SAM DEAN The Roanoke Times

Chris Brown gets his photo taken at the Department of Motor Vehicles in Roanoke, where a new driver's license design will be rolled out in mid- to late May.

Virginia is ditching the blue banner and state seal that have adorned driver's licenses for the past 10 years.

In their place, the Department of Motor Vehicles is adopting a card with a currencylike design and features that should make it among the most secure in the nation.

The new cards will be available in some areas as soon as this month and are "virtually tamper-proof," department spokeswoman Melanie Stokes said.

Pictures and text are laser-engraved onto polycarbonate, making them impossible to remove and difficult to alter.

Other security features on the cards include:

Microlettering in borders and designs.

Raised lettering.

Two grayscale photos, one of which is on a clear window.

An image of the state seal that is visible only under ultraviolet light.

Multicolored guilloche patterns, the fine line designs seen on some currency.

Other security measures will not be disclosed to the public, Stokes said.

With the new design comes a change in the way Virginians will get their driver's licenses and identification cards.

Now, most people get their cards at local DMV offices. But starting this month, Virginians will apply for the card at their local DMV office, which will issue a temporary license. Permanent cards will be produced at a high-security facility in Danville and mailed to the cardholder within three days.

Officials believe that issuing the cards from a central location will decrease the chances of fraud, Stokes said.

That change also puts Virginia closer to fulfilling several requirements of the federal REAL ID Act. The act, an initiative to improve the security of state-issued driver's licenses and identification cards, is a recommendation made by the 9/11 Commission. It contains several mandates, which include the centralized issuance.

From March through July, DMV offices throughout the state will close for up to two days so staff can be trained in the new process.

Offices in the Roanoke and New River valleys won't offer the new cards until mid- to late May.

Cards with the old design will remain valid until their expiration date. The cost to obtain or renew a license will stay the same, but the state is paying more for the production of the cards.

The company that supplies equipment for the current licenses charges $2 million per year -- a price that was agreed upon 10 years ago.

That contract is running out, and bids for the new cards came in much higher. The department chose a $6.5 million per year contract with Canadian Bank Note, based in Ottawa.

Retailers, law enforcement and others also are getting ready for the switch.

Last fall, the DMV began meeting with organizations to get the word out about the new cards.

Officials at the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control hope the new cards will help crack down on fake IDs used to buy alcohol, department spokesman Philip Bogenberger said.

"They are definitely unique and state of the art," he said.