Licensing, insurance and the law
Your California driver's license is not REAL ID compliant. Which of these can you still use it for?
- Driving on public roads in California. Correct answer
- Boarding a plane for a flight within the United States.
- Getting onto a military base.
Why
A REAL ID marking is about identification for flights and federal sites, not about permission to drive. Beginning May 2025, the handbook lists three uses that call for a REAL ID compliant license or ID card: boarding a domestic flight, entering a military base and entering most federal facilities. Both wrong answers come straight from that list, so a card without the marking will not get you through either one. Driving depends on holding the correct license for your type of vehicle, and California issues driver's licenses to all residents whatever their immigration status. That is why a license without the REAL ID marking still lets you drive on public roads. The moment the REAL ID question matters is when you plan to fly within the country or need to enter a base or a federal building.
Where this comes from
California Driver's Handbook, June 2025 edition. The correct answer is Driving on public roads in California.
The rule behind this one
License, points and insurance in California goes through the whole topic, with the page of the California Driver's Handbook behind every rule.
More on licensing, insurance and the law
- You have a California ID card but no driver's license or instruction permit. What does the ID card let you do?
- You are 16 and applying for an instruction permit. Your parents share joint custody of you. Who has to sign your application?
- You are under 18 and DMV has just issued your instruction permit. When can you start using it to practice driving?
- Your license was lost, so you got a replacement. A week after the new card arrives, you find the old one. What should you do with it?