Before I begin, you might be asking What is an IDNYC card?
An IDNYC card is “a government-issued identification card that is available to all City residents age 14 and older. Immigration status does not matter.” This is a new program, only recently launched. The IDNYC card is designed to be “an accessible and secure document that enables residents to access [New York] City services and grant admission to City buildings, such as schools. In addition, the card can be presented as proof of identification for interacting with the police and is an accepted form of identification for opening a banking account at select financial institutions.”
Do you think that IDNYC cards will be accepted by TSA as a valid form of ID?
As a special incentive for people to register for the IDNYC card, various special benefits, including free one year memberships to various museums are being offered to new applicants. Of course that got my attention!
When this initiative was first announced a few months ago, there were only a few locations per borough, and there was a wait of many months to get an appointment. My appointment, which I made months ago, was for April 7th at a location on West 135th Street in Northern Manhattan, not a particularly convenient location for me. The day before my appointment, I looked on-line, and saw that many other locations had been established and that appointments were now wide open. So, I changed my appointment to the much more convenient IDNYC location at the Mid-Manhattan Library on Fifth Avenue and East 40th Street (across the street from the main NYC Public Library, and one street from the Andaz Fifth Avenue).
There were a number of lines to wait on. First, you lined up to be seen by someone at a computer who verified you had an appointment and a form of ID.
Then, you waited for another employee, who again looked at your ID, and handed you a clipboard with an application. You then were seated and filled out the application.
After filling out the application, an employee reviewed it and your ID. You were again lined up, and were brought into another room, where you again were seated to wait for an available representative. You then were seated one-on-one with the representative who reviewed and processed the application – taking your signature and photo along the way.
At the end, I was given a piece of paper and told to expect the ID in the mail in 4 weeks. Believe it or not, it was not as painful as it sounds. In fact, the lines went quickly and the process was orderly. Now, I’ll patiently wait for my new form of ID to arrive.
How did all this feel? I have to admit, it all felt somewhat Big-Brother Is Watching and 1984 to me. But, as countless people have told me, they already have all of your information already, so why should you feel uncomfortable with this?
Alrighty then …
A New York frequent flyer who elegantly combines her passions for worldwide travel, running a gazillion marathons all over the globe and staying fit ... without sacrificing her fancy for good wine and food.
The card will be worthless for travel and useless outside of NYC. It is not considered a valid State or Government (federal) form of ID. It is a City issued ID and may not even work throughout NYC.
Aaron, thinking about what you wrote – it makes a lot of sense.
What a great find! Who cares where it will or will not be accepted. Free memberships in top museums are alone worth the time! Thanks a bunch!
Sure, you’ll get free museum membership, but they may send you back to Russia.
Has anyone try to travel use this card?
In response to the mention in the Lazy Traveler’s Handbook:
I want to clarify that I went through the process of applying for the ID card last week. As I mentioned, a lot of new centers have opened, and although there were a lot of lines to wait on, it went quickly. In fact I was able to get through my 6pm appointment with enough time to catch a happy hour drink at a nearby bar, who’s happy hour ended at 7pm.