SPRINGFIELD — The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced it is now accepting Virginia-issued mobile driver licenses at checkpoints with digital ID readers nationwide.
Virginia’s Mobile ID (mID) is a voluntary, secure and digital version of a Virginia-issued driver’s license or ID card that individuals carry in an app on their smartphone.
Travelers who have downloaded the Virginia Mobile ID app to their smartphone can use that for identity verification during the screening process at the entry to checkpoints at reader-equipped Virginia airports and other airports nationwide in place of handing over a physical photo ID.
To get the Virginia mID, individuals must have a valid Virginia driver’s license or ID card. To enroll, download the Virginia mID app from the Apple Store or Google Play.
Travelers should always carry an acceptable form of ID such as a card or passport, TSA said.
Virginia residents can use their TSA-approved digital ID for identity verification at more than 230 airports where TSA has credential authentication technology units with more airports coming on board each week.
These units are equipped with digital ID readers and a camera that captures a real-time photo of the traveler to match the face of the person with the face on their ID. After the TSA officer clears the person into the checkpoint, the photos are deleted, TSA notes.
The units are also able to verify that an individual is ticketed for air travel that day, so the traveler does not need to show a boarding pass to the TSA officer, although a boarding pass is needed to present to the airline gate agent.
TSA continues to integrate new technologies into its identity verification process. Read more about these programs at tsa.gov/digital-id.