K-1 Experience: Medical, Interview & POE

[CaptainAmerica 115]

On 10/12/2018 at 3:39 PM, StaceF said:

Great write up, thank you so much! Still awaiting NOA2 but as a May filer we are hoping we will be hearing next month 🤞🏼

 

Would you please mind helping with a question I have about your drivers license? I’m currently trying to research what to do to get a Cali driving license and I am getting differing results. I have a full UK license but am reading in various places that I won’t be able to use it...in other places I’ve read you can use it for a year.

With not being able to work until EAD is received and potentially not being allowed to drive for months either I’m starting to wonder what I’ll do with myself whilst hubs is at work! I was hoping to buy a car straight away and be able to properly explore my new home.

Can you please tell me how long it took for you to get your California license? Could you drive on your UK license at all? 

 

Any advise would be much appreciated!

I'm glad it could help! Let me see if I can help you some more with your driving license. I created a post in a separate topic that you can read here:

In short, California will not let you drive on your UK license as you are considered a resident in their eyes, and therefore you must obtain a California driving license to drive legally (talk about a limboland of Catch-22!). All it takes is one police officer to stop you and ask why you're driving on a UK license with a California home address and... yikes. It all depends on how willing one is to fib to a police officer where they currently live, and I did not want to take any risks like that at all. 

 

You might already have your Social Security Number, but if not and you're still within your I-94 90 days, then you'll need one to get your license. You'll also need to bring your passport and proof of residency ie any bank statement, co-sign on lease or mortgage etc. Even the letter on which I received my SSN card was enough for the DMV, though I also gave them my bank statements. Whilst you're there, they may try to process you for the RealID but you won't be able to receive that until you received your EAD (although it's best to wait for your green card to avoid dealing with renewals). You'll need to ask for the AB60 - and as I mentioned in the post I've linked to - you may need to go to a license processing centre unless you can make a reasonably quick appointment at your local DMV. It seems the DMV don't really allow walk-ins for the AB60! 

My experience was strange as for some reason, my local DMV processed me as if I was getting a RealID. The same day I applied (after waiting at the DMV for four hours), I was able to take my written test there and then. Two weeks later I managed to bag a practical test, and passed that first time too. Then came the weirdness... I technically only had two weeks on my license before I fell into that limboland of the I-94 expiring but not having an EAD. The EAD is the only document the DMV will accept to get a RealID... But thankfully the AB60 helps bridge this issue in California and the EAD is not required to obtain this license. So I had to wait for my 'regular' permit to expire, then I went to the DMV license processing centre (after three separate calls to the California DMV call centre to help them guarantee what I was allowed to do) and voila, I got my AB60 license there and then. Well, after another 90 minutes of waiting!

 

It's very fortunate that California allows use of the AB60 license, which gives people like us the flexibility to drive! It takes some jumping through hoops to get there, but it can be done. 

 

Please let me know if you need any other help?