# REAL-ID driver license question: New license number? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 26, 2019, 9:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007 "2019-11-26T09:22:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/21 "2019-11-26T14:53:52Z")
> [@Bumbershoot](#): > > … > When my mom went to get her Real ID, the birth certificate wasn’t enough because it had her maiden name. We had to go home and get her marriage license (along with the birth certificate) to confirm her married name. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/22 "2019-11-26T15:02:59Z")
California is 1. Yes 2. No ThelmaLou, I’m surprised you’re having trouble finding the document requirements for your state. Seems like it would be a huge mess if a lot of people were coming to the DMV without the right documents. The California DMV website is very clear about what you need. I expect most states are similar, since there are federal requirements. > **[News Releases - California DMV](https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/news-and-media/news-releases/#acc-2019)** > > Est. reading time: 69 minutes ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 3:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/23 "2019-11-26T15:05:14Z")
NY: I’m pretty sure it’s the same. But that would make sense: if they gave you a new number, then any violations on the old number would be difficult to track down. If you had a DWI two years ago and got a real ID, it’s be more difficult to keep track of the violation. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/24 "2019-11-26T15:07:43Z")
> [@Bumbershoot](#): > > When my mom went to get her Real ID, the birth certificate wasn’t enough because it had her maiden name. We had to go home and get her marriage license (along with the birth certificate) to confirm her married name. Same thing with my wife, in Maryland. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/25 "2019-11-26T15:20:29Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > California is > > 1. Yes > 2. No > > ThelmaLou, I’m surprised you’re having trouble finding the document requirements for your state. Seems like it would be a huge mess if a lot of people were coming to the DMV without the right documents. The California DMV website is very clear about what you need. I expect most states are similar, since there are federal requirements. > > [https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/detail/pubs/newsrel/2019/2019\_52](https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/detail/pubs/newsrel/2019/2019_52) I’m \*\*not \*\*having trouble finding the list of documents. When I found the [list](http://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-32.pdf), which is two and a half pages long and full of unfamiliar terminology, my questions about the requirements were still not completely answered. The list is daunting to look at, even for me, who spent a career reading and filling out government applications for funding. My mother would take one look at this and give up. The California link that you gave is presented in a more user-friendly format. Of course, this is Texas, so we don’t want to make it TOO easy for people, do we? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/26 "2019-11-26T16:00:25Z")
> [@Bumbershoot](#): > > When my mom went to get her Real ID, the birth certificate wasn’t enough because it had her maiden name. We had to go home and get her marriage license (along with the birth certificate) to confirm her married name. My wife already went through this for her passport so she didn’t need to bring her marriage license to confirm her name change. ---
**Author:** ![racer72](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/racer72/32/3075_2.png) [@racer72](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racer72)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/27 "2019-11-26T16:04:03Z")
Washington’s enhanced license is as far as the state is going to go to comply with the Real-ID act. The [Washington DOL](https://www.dol.wa.gov/about/real-id-overview.html) website lists all the options. Washington will continue to be one of the few states an illegal immigrant can obtain a driver’s license. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/28 "2019-11-26T17:28:43Z")
In Oregon they will give the option of getting a Real-ID July 6th, 2020. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/29 "2019-11-26T17:29:03Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > My wife already went through this for her passport so she didn’t need to bring her marriage license to confirm her name change. My mom’s passport had expired. I wonder if they would have accepted it anyway? I have a feeling they wouldn’t, since the proof of residency (i.e. bank statement or utility bill) had to be from the past six months. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/30 "2019-11-26T18:24:22Z")
