So, you need a Colorado driver's license or ID card. Before you take the "now serving" number, before you settle into the uncomfortable chair with an old magazine, you'd better make sure you have what you need.

And what you need has changed - again. Sort of.

New rules went into effect Wednesday spelling out the documents that the state will accept to prove your identity, your age, and the fact that you are in the United States legally.

In some cases, it's real simple - a Colorado driver's license that's been expired for less than a year will do the trick all by itself.

In other cases, it's more difficult. Several documents - like a Social Security card coupled with a military ID, for example - may be needed.

"Bottom line is you still have to prove age, identity and lawful presence," said Roxy Huber, executive director of the Colorado Department of Revenue, which operates the Division of Motor Vehicles.

Wednesday's rules were designed to take some of the confusion and frustration out of what had become, for some people, a confusing and frustrating experience, one that saw them turned away when an array of identification documents were deemed unsatisfactory to get a license.

It's not the first time the rules have changed. In recent years, state DMV officials, reacting to reports of identity theft, had attempted to tighten regulations.

Then came legislation aimed at preventing illegal immigrants from obtaining state benefits.

Then a judge's ruling that said the DMV rules were too vague, and, earlier this year, an interim set of regulations.

"The initial rules that were set were not clear - they didn't name (acceptable) documents," Huber said. "They were too nebulous in the way they were applied before."

The rules spell out specific documents that can be used to satisfy different parts of the requirements.

Now the trick will be to help people understand them.

"The biggest challenge for folks is that we haven't educated them well on what to bring in," Huber said. "Hopefully, we will be doing a better job of that than we have in the past."

ID rules for a Colorado driver's license

Getting a license or state ID card requires proof of your full legal name, identity, age and lawful presence in the U.S. Documents must be originals, certified amended originals or copies certified by the issuing agency. Without sufficient documentation, you must go through a separate process to find alternative documents.

To prove all four elements - identity, age, name and lawful presence

• Colorado driver's license or ID card, active or expired for less than a year

• U.S. passport, active or expired for less than 10 years. It must have your full legal name.

• Foreign passport with photo, U.S. visa or I-94 form. The passport or I-94 may require documentation to show a Colorado connection. Other rules apply.

• Valid military ID/Common Access card

• Certificate of naturalization or citizenship with a photo less than 20 years old. If the photo is older, an additional identity document is required.

• Valid I-551 form

• Valid EAD/temporary resident form

• I-94 form for a refugee or person with asylum, with a photo less than 20 years old.

• Out-of-state driver's license or ID, active or expired for less than a year, from one of 33 states (see below)

To verify age and lawful presence

• U.S. birth certificate

• Certificate of citizenship from the Department of Interior

• U.S. adoption order with birth information

• Asylum or refugee I-94 without a photo

To verify identity, name and age

• Colorado driver's license or identification card, expired less than 10 years

• Out-of-state driver's license or ID card expired less than 10 years from one of 33 states (see below)

• Bureau of Indian Affairs ID card with photo less than 20 years old

• Military ID/CAC card expired less than 10 years

• Veterans Affairs card with photo less than 20 years old

• Parent/guardian affidavit for those under 18 years old (parent or guardian must show ID and proof of parent or guardian status)

To prove age only

• U.S. school record less than a year old

To prove of lawful presence only

• Social Security card

The 33 states whose driver's licenses qualify as ID in Colorado

Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, West Virginia, Wyoming. Also, District of Columbia.

ID requirements

• For information on the identification requirements, go to www.revenue.state.co.us and click on the link under "Driver's License/ID Required Documents."

vaughank@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5019

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