Do you need a passport to fly domestically now?

[proud2BlibKansan]

I remember reading not long ago that you would need a passport to fly within the US. Anyone know when that rule takes effect?

[AnnieBW]

1. I flew last month

And just used my driver's license.

[proud2BlibKansan]

3. I am flying in a few weeks but also in June

Will I need a passport in June?

[AlCzervik]

7. within the us? No and there is no way that will ever happen.

like 10% of american have passports.

[proud2BlibKansan]

15. I am sure I read it and I think it was right here on DU

[ben_meyers]

16. You might be thinking about Europe

They are requiring passports and fingerprints now.

[AlCzervik]

20. whatever you read here, check 4 times in the real world. trust but verfily.

:D

no way would the airline lobby ever let something like happen btw, can you imagine what would happen to their business if average americans could no longer fly within the us because they had no passport?

i do have a pasport and thank the goddess i'm getting out of this country for 3 weeks.

[onenote]

44. you read it here on DU -- then it must be true, since everything on DU is true

:sarcasm:

[Occulus]

37. "Well, I never fly, so I guess it's okay, it won't affect me"

Watch. 100% guarantee if this is tried it will pass easily, for that very reason.

First, they came for the _______.....

[AlCzervik]

39. i disagree, the airline lobby would be all up in the congress, it would kill their

business.

[Dorian Gray]

51. I flew on Monday.

No passport needed, nor will one be needed as far as I've heard. Within the USA of course. If you are flying to Canada, it's a different story.

[AlCzervik]

2. negative.

[Bluebear]

4. That will not be a rule.

Only travel to Canada, Caribbean, etc.

[baldguy]

5. Show me your papers!

[Fearless]

6. No not within the country or it's territories...

Puerto Rico even uses that as it's travel slogan. :rofl:

[provis99]

8. technically, no

But that won't stop you being harassed by Customs dumbasses. A friend flew back from the U.S. Virgin Islands, direct to Chicago, but got harassed for an hour about not having a passport. The dumbfucks couldn't figure out he had never left the United States!

Better to carry one, even in the lower 48, just to avoid putting up with bureaucratic morons.

[GOPisEvil]

9. Domestically? Uh, no. No papers required.

Returning from Canada or Mexico via air, yes.

[SteelPenguin]

49. Just laminated papers

Unless you're a child you're gonna need a drivers license or valid state photo ID to get through security.

[Fleshdancer]

10. no

the new passport rules apply to flying to Canada and Mexico.

[housewolf]

11. No you don't need a passport

but you do need some sort of official id, like a driver's license.

[Vincardog]

12. not until the pass the REAL-ID BS Then they require you to have papers

to use interstate travel or enter a federal of state or county office building. Then the fascists will be asking why you are moving out of you home area and why you are going there.

[MaryCeleste]

23. REAL ID did pass

The vast majority of states have signed up to it, so it won't be an issue for their residents. If the states that did not stand fast, their residents will require some other form of REAL ID, their state drivers license will not longer suffice.

I for one always use a passport, even domestically.

[proud2BlibKansan]

32. Beat me to it

:)

[baldguy]

36. And the REAL-ID will be hacked as soon as its available.

[Vincardog]

43. And you are OK with having to show your ID to use the Interstate highway system?

[MaryCeleste]

46. Are the interstates covered by REAL ID?

Thought it was planes/trains/buses and borders

That said where I live has interstates, but they don't connect to any other state

[Vincardog]

48. The key is it applies to ALL INTERSTATE transportation systems

That includes every mile of every interstate highway in every state. Do you think it is OK to have Blackwater personnel checking you papers before you get on any interstate highway? I don't care if you live in Alaska or Hawaii you have interstate highways connecting major cities or destination, They are included.

[Withywindle]

13. Need one? No.

But why on earth would you not want to have one?

May be my bias because I'm first-generation on one side and have never been without one (hell, until I was 18 I had two! :D), but wow, I think it's really important. The time might come when it will be REALLY important, if you know what I mean.

[proud2BlibKansan]

17. Why would I want to spend the money on one?

Plus it's so brown shirted thuggy. Kind of like living behind the iron curtain.

[Withywindle]

19. Do you think at some point in your life you might want to see more of the world, ever?

It's a big place. Most of it's interesting. :shrug:

I have no driver's license. Don't need one where I live. I use my PP for ID whenever I need it, including jobs - proves both citizenship and ID at once. You don't really need anything else if you have your SSN# memorized.

[proud2BlibKansan]

21. I have no intention of leaving the US while George Bush is president

But I have been to Mexico and Canada, before 2000. I haven't really been able to afford to travel anywhere farther.

