10K Real ID Appointments Went Fast As Deadline Looms

NEW JERSEY — It's been notoriously difficult for many to grab appointments for upgrading to the federal REAL ID through the New Jersey Motor Vehicles Commission. The agency doubled upgrade appointments May 16, adding 11,000 around the state, but most of those have been swiped up quickly.

The MVC has 1,180 openings as of 9 a.m. Monday. Seventy-three percent were in three South Jersey facilities, with 348 in Salem, 319 in North Cape May and 193 in Vineland.

The federal REAL ID takes effect May 3, 2023. On that date, you must have a REAL ID-compliant driver's license to fly within the United States, unless you use a valid U.S. passport.

It's uncertain whether New Jersey will ever hit numbers like May 16's, when about 11,000 appointments became available. State officials continue to work on meeting the demand for REAL ID, according to NJMVC spokesperson William Connolly.

• Related article: NJ MVC Will Be Adding More REAL ID Appointments, As Deadline Looms

"The MVC constantly reviews transaction patterns and adjusts the number of appointments available in each appointment category to meet shifts in customer demand," Connolly told Patch. "We recently noticed an increase in demand for REAL ID, so we reallocated appointments and resources to better accommodate our customers."

The agency roughly doubled the number of REAL ID-upgrade appointments available at licensing centers, adding hundreds more each day throughout the state, Connolly said. That resulted in roughly 11,000 additional appointments on the NJMVC's scheduler.

New Jerseyans should plan ahead before the deadline, as many MVC facilities don't have timeslots for REAL ID updgrades available until July. The MVC adds more appointments at 7 a.m. each weekday.

If your license or ID will expire within three months, you can also request a REAL ID upgrade when you renew your license or ID by appointment. License-renewal appointments are far easier to come by, with many agencies showing availability as soon as Friday.

Visit the MVC's REAL ID webpage for more information and to see whether you should get a REAL ID.