# Why aren't passports acceptable ID when buying alcohol? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 19, 2006, 9:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020 "2006-11-19T09:25:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/81 "2013-11-27T06:53:48Z")
Some provinces (and I assume some states) the law requires presentation of VALID photo ID for liquor, tobacco, etc. If it’s expired it’s not valid. I assume one train of thought is that an expired ID might be retrieved from the garbage. After all, the old “it works because I look like my sister” routine is easier to pull of if she gives you her old license, not the one she needs for driving. More likely, it’s government being incredibly picky because they can be. ---
**Author:** ![Soylent\_Juicy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@Soylent\_Juicy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soylent_Juicy)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/82 "2013-11-27T15:07:27Z")
I know it’s a zombie thread but I’ll add this little bit… Bars won’t accept the government-issued Ontario Health Card as ID, even though your birthdate and photo are on it. I was told it’s because “they’re too easily faked.” :rolleyes: I think it’s because we get the OHIP card for free and you have to pay for a driver’s license or Age of Majority card - therefore giving the government more money. But that’s just my opinion. ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/83 "2013-11-27T22:28:47Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > A place I used to work at came under new management and eventually, after I had left, went to a policy of no IDs other than a driver’s license for tobacco sales (no liquor sales at this gas station.) Anyway, the policy made no sense to the people actually running the register. Also, thanks to the station’s proximity to the air force base, a lot of customers would come in and use their military ID, often while still wearing BDUs. I don’t think anyone other than the owner actually enforced that policy and she’s never actually there anyway. So this manager didn’t allow non-drivers of legal age to buy tobacco? The way this is worded, state-issued non-driver ID cards would apparently not have been accepted. ---
**Author:** ![ouryL](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ouryl/32/6067_2.png) [@ouryL](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ouryL)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/84 "2013-11-27T23:04:03Z")
If the Liquor Commission will not let you use passports as ID, then you cannot use passports as ID. ---
**Author:** ![bob\_2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bob_2/32/3341_2.png) [@bob\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bob_2)\ **Post date:** [November 27, 2013, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/85 "2013-11-27T23:50:09Z")
> [@Tripler](#): > > Not necessarily–I was flying through Shannon, Ireland, and was able to pick up 750ml of Irish Whiskey, no questions asked. > > Tripler > No passports, and no kiddin’! So long as you looked to be over 18 - why would they query you? ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/86 "2013-11-28T00:00:05Z")
Does the law covering sales and acceptable IDs have any wording about “state-issued” IDs? That’s the only thing I can think of. Many people are still completely unfamiliar with passports though. I knew a guy in Texas who had only a passport – his driver’s license had expired or was suspended, probably the latter knowing him – and he used his passport as ID when paying by check at a small store. The clerks looked at it like it had fallen down from outer space. He said the clerks all passed it around to have a look. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/87 "2013-11-28T00:21:25Z")
This is probably as good a thread as any to ask what the deal is with some places in the US requiring ID to purchase alcohol and/or smokes, even if the person doing so is clearly a long way over the legal age - is it actually law in some states, or just a policy requirement from over-zealous businesses? Either way, what’s the point in asking someone who is clearly in their 40s for ID to buy a bottle of wine? ---
**Author:** ![Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Hazle\_Weatherfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hazle_Weatherfield)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/88 "2013-11-28T00:26:40Z")
I think it’s basically in place to cover their asses. If it’s an no tolerance policy to card every single person that purchases cigarettes or alcohol, regardless of how old they look, they won’t ever be in trouble for not carding someone and selling to a minor. ---
**Author:** ![Duke\_of\_York](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f6c823/32.png) [@Duke\_of\_York](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Duke_of_York)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/89 "2013-11-28T00:32:24Z")
I thought it was a bit strange that I was asked my date of birth when I ordered a beer in CA. I was 66 years old at the time. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/90 "2013-11-28T00:42:16Z")
Picking up some beer in a Family Mart convenience store in Tokyo recently, the clerk was clearly about my age, mid-50s, but was required to ask me my age. Then I had to press a “button” on a screen verifying I was old enough to buy it. I didn’t have to show anything, just promise I was of age before the register was even allowed to ring up the purchase. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 12:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/91 "2013-11-28T00:49:19Z")
> [@Siam\_Sam](#): > > Picking up some beer in a Family Mart convenience store in Tokyo recently, the clerk was clearly about my age, mid-50s, but was required to ask me my age. Then I had to press a “button” on a screen verifying I was old enough to buy it. I didn’t have to show anything, just promise I was of age before the register was even allowed to ring up the purchase. That I can sort of get - but saying to someone clearly in their 30s/40s/50s+ they can’t buy alcohol or smokes because they don’t have their driver’s licence on them seems excessive, surely? When I worked in hospitality in Australia we only had to ID people who looked under about 25 or so. ---
**Author:** ![JpnDude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/838e76/32.png) [@JpnDude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JpnDude)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/92 "2013-11-28T01:24:55Z")
Last year while visiting my parents in Southern California, JpnGal and I were shopping at Target and had gotten some over-the-counter medicine. At the register, they asked for ID. All I had at the time was my U.S. passport and Japanese drivers license. The clerk wouldn’t accept either forms of ID and we asked for a manager. The manager hesitated and made a call somewhere before we were finally able to buy the meds. ---
**Author:** ![dasmoocher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dbc845/32.png) [@dasmoocher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dasmoocher)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/93 "2013-11-28T01:51:11Z")
> [@Duke\_of\_York](#): > > I thought it was a bit strange that I was asked my date of birth when I ordered a beer in CA. > I was 66 years old at the time. My father tells a story of buying a beer at the concession stand at a football stadium. He was wearing a baseball cap and looking down at the money in his wallet when he ordered and was asked for ID. He looked up and said “Why, do I get a Sr. citizen discount?” ---
**Author:** ![Kenm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/bc79bd/32.png) [@Kenm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kenm)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/94 "2013-11-28T03:43:57Z")
> [@Duke\_of\_York](#): > > I thought it was a bit strange that I was asked my date of birth when I ordered a beer in CA. > I was 66 years old at the time. Can’t fool me. You’re obviously a 12-year-old with progeria. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/95 "2013-11-28T04:04:22Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > This is probably as good a thread as any to ask what the deal is with some places in the US requiring ID to purchase alcohol and/or smokes, even if the person doing so is clearly a long way over the legal age - is it actually law in some states, or just a policy requirement from over-zealous businesses? > > Either way, what’s the point in asking someone who is clearly in their 40s for ID to buy a bottle of wine? It’s my understanding that, at least here in Washington, you’re not allowed to sell alcohol to _anybody_ who doesn’t have ID. I remember when I was 21 and hanging out one afternoon at my usual bar, the owner came over and quietly asked me if I had my ID on me. I said yes, and asked if he needed to see it again (he, and all of his bartenders had properly checked my ID the first time each had served me, and they all knew I was legal). He said, “No, but there’s a Liquor Control Board officer over there, so I just wanted to make sure you had it on you in case he asks.” ---
**Author:** ![Lord\_Feldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lord_feldon/32/341_2.png) [@Lord\_Feldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lord_Feldon)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/96 "2013-11-28T04:23:11Z")
> [@Martini\_Enfield](#): > > This is probably as good a thread as any to ask what the deal is with some places in the US requiring ID to purchase alcohol and/or smokes, even if the person doing so is clearly a long way over the legal age - is it actually law in some states, or just a policy requirement from over-zealous businesses? The law in my state doesn’t directly require it (I don’t think), but someone who sells alcohol to a minor can be fined up to $1000 and jailed for up to six months. Checking their ID is a defense, but guessing how old they look is not. That’s a lot to bet on someone’s appearance. ---
**Author:** ![SpyOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@SpyOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpyOne)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 5:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/97 "2013-11-28T05:07:49Z")
> [@Antigen](#): > > I went to a club in Boston a few years ago, and I expected to get a little confusion about the Quebec driver’s license I was using as ID. When I handed it to the bouncer, he turned around and picked up a folder and started flipping pages - the club had made handbooks for their bouncers, with color pictures of driver’s licenses and other acceptable ID’s from every state, province, and a bunch of foreign countries. > > I was very impressed. We have one of those books at work. It is made by Budweiser. I have a bit of insight of offer, but not much. 1. Grocery stores are going to be much stricter about IDs than other store, because most underage buyers bought their booze at grocery stores. Grocery stores want to keep their licenses, and so they are trying very hard to break the impression that they are where kids buy their beer. 2. What is or is not acceptable ID, legally, for an alcohol purchase is set by each state. What is or is not for tobacco is set by the FDA. Most stores default to the (usually stricter) tobacco requirements for all age-controlled purchases. For tobacco, the ID must have been issued by a state or