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I'm a US citizen and I hold a Washington state Enhanced Driver's License. I'm living in Vancouver for a bit.

Can I fly domestically without my passport? Micheal Seifert's answer indicates my license will work for the airline, but what about security?

The web says government-issued ID is acceptable for domestic travel, but that obviously presumes Canadian government.

I get a normal US driver's license probably wouldn't work, but surely if it's good enough for CBS, it's good enough to fly?

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The letter of the law is the Secure Air Travel Act. Here's what it says:

  1. (1) An air carrier must accept only the following identification to verify the identity of a passenger for a domestic flight:

    (a) one piece of valid photo identification that is issued by a government authority and that shows the passenger’s name, date of birth and gender;

    (b) two pieces of valid identification that are issued by a government authority, at least one of which shows the passenger’s name, date of birth and gender; or

    (c) a restricted area identity card,

So it sounds like the law allows for a US driver's license (not even an enhanced one) to be used as ID for a domestic flight within Canada.

That said, the law really only sets out what the airlines can use as acceptable ID, and doesn't appear to require them to accept all such forms of ID. It's entirely possible that Air Canada/WestJet/Porter/Orca Airways sets more stringent regulations about what ID they will accept. Your best bet is probably just to call the airline's customer service line and ask them.

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  • Why do you say "can" when the your answer says "An air carrier must accept only the following..."?
    – Azor Ahai -him-
    Commented Oct 23, 2015 at 17:22
  • I read that as "air carriers are only allowed to accept the following types of ID" rather than they "air carriers are required to accept the following types of ID". In other words, it seems to me that the important word is "only" rather than "must". I agree that the wording is a little hard to parse, though.
    – Michael Seifert
    Commented Oct 23, 2015 at 17:43
  • In Canada, is the air carrier the only one who needs to check the ID? In the US, IDs are also checked by the TSA agents, who could have their own set of rules.
    – Nate Eldredge
    Commented Oct 23, 2015 at 18:46
  • @Nate I flew between Vancouver and Ottawa last month and on both flights everyone had their passport out, even the Canadians. There was also security, which I suppose is another consideration.
    – Azor Ahai -him-
    Commented Oct 23, 2015 at 19:57
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Yes.

I flew from Vancouver to Whitehorse (and back) on Air Canada and experienced no problems with my Washington EDL.

Security didn't even look at it and the gate attendant didn't blink.

As Micheal Seifert points out, airlines possibly have the option to be more stringent with their ID requirements.

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