ID scanning laws
ID scanning laws by state
Plain-English guides to ID scanning rules across the United States. See when IDs can or must be scanned, what information can be kept and which rules matter for your venue, with links to the primary sources behind every point.
Choose your state to learn more.
Find your state
Guide status
- Guide available. The guide is written and published.
- Coming soon. We have not published that guide yet.
Browse the map
Choose a state to open its guide. States with a published guide take you straight to it, and the rest show what is here today. Press Tab to reach the map, then use the arrow keys to move between states and Enter to choose one.
Small states and DC
Published state guides
Every published guide answers the same core questions, which makes it easier to compare the rules between states.
- Whether ID scanning is legal or required
- When IDs have to be checked
- Which IDs provide legal protection
- What scan data may be kept
- Other privacy and data-security rules
- Whether scanning provides a defense if a minor is served
- Whether a customer can refuse a scan
- Alabama ID scanning lawsAlabama allows ID scanning, and specialty vape shops must scan every customer at the door.Read the Alabama guide
- Alaska ID scanning lawsAlaska allows ID scanning with the customer's consent, and staff cannot be charged under its alcohol law when a valid ID showing the customer is 21 or older was presented.Read the Alaska guide
- Arizona ID scanning lawsArizona allows ID scanning, and protects the venue that completes the required age check and keeps a record of it.Read the Arizona guide
- Arkansas ID scanning lawsArkansas allows venues to use ID scanning and leaves most age-checking workflows to the venue, with specific ID requirements for kegs, deliveries and medical marijuana.Read the Arkansas guide
- California ID scanning lawsCalifornia allows ID scanning for specific purposes, including age verification, but places limits on how scan data can be used and kept.Read the California guide
- Colorado ID scanning lawsColorado allows venues to use ID scanning for age verification, with broad flexibility over scan records and explicit recognition of electronic verification in cannabis sales.Read the Colorado guide
- Connecticut ID scanning lawsConnecticut expressly allows ID scanning for alcohol sales and provides a scan-based defense when venues reasonably rely on a valid result.Read the Connecticut guide
- Delaware ID scanning lawsDelaware does not restrict ID scanning, and its alcohol commissioner may not fine a venue or suspend its license over an underage sale if staff first checked a photo ID that reasonably showed the customer was 21 or older.Read the Delaware guide
- District of Columbia ID scanning lawsRead the District of Columbia guide
- Florida ID scanning lawsFlorida allows ID scanning for age verification, but storing scan data depends on consent, and customers can choose manual entry instead.Read the Florida guide
- Georgia ID scanning lawsGeorgia allows ID scanning once the customer consents. Past that, the state sets no field list and no retention period.Read the Georgia guide
- Hawaii ID scanning lawsHawaii allows ID scanning when a customer's age is in doubt, but information from the scan cannot be kept or shared.Read the Hawaii guide
- Idaho ID scanning lawsIdaho does not restrict ID scanning, and its bars and lounges may not let customers under 21 inside.Read the Idaho guide
- Illinois ID scanning lawsIllinois places specific limits on ID-reading technology and on how information collected from an ID can be used afterwards.Read the Illinois guide
- Indiana ID scanning lawsIndiana allows venues to use ID scanning and requires qualifying photo ID from customers who appear under 40 for carryout alcohol and tobacco sales.Read the Indiana guide
- Iowa ID scanning lawsIowa allows ID scanning. For alcohol, the law asks for reasonable care in checking a customer's age rather than a particular method or device.Read the Iowa guide
- Kansas ID scanning lawsKansas does not restrict ID scanning, and its alcohol defense rests on the ID the customer showed and whether staff had good reason to believe they were 21 or older.Read the Kansas guide
- Kentucky ID scanning lawsKentucky does not restrict ID scanning, and its alcohol law gives a defense when a minor who strongly appeared to be 21 or older bought alcohol with a fake ID.Read the Kentucky guide
- Louisiana ID scanning lawsLouisiana does not restrict ID scanning, and door and counter checks carry no scan-specific rules on what is recorded or kept.Read the Louisiana guide
- Maine ID scanning lawsMaine does not restrict ID scanning, and bars, restaurants and stores must check a photo ID before selling or serving alcohol to anyone under 27.Read the Maine guide
- Maryland ID scanning lawsMaryland does not restrict ID scanning, and its privacy law lets covered businesses collect only what is reasonably necessary for what the customer asked for.Read the Maryland guide
- Massachusetts ID scanning lawsMassachusetts has no specific law governing ID scanning, but several rules still matter for venues.Read the Massachusetts guide
- Michigan ID scanning lawsMichigan does not restrict ID scanning, and a digital record can help venues document that an age check took place.Read the Michigan guide
- Minnesota ID scanning lawsIn Minnesota, scanning is allowed and what matters most is the ID itself: the alcohol defense works only with an ID from the state's list.Read the Minnesota guide
- Mississippi ID scanning lawsMississippi does not restrict ID scanning, and every alcohol delivery requires a scan of the recipient's ID.Read the Mississippi guide
