# Why is an expired drivers license not an acceptible form of ID? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 30, 2005, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541 "2005-10-30T02:15:27Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2005, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/21 "2005-10-30T19:40:58Z")
> [@chaoticbear](#): > > you can change a whole lot in 4 years. Some here in Wisconsin are good for 8 years. My sisters’ was. In that 8 years she aged 8 years, lost 105 pounds, and cut her hair. In no way does she even slightly resemble the picture on her 1997 license. Not even a little. In fact, she had a helluva time renewing it because the people at the DMV didn’t think it was her! ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2005, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/22 "2005-10-30T20:34:40Z")
> [@DSYoungEsq](#): > > I gather you haven’t had to change employment in the last, oh, 20 years. Or do your new employers ignore the I-9 form? Or do you have a passport? No passport. I-9? Whazzat? No employer has ever asked me for my SS _card_ in recent memory. My SS _number,_ of course. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2005, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/23 "2005-10-30T21:21:44Z")
OK, I have decided to use my infinite wisdom and intelligence to resolve this issue. You can not use an expired Drivers’ Licence as identification because it is expired. :wally Next mystery? ---
**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:** [October 30, 2005, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/24 "2005-10-30T21:57:59Z")
The answer is even simpler: because they say so. They don’t need any logical reason to back it up; if the rules say it isn’t accepted, that’s the breaks. ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2005, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/25 "2005-10-30T22:16:06Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > I-9? Whazzat? The I-9 is the form that all employers are required to complete on each employee within 3 days of employment. For the I-9, you must provide proof of identity and proof of employment eligibility. A US passport verifies both. However, most people provide this verification by showing a driver’s license and their social security card. Do you perhaps work as an independent contractor rather than as an employee? If not, I find it hard to believe employers aren’t asking you to complete this. Penalties are pretty stiff. This site indicates that an expired driver’s license can be used to establish identity for I-9 purposes. [http://www.greencardlawyers.com/answers\_for/I-9FAQs.html#Can%20an%20employer%20accept%20an%20expired%20drivers%20license%20to%20establish%20a%20new%20hires%20identity%20for%20I-9%20purposes](http://www.greencardlawyers.com/answers_for/I-9FAQs.html#Can%20an%20employer%20accept%20an%20expired%20drivers%20license%20to%20establish%20a%20new%20hires%20identity%20for%20I-9%20purposes) My take on the OP is that \*companies \* can set their own policies as to what they will find acceptable documentation for what purposes. If it even slightly reduces their chance of bad checks, they may well require an unexpired driver’s license. If anyone has an actual instance of \*government \* not accepting an expired driver’s license for \*\*identity \*\* purposes, I’d be interested to hear it. ---
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2005, 10:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/26 "2005-10-30T22:41:14Z")
> [@Otto](#): > > Until such time as the state passes a law stating that expired IDs are invalid… For a while (I don’t know if they still do because I no longer live there), the province of Ontario would place a sticker on your old license when you renewed it. The sticker said, “Valid for ID purposes only,” or something like that. I don’t know how well expired Ontario licences carrying the sticker were accepted in other jurisdictions, but within Ontario, it was perfectly fine to use an expired driver’s licence as a form of ID. ---
**Author:** ![jacksprat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/77aa72/32.png) [@jacksprat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jacksprat)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2005, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/27 "2005-10-30T23:02:00Z")
> [@Harriet the Spry](#): > > If anyone has an actual instance of \*government \* not accepting an expired driver’s license for \*\*identity \*\* purposes, I’d be interested to hear it. Well, I’m only 50/50 certain that the security screeners I’ll speak of in the next two sentences at US airports are TSA employees. But on a recent trip cross-country, I was not allowed to present my expired DL at any airport as valid identification. Additional screening was required in every case, which made it somewhat difficult to grab a smoke at the hub, but, that’s the way it went down. ---
**Author:** ![Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e56c9b/32.png) [@Harriet\_the\_Spry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harriet_the_Spry)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2005, 1:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/28 "2005-10-31T01:34:35Z")
**jacksprat** , thanks for the info. There are numerous references to the TSA requiring \*valid \* government issued ID. I only found it once in actual TSA documentation, and it almost has the ring of something a bureaucrat stuck in there at the last minute because they liked the way it sounded. But OTOH if there is a situation where they are happy to make people jump through hoops for minimal benefit it seems to be TSA screening. So maybe they really do mean you need a non-expired driver’s license. This USA today article paints an interesting picture. [http://www.usatoday.com/travel/news/2005-04-28-travel-ids\_x.htm](http://www.usatoday.com/travel/news/2005-04-28-travel-ids_x.htm) It sounds like the airlines set the standard for their company, and the TSA rule is that if you don’t have the specified documents (e.g. valid license) what TSA requires is a secondary screening. So if you push the issue, bottom line it doesn’t seem to be required by the government that the ID be unexpired. ---
**Author:** ![doreen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/858c86/32.png) [@doreen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doreen)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2005, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/29 "2005-10-31T01:38:57Z")
> [@Harriet the Spry](#): > > My take on the OP is that \*companies \* can set their own policies as to what they will find acceptable documentation for what purposes. If it even slightly reduces their chance of bad checks, they may well require an unexpired driver’s license. If anyone has an actual instance of \*government \* not accepting an expired driver’s license for \*\*identity \*\* purposes, I’d be interested to hear it. My job involves conducting hearings at a city jail complex. Witnesses need photo ID to be admitted - and if the ID has an expiration date (as do driver’s licenses and my employee ID), it is not accepted if it has expired. ---
