🪪 Free, one-on-one help getting the ID you need
A pro bono program of Lawyers for Good Government — currently serving New York, at no cost to participants.
🔄 How It Works
Sign up: If you are a NYC resident and would like to request a free consultation on how to obtain your identity documents, fill out our Intake Form for Services in New York below.
Get matched: We match you with a trained CIVIC volunteer, who will reach out by phone to schedule your free consultation.
Meet with your trained CIVIC volunteer: You'll meet over a video call (or phone, if needed) so your volunteer can walk through the relevant forms with you, step by step.
Apply on your own: You complete and submit your own application and pay any government fees required — your trained CIVIC volunteer guides you, but doesn't file anything on your behalf.
✅ Who Can Get Help
Services are available if you are:
- ✔️An adult who lives in New York: We work only with adult participants, or their assigned caseworker.
- 🇺🇸A U.S. citizen: These documents are often used for voting, so this program serves people who identify as U.S. citizens.
- 🪪Seeking identification documents: We guide participants to obtain identification documents. We can help you get a state ID, driver’s license, birth certificate, and other important Identification documents.
🗂️ What We Help With
Legal volunteers explain the general process for getting an ID, help participants understand New York's requirements and steps, review the information participants provide, and talk through next steps. Legal volunteers also help participants gather the right documents and answer questions.
They do not file applications, give legal advice, or act as the participant's lawyer. Participants pay any government fees. No outcome is guaranteed.
We're starting in New York, with plans to expand this program to additional states.
📝 Connecting Individuals to Vital ID Cards (CIVIC) — Intake Form for Services in New York
🤝 Know someone who could refer people to us?
If you run a library, shelter, legislative office, or community organization in New York state, you likely already talk to people who could use this service. You don't take on any casework — just point them to the intake form above, and a trained CIVIC volunteer takes it from there, for free.
🧭 What is CIVIC
The Connecting Individuals to Vital ID Cards (CIVIC) is a free program of Lawyers for Good Government (L4GG) that helps U.S. citizens who live in New York and are at least 18 years old get the identification they need. A legal volunteer meets one-on-one online with participants to show them how to apply and which documents they need.
📊 Why This is Important
Americans have no government-issued photo ID of any kind.
Adult U.S. citizens lack a driver's license or state ID with their current name or address.
🔑 Everyday life runs through this one document. You need an ID to apply for school, get a job, find housing, access government services and benefits, get health care, open a bank account, or cash a check.