After years of false alarms that came and went, May 7, the true deadline for when Real IDs will become the only license accepted as identification to board a commercial airline in the U.S., even for domestic flights, and to get into many federal facilities, is arriving.

The state’s Division of Motor Vehicle offices are, like their counterparts in many states, bracing for a rush of people looking to get the license. These stragglers will need to gather a number of documents first.

Getting a Real ID requires something to prove identity, date of birth and U.S. citizenship, usually a birth certificate or a valid U.S. passport; proof of a nine-digit Social Security Number, such as a Social Security card or a W-2 tax form; and two items proving your residence in the state, such as a current drivers license, pay stub, current lease or mortgage, or a valid state vehicle registration form.

To find a local DMV office and other information, see www.dmv.nh.gov/.

Married women who took their husband’s last name are one group of people that could face complications because the name on their birth certificate won’t match the name on their current documents, sometimes leading DMV clerks to reject their application.

The Monitor wrote several stories about this problem in 2020 when an earlier Real ID deadline was approaching, a deadline that was later extended.

Women who find themselves in this situation may need to go to Probate Court to get a document legalizing the married name even though other documents, such as their driver’s licenses, show that name.

Note that, since 2015, New Hampshire marriage certificates don’t face this problem and can indicate a new last name. Legislators changed the certificate that year because same-sex marriage had been legalized, making it necessary to clarify what had been an unspoken assumption about what happens with a couple’s last names following their union.

These Real ID requirements are similar to new requirements for voting in New Hampshire. Republican lawmakers are trying to push similar requirements nationwide, a move that critics say is a backhanded way to make it harder for women to vote.

David Brooks can be reached at dbrooks@cmonitor.com.