Iowa Real ID Deadline Extended Due to Coronavirus

The United States Department of Homeland Security has announced that, due to Coronavirus, the nationwide deadline to obtain your "Real ID" has been extended by one year.

The requirement to get the ID with the "gold star" for airline travel and entry to federal facilities and nuclear power plants originally had a deadline of October 1, 2020 but will now be required by October 1, 2021. According to acting Homeland Security secretary Chad Wolf in a statement published in USA Today:

The federal, state and local response to the spread of the coronavirus here in the United States necessitates a delay in this deadline

The Iowa Department of Transportation's website includes information on the extension in the state as well. This is not only an important change as the COVID-19 response continues, but it will also allow individuals and states more time to further adapt their procedures and implementations to issue and obtain the Real ID.