Get a REAL ID in Minnesota

Get a Minnesota REAL ID: pre-apply online, then apply in person at a driver's license office with original documents proving identity, legal presence and two proofs of Minnesota residence.

Online?No, one office visitDVS says you must apply in person; REAL ID applications are not accepted by mail. You can pre-apply and have your documents reviewed online first.
Office visitOne visit to a driver's license officeGo to an office that takes REAL ID applications. DVS's REAL ID pages don't say whether you need an appointment.
You leave withCard by mailDVS doesn't publish a delivery time for regular applications. You can check online whether your card has been printed and mailed. Fast track ($20, card by UPS usually within 10 business days) covers REAL ID duplicates and renewals, not first-time applications.

Your situation

Do you already have a Minnesota driver's license or ID card?

Minnesota REAL ID cards have a gold star in the top right corner. An enhanced license or ID also meets REAL ID standards. An out-of-state card doesn't count.

Are you a U.S. citizen?
Is your current legal name different from the name on your birth certificate, passport or immigration document?

For example, your birth certificate shows your name before marriage. If you already have a REAL ID or enhanced card, answer Yes only if your legal name changed after that card was issued.

Your plan

  1. Gather your documents

    • Accepted documents (bring 1)
      • Certified U.S. birth certificate
      • Unexpired U.S. passport or passport card
      • Consular Report of Birth Abroad issued by the U.S. Department of State
      • Certificate of Naturalization (N-550 or N-570)
      • Certificate of Citizenship (N-560 or N-561)
      • REAL ID-compliant driver's license, instruction permit or ID card (for example from another state; not marked temporary or limited term, and current or expired five years or less)
    • Accepted documents
      • Know your full Social Security number
    • Accepted documents (bring 2)
      • Valid, unexpired Minnesota driver's license, instruction permit or ID card
      • Current health, auto, homeowner's or renter's insurance declaration page or card
      • Federal or state income tax return (most recent tax filing year)
      • Minnesota property tax statement or proposed property tax statement (current or prior calendar year (proposed statement: current year); must list the same address in the property description and mailing address)
      • Minnesota vehicle certificate of title
      • Filed property deed or title, or mortgage documents, for your home
      • Unexpired Minnesota professional license
      • Selective Service card
      • Military orders in effect, with DD-2058
      • Minnesota game and fish license
      • Home utility bill or hook-up work order (no more than 12 months old)
      • U.S. bank, credit card or other financial statement with account numbers redacted (no more than 12 months old; only one counts)
      • Residential lease for your home, with address and signatures (no more than 12 months old)
      • Pay stub listing the employer's name and address (no more than 12 months old)
      • Minnesota unemployment benefit or Supplemental Security Income award statement (no more than 12 months old)
      • Certified U.S. high school transcript or student summary report, or certified Minnesota college transcript (no more than 180 days old)
      • Statement from a boarding care facility licensed under Minnesota Statutes 144.50 to 144.56 (no more than 12 months old)
      • Assisted living or nursing home statement, or affidavit of residence for a group home or religious order (no more than 90 days old)

  2. Pre-apply online

    Fill out the DVS pre-application. At the end you can upload your documents to have them reviewed before your visit; bring the originals to the office.

    Pre-apply online (DVS) ↗

  3. Check your documents

    Use the DVS REAL ID document requirements list. Only the documents on it are accepted.

    REAL ID document requirements (PDF) ↗

  4. Apply at a driver's license office

    Bring your original documents and the fee to an office that takes REAL ID applications. Besides its own offices and exam stations, DVS partners with driver's license agents and deputy registrars; use the office search to find one. DVS's REAL ID page doesn't say which fee applies when you switch from a standard card; check the fee table (for example, Class D license $46 or renewal $41, duplicate license $26, ID card under 65 $35.50 or renewal $30.50).

    Find an office ↗

  5. Consider an enhanced license or ID (optional)

    U.S. citizens 16 and older can choose an enhanced card instead. It meets REAL ID standards and lets you cross the border to and from Canada, Mexico, Bermuda or the Caribbean by land or sea. It costs $15 on top of the license or ID fee, has its own document list, includes an interview questionnaire and is mailed only to your Minnesota home address.

    Enhanced license and ID ↗

  6. Faster card with fast track (optional)

    If DVS handles your application as a REAL ID duplicate or renewal, you can ask for fast track at a participating office for $20: it's processed within three business days and the card comes by UPS, usually within 10 business days; an adult must sign for it. First-time applications and enhanced cards don't qualify, and DVS doesn't say whether switching from a standard card counts as first-time.

    Fast track license and ID ↗

  7. Watch your mail

    Check online whether your card has been printed and mailed. You'll need your driver's license or ID card number.

    Where's my license? ↗

Common reasons people get turned away

  • Copies: DVS can't accept photocopies, scanned or faxed images, pictures on a phone or laminated documents.
  • A name on your documents that doesn't match your application, without proof of each name change.
  • A P.O. box as your home address (unless you are in Safe at Home), or two residence proofs that aren't different documents.
  • Residence proofs that are too old: utility bills, bank statements, leases and pay stubs must be no more than 12 months old, and only one bank or financial statement counts.

Offices that issue REAL ID

Minnesota DVS says to bring your documents in person to a driver's license office that takes REAL ID applications. Agency source.

No office's own service list mentions REAL ID, and the agency doesn't name the office types that issue it.

91 other offices that handle licenses

Neither the office's service list nor the agency says these offices issue REAL ID. Call the office before you go.

Results show offices that issue REAL ID or may, nearest first, each labelled.

Read more

Sources · checked October 30, 2026

We wrote this plan ourselves from the official pages above on the date shown. Agencies change rules without notice: the official page always wins. DMVorganization.org is independent and not a government agency; we don't book appointments or take payments.