AUGUSTA — Maine residents have until August to renew their expired driver’s licenses and state identification cards, but the secretary of state has encouraged them to do it sooner.

Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap has said Maine residents have a grace period to renew their licenses until Aug. 9 because of the coronavirus pandemic. However, he said the state wants to avoid “a situation where everyone waits until the deadline and we can’t get all the renewals processed before the end of the waiver period.”

The state also offers online license renewal for most licenses and identification card holders.

The grace period began on March 15.