Can I accept an expired license as proof of identity?

Can I accept an expired license to identify a signer in the state of New Hampshire? — E.C., New Hampshire

New Hampshire law requires a Notary to identify the person whose signature they are notarizing, however, the laws do not provide details regarding what is considered acceptable identification.

It is a best practice to accept current identification documents that are issued by a state or federal government and contains a photograph and signature.

Hotline answers are based on the laws in the state where the question originated and may not reflect the laws of other states. If in doubt, always refer to your own state statutes. – The Editors

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The 3 Ways Notaries Can Properly Identify Signers

9 Comments

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Vicky Woodfin

16 Feb 2021

Can I accept an expired license to identify a signer in the state of Texas? Pre and Post Covid times? Thank you.

National Notary Association

25 Feb 2021

Hello. Texas Department of Public Safety announced that it is extending the expiration date of Texas identification cards, driver’s licenses, commercial driver’s licenses, commercial license permits or election identification certificates for the duration of the Governor’s declaration of State Disaster plus 60 days after the Department issues public notice that the extension period for this disaster declaration has been lifted. This waiver is scheduled to expire on April 14, 2021. For more information, please see here: https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/driver-license-services-extensions-waivers-and-covid-19-information

Lee Druding

23 Feb 2021

Just to FYI in the State of Arizona because of Covid19 and the limited access/availability of ADOT; Governor Ducey has extended the expiration date of most drivers licenses for 1 year.

jsiegelhill@gmail.com

THis doesn't look like much of an answer....?

THis doesn't seem like an answer to the question at all. Can anyone add something? Who wrote that?

Hello. As stated above, the Texas Department of Public Safety issued a waiver extending the expiration date of Texas identification cards, driver’s licenses, commercial driver’s licenses, commercial license permits or election identification certificates during the COVID-19 emergency. However this waiver is scheduled to expire on April 14, 2021, after which expired ID cards and licenses will no longer be acceptable. For more information, please see here: https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/driver-license-services-extensions-waivers-and-covid-19-information

June

I am in VA and I see no udpates on the commonwealth of VA website. Where should I be looking for updates? I can't seem to figure that out.

Kabira Davis

01 Mar 2021

I refinanced my house 2 years ago and didn't realize my ID expired 3 months prior to signing. The NSA informed me of the expiration date and still accepted my expired ID

Judy Hayes

04 Mar 2021

The law states that a "valid D.L." can be used for identification. Common sense says that an expired D.L. still identifies the same person, we should be "able" to use it for ID purposes; however, the law says otherwise. Since an expired D.L. (truly expired, not allowing for extensions due to Covid) is NOT a valid document, then we should not rely upon the expired D.L. This is going to get sticky since states are extending the time within which a proposed expired D.L. can be used by the extension.

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