To answer my own question, they would not accept an expired passport. I just called and they said it must be a valid ID. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/31 "2019-11-26T18:36:27Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I’ve had an Illinois driver’s license for 30 years, and have had the same number all along. > > When I moved here from Wisconsin in '89, I was given a different number (though of a similar format) than the one I’d had in Wisconsin; as the site that Machine Elf shared, WI license numbers have two more digits than IL numbers do. Yes, Illinois’ number is formulaic. The first letter and three digits are the Soundex code of your surname. The next three numbers are numerical values for your first name plus initial. The next two numbers are your year of birth. And your last three numbers are your date of birth and sex ( [Numerical month of birth minus one, times 31] plus day of birth, and then you add 600 for female.) This came in useful once when I needed my wife’s DL number and didn’t feel like bothering her at work for it. So, yes, this means you can have duplicate DL numbers. (You don’t even have to have the same names. It has to be the same sex and birthdate, but many combinations of names can add up to the same Soundex code and first three digits of an ILDL#.) I’m not sure what Illinois does in that case. From what I’m digging up online, apparently nothing. A drivers license number is apparently not necessarily a unique identifier in Illinois. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/32 "2019-11-26T18:43:22Z")
Florida: 1. Yes. 2. No. ---
**Author:** ![Dobbs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Dobbs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dobbs)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/33 "2019-11-26T19:42:18Z")
Virginia, yes, no. Back in the day (mid-70’s) your DL# was your SSAN. As soon as they offered the chance to have a different number (in the early 80’s, I think), I took it. Identity theft wasn’t a thing then, but it seemed like a smart thing to do. The Internet wasn’t around, so all it cost me was time spent sitting in the DMV and reading a book for a bit. As I would have spent time reading the book anyway, there was nothing lost. RealID was easy enough. I was worried that they wouldn’t take my birth certificate. It had a raised seal once, and in perfect side light you can make out a bit of it if you look close. The DMV lady said it was the oldest original BC she had seen. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/34 "2019-11-26T19:47:45Z")
Washington State. Yes, I think I’ve had the same number since I moved here in 1987. And yes, when I got my RealID last week, the number changed. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/35 "2019-11-26T21:51:21Z")
> [@Machine\_Elf](#): > > Check your state’s DMV website for the straightest dope. For Michigan, in addition to your old license, you’ll need a valid passport, certified birth certificate (with raised seal), or “approved citizenship or legal presence document.” > [@RTFirefly](#): > > … But I did need a birth certificate - thought I had one in the safe deposit box, but no such luck. Since I was born in Los Angeles, I had to order birth certificates from them, which took a few weeks. > [@markn\_1](#): > > … The California DMV website is very clear about what you need. The above snippets caught all of my eyeballs this time. I am concerned about the acceptability of my current birth certificate (do I have to be born again?) and providing docs with my address, since I have all my bank statements and utility bills go to a PO Box. **RTFirefly** , what does a “certified” birth certificate from LA County look like these days? Mine, issued by LA County circa in 1974, is just a (somewhat messy) photocopy. It does NOT have an embossed seal, but instead has the County Registrar Seal rubber-stamped in purple ink, along with the words “This is a true certified copy of the record if it bears the seal, imprinted in purple ink, of the Registrar-Recorder.” I wonder if a modern-day front-line clerk at DMV would recognize that. The doc on the DMV site is fairly clear, mostly. It doesn’t mention what an acceptable birth certificate must look like. It’s a bit ambiguous about what utility bills must look like if they are addressed to a PO Box. It does mention that if you’re retired, you can use your SSA-1099 form for your SSN verification. I thought I saw somewhere that it’s okay if some documents have your FULL name, and some others have your middle name abbreviated down to just the initial. But the document I have now doesn’t mention that. All my Social Security docs just use the middle initial. Has anyone had any hassle with discrepancies like this? If you are not currently using the same name that’s on your birth certificate, for WHATEVER reason, you must bring the court document of your name change. If you’ve changed your name more than once, you must bring a COMPLETE chain of name change documents. ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/36 "2019-11-26T22:08:12Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > This post, from an unrelated thread, caught one or more of my eyeballs: > Questions for those who have gotten your Real ID license: > (1) In your state, do you generally keep the same driver license number year after year forever? > (2) When you got your Real ID, did you get a new driver license number? > > (I’m especially interested in the answer to Question 2 in California.) > > I’ve had the same DL number since 1968, and it appears to be a surprisingly low number (just 4 digits, \< 2000, not counting leading zero digits). You don’t have to re-engrave everything. I’m sure, should someone who has access to the database with DL#, sees that, they can still link it to you. Also, knowing that something that you think is yours has a bunch of numbers engraved on it and knowing exactly what they are, will likely be enough to convince most people that it is in fact yours. ---