[Withywindle]

30. I've done it 5 times while GB was Pres

Three of those times were absolutely necessary, because my SO's half Canadian and his parents live in Toronto. (And from Chicago, sometimes going to Toronto's easier and cheaper than flying to my own parents' place in western VA)

The worst was visiting my uncles and aunts in Brazil, because they (wisely!) decided to impose on US travellers to Brazil the same things we do to them--fingerprinting, etc. No biggie, though, really. (Mom, as a dual national, didn't have to go through that)

The funniest foreign encounter I ever had was with some random Irish dude in a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, who billed himself as a militant anarchist who respected no nations and thought the US should be nuked...except he had a TOTAL man-crush on Bill Clinton, and with a few drinks in him would go on at great length about it....awwwwwww.

[A HERETIC I AM]

22. Your Passport is your freedom to come and go as you please.

Being able to get one is your right as an American and even if you never use it, it is a good idea to have one.

It means freedom to leave.

[AlCzervik]

26. it is good to have, like a little mental security blanket.

[MaryCeleste]

24. Passports are often cheaper D/Ls on a per year basis

Also if you ever do want to travel, you dont have to wait to get one.

[proud2BlibKansan]

38. They are more expensive here

[Heddi]

41. How are they "more expensive" where you live?

There is one passport fee....it's more if you want your passport expedited, but the fee is the same whether you live in NYC or LA.

It's $100 to get your first passport, which is good for 10 years. That's $10 a year for the first 10 years for the ability to travel outside of US borders.

It's $75 to renew your passport once it's expired. The renewed passport is good for 10 years as well. That's $7.50 per year for 10 years to have the ability to travel outside of US borders.

It's also an excellent form of ID if you don't have a license or state-issued ID card. Plus, when/if you do travel outside the US, it's a neat little souvenir. When one passport expires and you get another one, they send back your old passport (once it's been invalidated) and you can keep it forever. I have my previous passport with about 30 stamps in it, and my husband has the one from when he was a child, and the one we got in 1998. They're neat souvenirs.

The price is the same no matter where you live in the US. I'm not understanding your statement "they're more expensive here" because passports are the same price in the US, no matter where you live.

[MaryCeleste]

47. I think he meant D/Ls are cheaper than Passports

From what I have heard, the answer to that is "depends where you live". State fees for D/Ls vary tremendously. At one point some were higher that passports on an annual basis, but passports went up recently too. Where I am D/Ls are about $4/year, cheaper than a passport. That was not true 10 years ago

Given that a weekend trip to Canada or Mexico is quite possible for many of us, having a Passport ready is a good idea. There is quite a backlog now, so getting one when you don't need it right away is a good thing.

[Heddi]

50. We renewed ours in July

it was set to expire in May 2008 but wanted to go ahead and get the renewal out of the way because of the backlog----our post office is a Passport Center and every time we'd go in to mail a package or whatever, the line for passports was out the door. So we renewed early. Sent it off in July and got it back about 6 weeks later, and we did not do the expedited thing. So the turn around wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I was hearing stories of 9+ months, which is why we did it so early because we knew we'd be traveling outside the US at some point in 2008---but we didn't know if it would be before or after May, when the PP expired.

THe crazy thing is that Hubby and I both mailed our passports off at the same time, in the same envelope. I got mine back a week before he did! But mine went through Charleston, SC passport office and his went through NYC Passport office---I wonder if it has to do with where you're born? I thought they'd both go through Seattle because we live in WA state.

I have had people go through the expedited thing and they didn't get their passport in an expedited way at all. A friend of mine and her son were going to Samoa and had planned on going in August 2007. I told her in January to get their papers together and apply for the passport as soon as she could (this was going to be their first passport). Goofball waited and waited and didn't apply for the passport until 3 weeks before they were set to go to Samoa. I told her there was NO way she would get their passports--expedited or not---back in 3 weeks. Not just because of the backlog, but even in non-backlog years it was tough to get that expedited passport in the 2-week window they offered. Needless to say, they had to cancel their trip because their PP didn't come until after September. My understanding is that an initial passport takes longer to process than a renewal does.

[proud2BlibKansan]

53. Driver's licenses are not as expensive as passports

So it isn't cheaper for me to get a passport. Sorry I wasn't clear.

[Heddi]

56. Oh, okay. THat makes sense

:D

[idovoodoo]

27. Well, every nation on the planet issues passports. It's not like we are the only paranoid country

...

[proud2BlibKansan]

29. LOL good point

[Dorian Gray]

52. Having a passport?

If you want to enter any country, you need one. I couldn't imagine living without one. When I was renewing mine, I felt panicked because I didn't have one for six weeks. I hate not being able to leave the country!

[robinlynne]

14. Never, but they did try to make everyone flying domestically to go through an fbi check

which would take 3 days. We would ahve to 'request permission to fly dometically'. it got voted out.

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. Maybe that is what I am thinking of.

But today my friend said I needed one. That's why I asked here tonight.

[idovoodoo]

25. Uh, no. It was proposed by some whackos a while back

...
edit I fixed it

[Warpy]

28. No, and you can even legally refuse to present a picture ID

like a driver's license, although I don't recommend doing so since the airport Gestapo is unversed in the intricacies of the law. If a strip search will make your day, refuse to present an ID.