- Missouri ID scanning lawsMissouri allows venues to use ID scanning and gives ordinary bars and restaurants broad flexibility over scan records.Read the Missouri guide
- Montana ID scanning lawsMontana does not restrict ID scanning, and data from a scan made to check a buyer's age can be kept for up to 180 days.Read the Montana guide
- Nevada ID scanning lawsNevada does not restrict ID scanning, and its alcohol law gives a defense when staff ask for and are shown genuine government-issued ID before serving.Read the Nevada guide
- New Hampshire ID scanning lawsNew Hampshire allows limited ID scanning for alcohol and tobacco purchases, but electronic storage of ID information is prohibited.Read the New Hampshire guide
- New Jersey ID scanning lawsNew Jersey expressly allows ID scanning to verify age. What it regulates is what happens to the data afterwards, not whether you check.Read the New Jersey guide
- New Mexico ID scanning lawsNew Mexico does not restrict ID scanning, and its alcohol defense applies in criminal, civil and license cases.Read the New Mexico guide
- New York ID scanning lawsNew York allows ID scanning for alcohol sales and admission to 21+ venues, but limits what information can be recorded and how it may be used.Read the New York guide
- North Carolina ID scanning lawsNorth Carolina allows ID scanning, and a scan record can help back up the alcohol defense.Read the North Carolina guide
- North Dakota ID scanning lawsNorth Dakota does not restrict ID scanning, and staff acting in good faith have a defense when a customer who looked 21 or older lied about their age and showed an ID to back it up.Read the North Dakota guide
- Ohio ID scanning lawsOhio expressly allows ID scanning for alcohol sales and 21+ admission, and provides a legal defense when venues use a valid scan with reasonable diligence.Read the Ohio guide
- Oklahoma ID scanning lawsIn Oklahoma, checking IDs for alcohol is the venue's choice, not a state requirement, and scanning is allowed.Read the Oklahoma guide
- Oregon ID scanning lawsOregon expressly allows ID scanning to check any customer's age for an age-restricted sale or service. Personal information from that scan may not be stored, sold or shared.Read the Oregon guide
- Pennsylvania ID scanning lawsPennsylvania requires ID scans for certain alcohol permits and gives licensees legal protection when they rely on a valid scan in good faith.Read the Pennsylvania guide
- Rhode Island ID scanning lawsRhode Island allows a driver's license to be scanned to check age, but information from the scan cannot be stored.Read the Rhode Island guide
- South Dakota ID scanning lawsSouth Dakota does not restrict ID scanning, and staff have a defense when they examined an ID that a reasonable person would have believed was valid.Read the South Dakota guide
- Tennessee ID scanning lawsTennessee does not restrict scanning a driver's license or ID card, and what it requires you to check depends on what you sell and where.Read the Tennessee guide
- Texas ID scanning lawsTexas requires electronic ID checks for certain off-premises alcohol sales, but does not allow information from those scans to be retained.Read the Texas guide
- Utah ID scanning lawsUtah requires electronic age verification for certain alcohol customers and requires the resulting record to be kept for seven calendar days.Read the Utah guide
- Vermont ID scanning lawsVermont does not restrict ID scanning, and a sale to a customer who presents one of the state's listed IDs is evidence that the licensee complied with the law against selling alcohol to minors.Read the Vermont guide
- Virginia ID scanning lawsVirginia expressly allows ID scanning for specific purposes, including authenticity checks, and from October 2026 it expressly recognizes scanners as one way to verify tobacco customers.Read the Virginia guide
- Washington ID scanning lawsWashington gives bars and restaurants flexibility to use ID scanning, with no general scan-specific field or retention limits.Read the Washington guide
- Wisconsin ID scanning lawsWisconsin allows ID scanning, and its alcohol law lets venues keep a record of ID checks. Venues can ask for ID before serving or letting someone in.Read the Wisconsin guide
- Wyoming ID scanning lawsWyoming does not restrict ID scanning, and its alcohol law gives a defense when staff asked for, were shown and reasonably relied on one of the IDs it names.Read the Wyoming guide
Looking for rules that apply whatever the state? The guides cover questions that are the same at every door, and privacy controls shows what you can choose to collect and keep.
Where AgeShield is available
AgeShield is currently available in 46 states and Washington, DC.
We do not currently offer AgeShield in Nebraska, New Hampshire, South Carolina or West Virginia.
Product availability is separate from the legal status of ID scanning in a state.
Running venues in more than one state? Each location can use its own privacy and retention settings, so your setup can reflect the rules and policies that apply there. See the privacy controls.
Try AgeShield at your own door
Scan IDs, check for signs of fraud and manage your venue's privacy and retention settings from one app. Every plan includes three devices, and the 14-day trial includes Pro features.
Start your 14-day free trialAbout these guides
This page is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal advice. We research each rule and link its source, so you can check it against your own venue. Questions are welcome at support@ageshield.bar.
A guide status says whether AgeShield has published a page for that state. It says nothing about what the law allows there. Questions are welcome at support@ageshield.bar.
Last reviewed .