**Author:** ![Bumbershoot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bumbershoot/32/3428_2.png) [@Bumbershoot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bumbershoot)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2019, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/37 "2019-11-26T22:53:33Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > The above snippets caught all of my eyeballs this time. I am concerned about the acceptability of my current birth certificate (do I have to be born again?) and providing docs with my address, since I have all my bank statements and utility bills go to a PO Box. > > **RTFirefly** , what does a “certified” birth certificate from LA County look like these days? Mine, issued by LA County circa in 1974, is just a (somewhat messy) photocopy. It does NOT have an embossed seal, but instead has the County Registrar Seal rubber-stamped in purple ink, along with the words “This is a true certified copy of the record if it bears the seal, imprinted in purple ink, of the Registrar-Recorder.” > > I wonder if a modern-day front-line clerk at DMV would recognize that. > > The doc on the DMV site is fairly clear, mostly. It doesn’t mention what an acceptable birth certificate must look like. It’s a bit ambiguous about what utility bills must look like if they are addressed to a PO Box. It does mention that if you’re retired, you can use your SSA-1099 form for your SSN verification. > > I thought I saw somewhere that it’s okay if some documents have your FULL name, and some others have your middle name abbreviated down to just the initial. But the document I have now doesn’t mention that. All my Social Security docs just use the middle initial. Has anyone had any hassle with discrepancies like this? > > If you are not currently using the same name that’s on your birth certificate, for WHATEVER reason, you must bring the court document of your name change. If you’ve changed your name more than once, you must bring a COMPLETE chain of name change documents. New Mexico will accept documents with your first & last name. Middle name or middle initial are not required. Utility bills to a PO box _should_ be acceptable if the utility company is in your state; they’re just trying to establish residency. Not sure about bank statements. But really, you should call the DMV to get the straight dope on your state’s requirements. It might save a trip, and it’s no fun waiting in a long line then finding out you need one more form and you have to come back. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2019, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/38 "2019-11-27T00:50:17Z")
Just to quote myself from the passport thread, this whole rigmarole is tied in with the American public opinion’s apparent major hangup against a universal citizen/resident ID. Yet another thing we have to be Exceptional about. A dozen times a week you need to identify yourself, but figure out how in each. So instead we’ve spent a century making things that were not intended to be secure IDs — SSNs, DLs — into de facto ID papers and then the Congress trying to herd the states into the kludgy and inconvenient Real-ID system so it can still be claimed that it’s not a universal citizen/resident ID. ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2019, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/39 "2019-11-28T00:35:01Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > I’m \*\*not \*\*having trouble finding the list of documents. When I found the [list](http://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-32.pdf), which is two and a half pages long and full of unfamiliar terminology, my questions about the requirements were still not completely answered. The list is daunting to look at, even for me, who spent a career reading and filling out government applications for funding. My mother would take one look at this and give up. The California link that you gave is presented in a more user-friendly format. > > Of course, this is Texas, so we don’t want to make it TOO easy for people, do we? I’m surprised they require you to confirm your social security number. Is that an element of Real-ID or a Texas thing? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2019, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007/40 "2019-11-28T01:40:03Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > I’m surprised they require you to confirm your social security number. Is that an element of Real-ID or a Texas thing? Well, it’s part of the California rules too, so there’s that. You can use a variety of documents – MUST BE ORIGINAL, NO PHOTOCOPIES – SS card, recent W-2 form, or for people getting Social Security, your SS-1099 form. Whatever form, it MUST show the ENTIRE number, not just the last four digits. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/real-id-driver-license-question-new-license-number/844007.md?page=3)