It's bad enough to need one to go to Mexico and Canada.

[PDJane]

31. As I recall it, we'll let you in without it........

You need it to get back to the US.

[Warpy]

33. Yes, the problem is neither with Canada nor with Mexico

It lies entirely with the DHS Gestapo in the US.

It is my fervent hope that agency is the first thing disbanded by an incoming president. Not only does it have a creepy name, it's staffed by the worst blunderers and thieves this country has to offer.

[ret5hd]

54. So, theoretically, I could go to Canada w/o my passport and get "stuck" there...

like that guy in the movie "Terminal"? What's the airport food there like?

[PDJane]

62. Well, I wouldn't want to live on it.........

It's not outrageously bad though, and there is a Second Cup!

[Blue_In_AK]

34. No, but I'll need a passport if I ever want to

drive/ferry to my state capital. It's a really stupid law as regards Alaska/Canada, if you ask me.

[KharmaTrain]

35. Don't Try To Travel Without A Drivers License

I have a friend who is legally blind and got hassled by TSA since he only had his birth certificate and not a DL with a picture on it. It took him two hours to prove he was him and missed his flight.

I think you're confusing travel to Canada and Mexico...and I thought there had been a moritorium on when that law would be enacted due to the backlog on processing passports and protests from those countries.

[MaryCeleste]

40. There are also State ID cards, which are just like a license

Same standard of proof of identity, just not a license to drive. Passport would also work well for this person.

[Cleita]

42. I don't believe so, but I have found in the past that it doesn't

hurt to keep your passport with you, especially if you are an ethnic minority that might be targeted by the homeland security goons.

[slipslidingaway]

45. New Homeland Security rules starting in May...and not just flying

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=385&topic_id=83527&mesg_id=83762

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-pfQmbALC8

"The federal government issued national standards on Friday that states would have to meet in order for driver’s licenses they issue to qualify as identification at airports and federal buildings, setting the stage for a confrontation with states that have voted not to cooperate.

Under a measure known as Real ID legislation, the states must comply by May 11, the third anniversary of the measure’s enactment, or obtain a waiver from the Department of Homeland Security...

Ms. Schaffer predicted that pressure from the airlines might force the federal government to reverse itself.

The airlines, in fact, are worried, because travelers with driver’s licenses from states that do not have a waiver would have to use a passport or a military ID, or face additional screening, including a pat-down...

Exactly how many states will decide not to apply for waivers is unclear. Arkansas, Idaho, Montana and others have voted against the program, which was a central recommendation of the Sept. 11 Commission..."

[proud2BlibKansan]

57. Thank you! This is what I was thinking about.

[slipslidingaway]

59. YW, hopefully people will check before May. Link to check on

your state.

http://www.realnightmare.org/news/105/

[proud2BlibKansan]

60. So if your state is light blue, nothing has been passed?

[slipslidingaway]

61. That is my understanding, states that have not enacted

legislation to conform with the Real ID Act can apply for a waiver.

Not exactly sure what will happen to people that live in the 'red states' listed on the map who have already opted out or passed legislation opposing the Real ID Act. Maybe just additional screening for now.

:shrug:


From the NYT article...

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/12/us/12homeland.html?_r=2&ref=us&oref=slogin&oref=slogin

"The federal government issued national standards on Friday that states would have to meet in order for driver’s licenses they issue to qualify as identification at airports and federal buildings, setting the stage for a confrontation with states that have voted not to cooperate.

Under a measure known as Real ID legislation, the states must comply by May 11, the third anniversary of the measure’s enactment, or obtain a waiver from the Department of Homeland Security.

...The airlines, in fact, are worried, because travelers with driver’s licenses from states that do not have a waiver would have to use a passport or a military ID, or face additional screening, including a pat-down.

...Exactly how many states will decide not to apply for waivers is unclear. Arkansas, Idaho, Montana and others have voted against the program, which was a central recommendation of the Sept. 11 Commission..."


A better link to the status of legislation in individual states.

http://www.realnightmare.org/states/41/


Also...

Key Dates for Real ID Implementation

http://www.realnightmare.org/resources/108/



It appears that states should have already filed for a waiver. I'm so glad the media is keeping us informed.

:sarcasm:

http://www.dhs.gov/xprevprot/laws/gc_1172767635686.shtm

"What does a State have to do and when does it have to do it?

States that need an extension from DHS should file a request by February 1, 2008..."

[dysfunctional press]

55. papers, please...let me see your papers...

nope.
not yet, anyway.

[JoePhilly]

58. No, but you will need to give a DNA sample .... and provide ...

1. Photos of family and friends
2. A urine sample
3. A deposition regarding your loyalty to America
4. Agreement to a search of your home while you are out of town
5. Agreement to a body cavity search when you return
6. A short list of people (top 10) who you think are dangerous to our country

But other than that, you are fine.