D is in New York for residency and we are in CA. She still has the CA Driver’s license. Since she is in NYC, she does not have to drive. The question is whether she should spend the time to get a NY DL and go through the tests and the waiting line or just keep her CA DL as an ID. Its going to be 4 years before she will look for a more permanent job. What is the problem of her keeping that DL. She could change her VR.
I know by DMV regulation, you need to change DL in 30 or 60 days.
My son had his out-of-state DL confiscated when he was honest and told a police officer he had been in the state more than 60 days but hadn’t gotten an in-state license yet!
@artloversplus In case if you decide to get license or renewed either in CA or NY, make sure to get the Real ID.
In case if you plan to get id from CA DMV, it needs lot of planning, since the appointments takes literally months depending on your location.
General question:
If a student does not have a plan to have a car either during MD or later residency, and if at all once in blue moon have a need to drive (rental or friends car for short distance), is it not ok to have a valid license from any state? Similar to tourists, we drive within US any where using a particular state license.
I would just keep the CA DL. Unless she plans on staying in NY after residency. Although she does have to come back to renew her DL for the Real ID version before Oct 2020; as mentioned above, appointments can be months in advance. I’ve heard that some locations are really fast though with walkup, like maybe 1 or 2 hours.
She can get a non DL NY ID card from NYDMV and keep CA license
You can apply for an ID from passport office. It works for 10 years.
If you know this…why is it a question? Her residence is no longer California. Yes, it’s a PITA, but if she plans to drive at all in the next four years, she will need the right license.
No…she doesn’t own a car. But will she rent one, or use a zip car?
I have a few things to add:
If your D wants to rent a car she would need to show a valid driver’s license. Which state doesn’t especially matter, but she can’t rent a car without one. She would also need to show the rental agency a valid license even if someone else rents the car, but she would be driving it. Rental agencies require ALL drivers on the rental agreement show a valid license. Allowing someone not on the rental agreement to drive a rented car invalidates the rental agreement and any insurance policies attached to it.
Driving a friend’s car without a valid license is a moving violation. It is at the very least a misdemeanor in all 50 states. A driving without a license violation will incur a mandatory court appearance. Penalties can include fines, court-ordered community service or even jail time. It’s something she would have to disclose as part of her residency application. She may even have report it to the state medial licensing board when she is applying for medical license for the rest of her life. (Exact rules vary by state.)
Driving without a license is one those no-brainer, “just don’t do it” things.
If she is a NY resident (not as in a doctor, as in lives permanently in the state), she needs a NY license. If she is still a California resident (voting, taxes, library cards), she can retain her California license.
Doesn’t work for driving.
Really, if she’s going to live in NY for 4 years, just become a NY resident and change all the paperwork. Why take the risk that the license might be deemed invalid when she needs it to rent a car or for ID?
RE: Real ID driver’s license.
When I got mine. I had to show not only my birth certificate and marriage license (to prove my change in surname), but also had to bring two (2) pieces of official mail (bank statements, utility bills) sent to my home address which had to match exactly the address on my driver’s license.
Getting a Real ID DL in CA may difficult or impossible if she actually lives in NY, no matter how temporarily.
Residency is not considered temporary employment, Her contract is for one full year with option for renewal,
Temporary employment has be less than one full year with a definitive end date when her employment terminates.
It depends. Allowing an unlicensed driver or driver with an invalid license to use one’s car can be considered a violation of the friend’s contract with the insurance company so the insurance company isn’t responsible for the damages.
Also the insurance company can settle with the friend but then can sue your D in civil court to recover the costs of the damages your D caused to the car.
Plus driving without a valid license is a misdemeanor and your D will be ticketed should she be involved in accident.
Yes I know the rule, but I am not certain if she is permanently moved or not. She was in Chicago for UG for 4 years, but she was still considered as a CA resident.
Comes to think about it, 4 years full time working should be considered a permanent move.
Her legal residence for the next four years is NY, so you’ve answered your own question: yes, she needs to get a NY drivers license. And most states will confiscate the DL from the receiving state, in this case CA. If she’s started her residency, she is, no doubt, paying NY state income taxes, too. No reason to pay taxes in both states.
And remind her, every time she rents a car, to purchase insurance; many states require it, but in any case even a small fender bender can cost thousands of dollars. If for any reason she will be needing to drive on a semi-regular basis, she can get less expensive insurance through a traditional insurance company; they write policies for occasional drivers. In the event she’s driving a friend’s car, for example, and is in an accident, it’s common practice to sue both the driver and the owner of the vehicle.
And if caught driving w/o a license or w/ an expired license, she will definitely get a ticket which will require not only a court appearance, but also a fine and court costs, depending on how irritable the judge is that day.
As an undergrad student, her permanent residence was your home in CA. She is now employed in NY, will have a NY address, will have NY taxes deducted from her earnings. Her W4 form should have listed her NY address.
She is no longer a student. Your address isn’t hers unless she actually lives there…and she doesn’t
Yes, as I said, my son’s license was CONFISCATED. He wasn’t even allowed to drive to our house - we had to go pick him up.
Insurance is on the car, not the driver. The premium is based on the driver and the driver’s record (and other household members), but the insurance goes with the car. I do not think it is possible to buy insurance just on the driver. What would they base the premium on if there is no car?
If she doesn’t own a car, when she goes to rent the car there may be some insurance off the credit card, but may not be.
If she rents a car and doesn’t have her own insurance…she can buy what the rental car company offers.
I don’t believe you will be liable for California taxes just for having a license. NY is pretty strict in collecting taxes and they also have city tax. I was reading a long article about how they were going after people who claim to have moved but still spent some time in new york and how they were able to collect taxes where they kept their family pet or beloved doggie doll.