national government (college ID, even from a state-run college, does not count). It must show your name, birthdate, and photo. And it must be unexpired. About 18 months ago, the training done by our (national) chain changed to specifically say that a US Passport was valid, but foreign passports were not. Before that, all passports were acceptable. I do not know if that was a law change or just company policy. So yes, I have sold alcohol to someone who showed me an ID card issued by the government of Honduras, but I could not accept that person’s Passport as ID. Try talking calmly with the manager about this. Ask him/her if store policy prohibits using a US Passport as ID, and if so why. If s/he says that it doesn’t, take note of his/her name and say that if the problem comes up again, you’ll tell the cashier that they should talk to their manager, “because (insert name) said a Passport is valid ID for this purchase”. Be understanding. Especially when policy changes, it can be hard to get everyone on the same page. ---
**Author:** ![SpyOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@SpyOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpyOne)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/98 "2013-11-28T05:15:29Z")
> [@asterion](#): > > A place I used to work at came under new management and eventually, after I had left, went to a policy of no IDs other than a driver’s license for tobacco sales (no liquor sales at this gas station.) Anyway, the policy made no sense to the people actually running the register. Also, thanks to the station’s proximity to the air force base, a lot of customers would come in and use their military ID, often while still wearing BDUs. I don’t think anyone other than the owner actually enforced that policy and she’s never actually there anyway. This I can kinda understand. Most of the military IDs I have seen matched the following description: On the front, color photo and name and other stuff, on the back, a black&white photo where the contrast is so bad it can be hard to tell it’s a person, and their birthdate printed overlapping the photo so that if they were wearing something dark when the photo was taken (like navy or woodland camo) there is NO chance you can actually read it. And a magnetic tripe that probably has lots of nifty data on it but is useless to humans. Military IDs are useful to the military, who have machines to access the chips built into them and stuff, and useless to anybody else. ---
**Author:** ![SpyOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@SpyOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpyOne)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/99 "2013-11-28T05:27:38Z")
> [@Balthisar](#): > > I should think that there’s not a law that requires a valid, specific form of identification, but only that identification be required if the person (for example) looks to be under 35 or if the person isn’t personally known to the cashier. As I noted above, alcohol varies state to state, but tobacco is federal. I am a cashier. If someone comes in and asks to buy tobacco, if they are under 27 and I don’t see an ID before making the sale, I have committed a crime. Because it can be hard to tell if someone is 27 or 26, store policy is “if they look under 30”, like that isn’t vague at all. But the law says if they ARE under 27, they need to present ID. EVEN if I know them. If they buy a pack of cigarettes, step outside, and come back for a lighter, I need to see their ID _again_. Every single time. Alcohol is more relaxed. State law allows me to not ask for ID if I know the person to be over 21, for example because I have checked their ID before. If I don’t ask for ID and it turns out they are under 21, I have committed a crime. We also have to be “reasonably diligent” or somesuch about screening for fake IDs. If your ID says you are 6’2" and you are 5’5", we are supposed to notice that. If the font used for the year of your birth doesn’t match the rest of the ID, we are supposed to notice that. But if you have a good fake ID, we are covered against charges of selling to someone underage if you presented your ID. This interfaces with the alcohol law above, however. A local 17-year-old was killed while driving drunk, and the clerk at the store where he’d bought his beer said he was a regular customer who’d shown his ID dozens of times, which is why he didn’t ask for ID on that occasion. Guess who’s going to jail. For selling to a minor AND failing to ask for ID. ---
**Author:** ![Martini\_Enfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/martini_enfield/32/11123_2.png) [@Martini\_Enfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martini_Enfield)\ **Post date:** [November 28, 2013, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020/100 "2013-11-28T05:35:56Z")
> [@SpyOne](#): > > For tobacco, the ID must have been issued by a state or national government (college ID, even from a state-run college, does not count). It must show your name, birthdate, and photo. And it must be unexpired. > About 18 months ago, the training done by our (national) chain changed to specifically say that a US Passport was valid, but foreign passports were not. Before that, all passports were acceptable. I do not know if that was a law change or just company policy. > > So yes, I have sold alcohol to someone who showed me an ID card issued by the government of Honduras, but I could not accept that person’s Passport as ID. Thanks for the insight - it helps with the context. I have to ask, though - In what universe is a (foreign) passport _not_ an identification document issued by the government of that country? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-arent-passports-acceptable-id-when-buying-alcohol/381020.md?page=6)