How to get a municipal identity card in New York?

Last week, New Yorkers got the opportunity to apply for a municipal identity card. The document is a lot like a state resident license (driver's license), but it has a number of significant differences.

The certificate does not allow you to drive a car, however, it can be used to open bank accounts, participate in municipal social programs, get passes to buildings and institutions, and purchase alcohol and tobacco products. The main difference of such a certificate is its accessibility for all categories of the population, including illegal immigrants.

As it turned out, there are plenty of people willing to acquire this document in New York. Only in the first two days more than 17 000 people had time to make an appointment to receive it.

On the first day, due to the large influx of people wishing to register at the site of the city administration, failures began. However, the next day, the technical problems were resolved.

During the first three days of the program, more than 5000 people managed to get an ID.

“We expected interest in the municipal ID program to grow, but we didn't think it would gain such traction,” said New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio. “We think it’s a great sign.”

The City's website says, "This document will be available to every New Yorker, including those most vulnerable: homeless people, ex-prisoners, undocumented immigrants, and those who have difficulty obtaining other forms of identification." In addition, teenagers aged 14 and over will be able to obtain a municipal ID.

For those who want to use the city's 311 line to make an appointment to get their ID, the wait time could be about 6 minutes, according to AM New York. Meanwhile, journalists from the Daily News write that their wait took almost an hour - 50 minutes.

In order to obtain an identity card, you need to score at least four (4) points using existing identification cards and documents confirming your place of residence (you must live in the megalopolis to qualify for a New York identity card).
A passport of a US citizen (including overdue, but not more than two years from the date of expiry), a driver's license, a passport of a citizen / subject of another state, a US visa and other documents will do. For different documents, different points are given (from 4 to 1) depending on their importance.

You also need to prove the fact of living in New York. Bank statements, rental agreements, insurance policies, bills for electricity and other utilities, etc. are suitable for this.

Full list of application rules is available. on the site of the city administration.