ukbiker

Hi all , with many fingers n toes crossed i should be moving to new jersey this year to be with my soon to be wife , i dont drive but do hve a full uk motorcycle license i hav checked dmv and to no joy wether i just have to do the written test or i hve to do the written test and the practicle test aswell?? . i know you can apply for just a motorcycle license and its differant from nyc dmv rules . so can anyone help me out here ?lol .

many thanks

Ben

paulpur

each state is different with regards to reciprocal agreements with other countries, but i know in Florida i had to do the written and practical tests for my car licence, the only thing that my full UK licence got me was that i didnt have to do the drink/drug awareness course

ukbiker

thanks paul once again lol , i take it i can ride on uk license for 6 months anway as hve done before while in usa on rented motorbike

paulpur

that depends, each state has its own rules as to driving and when you become resident etc, which is important as to how long your UK licence is valid for and when you have to get a valid licence from that state
generally, if you are a visitor, you are allowed to drive on your UK licence for 1year, but i believe being resident is a bit different

Noorah101

I know from your other thread that you're coming in on a K-1 visa. DMV will probably require you to have a SSN in order to apply for a license.

After you enter the USA on your K-1 visa, wait about 10 days, then go in person to your local SS office to apply for your SS card. It takes about 2 weeks to come in the mail, but if you go back in person the next day they can give you the number. You have to go back in person, as they aren't allowed to give it out over the phone (identity theft risk).

Once you have your SSN, you should go to DMV and apply for your license. Bring your passport with K-1 visa inside, and also the I-94 you'll get at the POE.

Most DMV policies are to only give a license for the duration that they have proof of your legal status in the USA. Don't be surprised if you only get a license which expires when your I-94 does (90 days after your arrival). If that's the case, you'll have to go back in several times over the first few years, bringing each new document with a new expiration date from USCIS.

Example, license 1 expires when your I-94 does. If you don't have your EAD by that time, they MIGHT give you license 2 expiring on the date your K-1 was due to expire (as happened in my hubby's case). License 3 will have the expiration date of your 1-year EAD. License 4 will have the expiration date of your 2-year conditional green card. After that, you'll have a 10-year green card and will probably get a "normal" license for however long it's normally valid for.

Rene

ukbiker

wow ok long process on that then lol , thanks for the advice . the dmv should hire you ,at least you know more info lol .

thanks again

Ben

Noorah101

hehehe...just speaking from experience. My now-husband came over on a K-1 visa back in 2004 and that's how his experience went here in Arizona.

Your experience may be the same or different, but just giving you a heads up in case.

Rene

paulpur

i got lucky when i went for my licence...i had waited till my green card came through before going for my social security card and then went for my licence after i got the SS card.
even though i was on a 2year conditional green card, the Florida DMV gave me an eight year licence....before i got my licence i had just driven on my UK licence, just a shame none of my entitlements transferred over as i have a HGV entitlement on my UK licence lol

valis

I applied for a m/c licence here in NJ.

Other than the bureaucracy, you have to sit a computer "multiple choice" type test, which is pretty easy although some of the correct answers here might be counter to UK motorcycle training advice. Otherwise, the procedure is depressing easy from the road safety pov.

ukbiker

cheers folks i have read few times else where , that for full motorcycle license i only need to do the multiple choice test in nj as ive held uk motorcycle license for 12 years. see what happens nearer the time .arrg lol

clementonite

I just got my NJ driver's license and I hate to tell you there is no standard advice for getting a NJ license!

I have a full UK driver's license and I went with both parts of this (I had to hunt for a while to find my paper part!) and my 6 points of ID which includes all paperwork which shows that you are in the US legally. I was initially told that I would have to take both the written and road test and be part of the NJ Graduated License Program (which means certain periods of restricted driving) because I did not have an international driver's license.

When I went back to sit my written test I had done some research and made a few calls which told me that whether I have to sit the road test or not is at the discretion of the supervisor of the particular MVC (the DMV in NJ) that I was at. I managed to successfully argue that an international driver's license only provides a translation of a country driver's license into english which of course my license was already in and get away without a road test!

Long story short... there is absolutely no way to predict what you will have do! Sorry!

Bob

Check the DMV site for requirements.

As you'll be resident in the state, you'll probably be required to take the test within 30-60 days as that seems the case for most states, though some like CA you've got 10 days to do it and a couple like Maine and Texas give you 12 months, though the reality is, you need to do it quicker as it'll be hard to get insurance as well as costing a fortune.

Advantage of showing a UK license and 3 years experience, most states will waive the drivers ed requirements and needing to drive with a locally licensed driver. Some states will waive the theory test, but usually you'd have to do the theory and the road test.

kodokan

It varies by state, as mentioned above; in Arizona you're supposed to get a license 'immediately' you start work, place children in the local school without paying non-resident fees, or in any other way start behaving like you live here.

In practice, 'immediately' seems to be interpreted as 'within the first few weeks, don't leave it too long'. I did mine about 8 weeks after coming here, as the kids weren't in school anyway so it wasn't really practical for me to sit around the DMV all morning. We had to take the theory and practical test, with no special dispensation at all for our UK licences; AZ simply don't recognise any licences from any other countries.

No SSN was needed - I still don't have one - and State Farm were happy to insure me and hubby on the car we bought when only he had an AZ licence and I promised to get mine in the near future (I had a chaser email about this; 30 days seems to be the cut-off before the underwriters got really twitchy). There was no additional premium for having an overseas licence for a short period of time.

The DMV site for your state should tell you all this sort of stuff. Oh, and if you have an iThing or similar, look for apps to help drill the test questions - I found the multi-choice questions and road sign flashcards really useful for pre-test prep, and aced my theory test.

rallybug

Similar experience with State Farm - I went onto my now wife's car insurance with no change to the premium before I had my UT driving license. They just wanted to know the license number as soon as I got it.

No getting out of the road or theory tests for car or motorcycle here though - the MSF test (cones in parking lot) is a good thing to do anyway (passing MSF - Motorcycle Safety Foundation - gave me the practical part in Utah). As I've been riding for a number of years, I didn't need to take the BRC (Basic Rider Course) but went straight to the ERC (Experience Rider Course). You might be amazed by the instructor's riding skills on his cruiser

Neptun

This is not correct.
At least Arizona has a reciprocal agreement with Germany, but the staff of some DMV's may not know it.


http://www.azleg.gov/ombudsman/2007AnnualReport.pdf