REAL ID delays leave NJ flyers facing TSA penalty as appointment crunch worsens

✈️ TSA will charge a $45 for travelers without REAL ID or other acceptable ID

✈️ Getting a REAL ID in New Jersey remains difficult but is not impossible

✈️ The MVC says strict federal document rules are slowing REAL ID processing

If you've been holding off on getting a REAL ID, the TSA has given you an incentive to get one. While it remains difficult to get one quickly in New Jersey, it is not impossible.

Beginning Feb. 1, 2026, travelers who do not present an acceptable form of ID at security checkpoints and still want to fly can pay a $45 fee and go through the TSA Confirm.ID process, a modernized alternative identity verification system, for a 10-day travel period, the Transportation Security Administration announced.

Getting a REAL ID license at a New Jersey MVC branch by the deadline is nearly impossible. When New Jersey 101.5 tried to make an appointment online for a REAL ID on Dec.9,  appointments were not available at any branch until February.

MVC spokesman William Connolly pointed out that 80% of New Jersey residents have passports, which would allow them to fly without paying the new fee after Feb. 1.

"New Jersey leads the nation in passport holders per capita. About 80% of New Jerseyans have a passport, on top of the 2 million-plus that already have a Real ID license. We want people to be aware that this fee is not going to be applicable for them. They will be able to clear checkpoints," Connolly said.

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Why REAL ID takes longer at New Jersey MVC branches

Connolly said that there continues to be a high demand for REAL ID licenses across the country and in New Jersey. The  MVC has over 24,000 non-renewal appointments and 100,000 renewal appointments. But creating a REAL ID license is more time-consuming than a standard license because of the federal government's document requirements.

"There's a couple more document requirements for REAL ID that involves providing two proofs of residency, a verifiable Social Security number, which we check with the Social Security Administration, and then six points of ID. The big difference is that for REAL ID documents, we have to scan those, and that's different from the standard," Connolly said.

Once all the proper documentation for a REAL ID is submitted and completed, it is produced and issued from a secure central location, the same as a standard license

Appointments for renewal can be made three months ahead of the expiration date via the MVC website. The REAL ID Tuesday and Thursday program continues every other week with over 5,000 additional appointments available.  The MVC can accommodate those flying for emergency reasons.

"We also have a Real ID emergency issuance appointment, which is not booked through our normal scheduler, and that's for those who have an urgent travel need within the next 14 days, or if they have a life or death medical emergency where they have to travel within the next 14 days," Connolly said.

A lingering problem with getting appointments continues to be customers who make appointments and then don't cancel them or are no-shows. There are checks in the MVC's system that prevent multiple appointments from being made for the same person.

Here is what customers need to bring to get a REAL ID at an MVC branch:

• Two proofs of residency
• A verifiable Social Security number that is checked with the Social Security Administration
• Documents that add up to six points of ID
• A REAL ID can not be issued useless all the federal requirements

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