyone who travels by air may need to update their identification ahead of the May 7 deadline. When enforcement of the REAL ID Act begins, a regular Michigan or Wisconsin driver’s license or ID will no longer be accepted for domestic air travel or to enter a federal building or military base.

Travelers will need to present a REAL ID-compliant driver license or state ID card or another acceptable form of identification, such as a passport. REAL ID requirements are meant to ensure the secure production and issuance of licenses and IDs to prevent copying or altering.

Michigan’s new driver licenses and IDs with higher security features are now in circulation. Residents will receive the new license or ID design if applying for their first card or when renewing/replacing their current card.

There is no additional cost for the new card and all valid features, designations, and endorsements on a current license or ID will transfer to the new one. Michigan’s old card design featuring the Mackinac Bridge is valid until expiration and will phase out over the next five years.

The old license and ID design, which is being phased out by January 2029, features a star in a gold circle to indicate REAL ID compliance. The state’s new license design features a star in a silhouette of Michigan.

Enhanced licenses and IDs are automatically REAL ID-compliant, regardless of whether they display this star. An enhanced license or ID is typically used in place of a U.S. passport to re-enter the United States from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda or the Caribbean.

After May 7, a standard Michigan driver license remains valid for driving, and a standard license and state ID continue to be legal identification for cashing checks, renting vehicles, purchasing alcohol and tobacco, or entering casinos. A standard license or ID card will have “Not for Federal Identification” printed on it.

To convert a standard Michigan driver license to a REAL ID, go to a Secretary of State office and provide these documents:

— Current Michigan driver license or ID.

— A valid, unexpired U.S. passport, birth certificate or other proof of legal presence document.

— A certified legal name-change document, if your name is different from what is on your birth certificate.

There’s no added charge for converting to REAL ID if done at the time of renewing or replacing your license or ID. Otherwise, there is a correction fee — $9 for license; $10 for ID — to convert to REAL ID.

More information is available at https://www.michigan.gov/sos/license-id/real-id.

Wisconsin’s driver licenses and ID cards have been REAL ID compliant since Jan. 14, 2013. With renewals required every eight years, all Wisconsin residents have had the option to convert to a REAL ID.

To date, 62% of Wisconsin’s driver license or ID cards currently display the REAL ID star indicating they are federally compliant.

Those who have an older Wisconsin driver license or ID may obtain a REAL ID-compliant card for $14 — the cost of a replacement driver license — or $16 for an ID card. There is no additional fee if the upgrade takes place at the same time as the renewal.

Wisconsin REAL ID-compliant cards are marked with a star. Non-compliant cards do not have a star or are marked “NOT FOR FEDERAL PURPOSES.”

To obtain a Wisconsin REAL ID-compliant driver license or ID card, individuals must go to a Wisconsin Department of Motor Vehicles office and bring these original documents or a certified copy, not a photocopy, fax or scan:

— Proof of name and date of birth.

— Proof of legal presence in the U.S.

— Proof of identity.

— Proof of name change (if applicable).

— Proof of Social Security number.

— Proof of address, two forms.

More information can be found at wisconsindmv.gov/REALID.

In either state, you may be able to schedule an appointment for faster service.