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If you live in New York, Louisiana, Minnesota, or New Hampshire, forget about showing your driver’s license the next time you go to the airport…
Travel + Leisure reports in 2016, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will require residents of these states (plus American Samoa) to show a passport to fly.
That’s because the DHS says these states don’t meet federal requirements under the Real ID Act of 2005.
The Real ID Act tried to force all states to conform their IDs to a “unified” database model. This way, your state-issued ID becomes a “stealth” national ID card.
The article goes on to say residents of these “rogue” states may have an opportunity to obtain an “enhanced ID” to avoid the passport requirement. It doesn’t provide specifics on what the enhanced ID process entails.
As strange as it may seem… using your passport as a domestic ID may enhance your privacy.
That’s because your passport doesn’t contain your home address. All state-issued IDs do.
Privacy expert J.J. Luna recommends using your passport for hotel stays and most other purposes where a driver’s license is not required. (Luna’s book, How to Be Invisible, is a must-read for anyone wanting to maintain privacy in a world almost devoid of it.)
Bottom line: Get your passport ready now. Even if you don’t plan on traveling outside the U.S., you may need it sooner than you think…