The Enhanced Driver’s Licenses are designed to prove the bearer’s identity and citizenship, and can be used like a passport book or passport card when traveling between the US and Canada by card. Canada also has an Enhanced Driver’s License program; British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec are all able to issue their residents EDLs. If you're travelling to the U.S. By land or water, the enhanced driver's licence (EDL) or enhanced ID (EIC) is a great alternative to a passport.It's convenient, inexpensive and gives you access to a faster Ready Lane at certain border crossing points. Please note: EDL and EIC offer different benefits than the NEXUS Pass or a Canadian Passport.

If you have had to get a driver’s license recently, you may have noticed that you were required to bring in a lot more documentation to prove your identity, residence, and citizenship. You may have been asked to bring documents like your passport, birth certificate, Social Security Card, utility bills, and lease agreement – even if you already hold a valid driver’s license!

The reason you need to bring so much more documentation is because of the Federal REAL ID act, which is intended to set national standards for state-issued identification cards like driver’s licenses and non-driver IDs. In certain states, you may also have to bring additional documentation if you want to acquire an Enhanced Driver’s License which may be used like a passport card to cross land borders between the US, Canada, and Mexico.

REAL ID

Before the REAL ID Act of 2005 was passed by Congress, there were no national standards for state-issued identification cards. The US does not have a nationwide ID system, except for US Passports, and as fewer than half of all Americans have passports, many people rely on their driver’s license as their main form of official identification. The REAL ID act set documentation standards for each state to follow in order to verify the identity and citizenship status of applicants for driver’s licenses and non-driver IDs.

When the REAL ID act is fully implemented, US citizens, residents, and visitors will need to show a REAL ID compliant document in order to go through TSA security at the airport or enter a secure Federal building. It’s expected that REAL ID will not be required for airport security until sometime in 2016 at the earliest; a firm date has not been established as not all states are yet fully compliant with REAL ID standards.

What Documents Count as REAL ID?

Your current driver’s license may or may not be a REAL ID. Take a look at your license; if you see a star in the top corner of your license, that means it is a REAL ID license.

A number of other documents can also be used as REAL ID. A valid US passport book or passport card can be used as REAL ID, as can valid passports from foreign countries. Permanent Resident Cards, Trusted Traveler cards, and valid US military IDs also count as REAL ID. Enhanced Driver’s Licenses, which demonstrate US citizenship, can be used for REAL ID purposes.

Enhanced driver’s license. There’s both walk-in and appointments to get one — but be ready for a wait. Good to know: A similar enhanced state ID card is available for non-drivers through the state Department of Licensing. Applicants must show proof of identity, Washington state residence and U.S.

Enhanced Driver’s Licenses

Five states – Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont, and Washington – currently offer residents the option of receiving either a standard driver’s license or an Enhanced Driver’s License (EDL). These states all border Canada, and see a lot of land traffic across the border. The Enhanced Driver’s Licenses are designed to prove the bearer’s identity and citizenship, and can be used like a passport book or passport card when traveling between the US and Canada by card. Canada also has an Enhanced Driver’s License program; British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec are all able to issue their residents EDLs to be used when driving across the US border.

Ga Enhanced Driver's License

In the US, Enhanced Driver’s Licenses are available only to US citizens, who must prove citizenship by showing a valid US passport, naturalization certificate, or birth certificate showing birth in the US. This is different than REAL ID driver’s licenses, which are available both to US citizens and to legal US alien residents. Another difference between EDLs and REAL ID licenses is that Enhanced Driver’s Licenses are slightly more expensive than standard licenses, and REAL ID licenses do not have additional fees. Additionally, Enhanced Driver’s Licenses contain an RFID chip, just like a biometric passport, but other REAL ID licenses do not.

An enhanced driver's license (EDL) in U.S. English, enhanced driver's licence in Canadian English, or enhanced ID in other common usage, is a card which functions both as driving licence and ID card with limited passport features issued in some states in the United States^[1] and some provinces in Canada^[2] to people who are both citizens of the country and residents in the relevant region, compliant with the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative.

An enhanced driver's license is allowed to be used as an alternative to a passport for international land and sea travel, but not air travel, to countries that recognize it. The card includes machine-readableRFID and barcode for automated identification of the card and its holder.

Enhanced Driver's License Bc Requirements

As a Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative-compliant travel document, an EDL may be used for 'official purposes' (such as boarding a domestic flight) covered by the U.S. REAL ID Act.^[3] However, a U.S. state that issues only EDLs, but does not issue any other REAL ID-compliant driver's license, is not deemed compliant with the REAL ID Act unless granted an extension.^[4] Likewise, REAL ID-compliant licenses alone are not sufficient to cross international borders, even if a state gives its REAL ID-compliant licenses a similar name.^[5]

Enhanced driver's licenses are available to U.S. citizens who reside in the states of Michigan,^[3][6]Minnesota,^[3][7]New York,^[3][8]Vermont,^[3][9] and Washington.^[3][10]

Enhanced driver's licenses are available to Canadian citizens residing in British Columbia^[11] and Manitoba,^[12] and formerly in Ontario^[13] and Quebec.^[2][14][15] After running it for five years, Quebec discontinued the enhanced driver's license program, citing low demand as the reason. Current enhanced driver's license (Driver's Licence Plus) identification cards will remain valid until their expiration dates. Driver's Licence Plus documents have not been issued since 30 September 2014.^[16]

Enhanced Drivers License California

See also[edit]

References[edit]

1. ^'Enhanced Drivers Licenses: What Are They?'. Department of Homeland Security. Archived from the original on October 25, 2013. Retrieved August 25, 2012.
2. ^ ^ab'Your guide to British Columbia's enhanced driver's licence program'(PDF). ICBC.com. Archived from the original(PDF) on September 29, 2013.
3. ^ ^abcdef'State Implementation'. Department of Homeland Security. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
4. ^'State Compliance'. Department of Homeland Security. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
5. ^'Real ID'. Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
6. ^'Enhanced Drivers License'. Michigan Secretary of State.
7. ^'IDENTIFICATION CARD – INFORMATION – ENHANCED IDENTIFICATION CARD'. Minnesota Department of Public Safety.
8. ^'Get an Enhanced Driver License (EDL)]'. New York State Department of Motor Vehicles.
9. ^'Enhanced Driver's License (EDL)'. Vermont Department of Motor Vehicles.
10. ^'Enhanced Driver License/ID Card (EDL/EID)'. Washington State Department of Licensing.
11. ^'B.C. Enhanced Driver's Licence'. Intergovernmental Relations Secretariat.
12. ^'Manitoba's Enhanced Driver's License (EDL) and Enhanced Identification Card (EIC) Program'(PDF). Manitoba Public Insurance.
13. ^'Enhanced Driver's License'. Queen's Printer for Ontario.
14. ^Chung, Andrew (March 17, 2009). 'New Quebec Licence Good for U.S. travel'. Toronto Star.
15. ^'States and Provinces Offering Enhanced Drivers Licenses'. Customs and Border Protection. Archived from the original on April 24, 2013. Retrieved February 27, 2013.
16. ^'I Need Information...' Société de l'assurance automobile du Québec. Retrieved June 7, 2014.