**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:** [October 31, 2005, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/30 "2005-10-31T04:22:38Z")
It’s not per se illegal to forge an expired ID. ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2005, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/31 "2005-10-31T15:44:52Z")
{tangent (not hijack} US (adult) Passports are good for 10 years. What happens if during that time you have an extreme change in appearance? {/tangent (Oh, allright, hijack)} ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2005, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/32 "2005-10-31T17:33:27Z")
> [@ouryL](#): > > It’s not per se illegal to forge an expired ID. It will be if you attempt to use it in a manner in which a legal (expired) ID may have been acceptable. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2005, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/33 "2005-10-31T18:01:34Z")
> [@Shalmanese](#): > > Because there needs to be some objective, non-controversial way to screen for obviously bad IDs. If I present a 30 year out of date license of someone who might or might not be me to a bouncer, obviously I’m not going to get in. But then where do you draw the line? What if it’s only 2 years out of date and it sorta looks like me? 1 year 3 days? 20 days? 1 hour? > > If a bouncer makes it common practise to let someone who’s license is X months overdue in, then people who are X+1 months overdue will complain. If you let them exercise common sense, then people will claim discrimination and cause ill will. Much better to just set a firm cutoff of the exact day the license is due so there can be no grounds for appeal. I came in here just to say this. No matter what, you are going to set SOME kind of expiration date - methinks we are not going to be accepting licenses 5 years over. So why not just stick with the big date right there on the card? If you say 3 months or 3 days, it’s going to start varying from place to place and then we’ll be in trouble. ---
**Author:** ![brad\_d](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@brad\_d](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brad_d)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2005, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/34 "2005-10-31T19:50:44Z")
I got a California driver’s license for the first time (having moved here from another state) in the summer of 1994 - I was 23. I’ve renewed it twice (I think) since then. My current one was issued in 2003 and expires on my birthday in 2008. The photo on my current license is the same one taken in 1994 - which will be 14 years old by the time the license expires. :dubious: I was very surprised when I didn’t need to get a photo taken in '03. But who am I do doubt the wisdom and procedures of the DMV? ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2005, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/35 "2005-10-31T20:53:00Z")
> [@brad\_d](#): > > But who am I do doubt the wisdom and procedures of the DMV? You clearly have, at least, the brain function to permit the proper hand-eye co-ordination to type, therefore you qualify. ---
**Author:** ![stk33](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@stk33](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stk33)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/36 "2011-05-31T22:23:29Z")
Every establishment decides for themselves what identification they accept. They can accept a word, or they can request any photo id, or they can request effective id, or they can request even several pieces of evidence (such as your local school or the same DMV). It’s totally up to them, there’s no “official” rule. Most clerks with low IQ or with bureaucratic mind will reject expired license as identification, because the nuance is too fine for the former, or because it’s just an opportunity to show the power for the latter. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/37 "2011-05-31T22:29:38Z")
**stk33** , I have a question for you: Why don’t _zombies_ accept my expired driver’s license as ID? ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/38 "2011-05-31T22:36:07Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > **stk33** , I have a question for you: Why don’t _zombies_ accept my expired driver’s license as ID? The word “expired” upsets them. ---
**Author:** ![stk33](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@stk33](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stk33)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/39 "2011-05-31T22:47:53Z")
> [@Raguleader](#): > > **stk33** , I have a question for you: Why don’t _zombies_ accept my expired driver’s license as ID? Maybe you didn’t try hard enough. On the other hand, you are free to give them none of your business if you don’t like their policies. ---
**Author:** ![Raguleader](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/258eb7/32.png) [@Raguleader](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raguleader)\ **Post date:** [May 31, 2011, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541/40 "2011-05-31T22:50:51Z")
> [@stk33](#): > > Maybe you didn’t try hard enough. On the other hand, you are free to give them none of your business if you don’t like their policies. Try telling THEM that. You never met such a brain dead bunch! They just don’t take “NO NOT MY BRAINS!” for an answer! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-an-expired-drivers-license-not-an-acceptible-form-of-id/328541.md?page=3)