IDNYC Offices Reopen for Enrollments Post-Pandemic

The city is opening five new IDNYC offices this month allowing New Yorkers to apply for a municipal identification card in-person, regardless of immigration status, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday.

As the mayor said during his July 13 briefing, “1.4 million New Yorkers have an IDNYC and for so many of them it has unlocked incredible opportunities they would not have had without having an ID card. … Simple, powerful things like being able to get a bank account, or sign a lease, or visit your child’s school.”

The city opened four IDNYC centers last week, three in Manhattan and one on Staten Island, and opened another one in Manhattan this week, according to Jose Bayona, a spokesperson for the Mayor’s office. That brings the number of outposts to 13 with more to come soon, according to rep.

The IDs will become crucial for allowing New Yorkers, especially undocumented residents, apply for COVID-19 state assistance programs as the city recovers from the pandemic, according to officials.

“This is especially important in our recovery as we’re looking at state efforts, such as the New York State Emergency Rental Assistance Program and the New York Excluded Workers Fund,” said Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs Commissioner Raquel Batista.

The card makes it easier for holders — especially those without legal immigration status — to register for government services, gain access to public buildings like schools, and provide identification to NYPD.

There are also a host of benefits that come with an IDNYC card, such as free one-year memberships for a selection of city cultural institutions and discounts on Citi Bike annual passes and Parks Department recreation center memberships.

People can make appointments online at nyc.gov/IDNYC or by calling 311 and saying “IDNYC.”

Here are the five offices that opened in July: