Noorah101

You're right, I should have said "it's possible that you might...."

Rene

ian-mstm

With all due respect, *I* am the condescending ass in this forum, so please keep that in mind when you post.

Now as to whether or not you're "resident"... if you are in the US on a K-1 visa, you *are* resident. Your K-1 may be a "non-immigrant" visa, but it has "immigrant intent" and is treated as such. You are *not* a visitor if you arrived in the US on a K-1 visa *UNLESS* you did not marry your USC sponsor within 90 days!

I hope that clears up your confusion.

By the way, if you want good information you have to give good information. Personally, I don't give a fuzzy rat's ass where you live, but you seem to have a real stick up your arse and it'd be a good idea if you pulled it out before posting again. Have a nice day!

Ian

AlanR

Arse and ass in the same post. Excellent. Obviously bilingual!

meauxna

Since when doesn't it matter?

You're a resident of the state as soon as you move there and take up your principle residence there. Which you have.


fatbrit gave you correct and constructive answers. Trust me, he's not 'acting' like a condescending ass. It's all natural.

AlanR

But probably moving well away from the theme of the post , Ms. Moderator....

AlanR

Ooops - my apologies. Posts are thick and fast here and my 2 should be seen as consecutive..

ian-mstm

Sheila and I were in Scotland last week... I'm still having trouble adjusting to life back in the US!

Ian

mjd

Hi Folks,

I am in Florida and likely to move to New England so that is probs where the MA link came from.

To understand the rules it is worth going to the local RMV or DMV office (Registry/Dept of Motor Vehicles) and asking for their book of info. They have other names - in florida it is DPH. The book will clear it up.

For me in Florida, the rules for residency (strictly for driving licenses only) is you are a resident if you have one or more of the following:
Principal place of domicile in this state for more than 6 months
Has registered to vote
Made a statement of domicile pursuant to section 222.17 Florida Statutes
Filed for homestead exemption on property in the state.

I think I am not a resident in the state yet so can still use my foreign driving license for a few months.

In MA I definitely read that I could use my UK license for 12 months but don't know if there was a similar ruling for what constitutes residency in MA and if this would over-rule, but it will be in their book.

Hope this helps.

MJD

Bad1

When the family came from England in 1974 the law on there DL was you had 6 months or took up residency then you had to take a driving test for a Canadian DL (Alberta) 6 month I take it as being for a visitor and the other is self explanatory, but with that said, when the Wife from the states came here it was just a matter of give one in and get a Alberta Canada one back.

georgiaw

Just for information .. we live in massachusetts and registered our car and insured it using our UK licences ... we were told by both the RMV and the insurance company that we had 12 months as long as we had applied for our license as we are residents of MA ....

which we did by taking out permit tests ...

This is great .. ;.. but we got stopped by the police and issued with a citation for unlicenced operation of a motor vehicle and had our car taken away ..... we promptly took our driving tests and are in the process of appealing ...

we go to court on the 27th March

So all i can say is .. the RMV still say we are right as does our insurance broker and insurance company ..... but that won't stop the police if they disagree ...

In fact when we took in the printout that the RMV gave us to the police station they simply said .... no grey area you are resident as you live here get a license

I'll update this thread after the court case ..as our attorney thinks it'll be dismissed but i'll let you know, we were obviously shocked as we acted on all the right information and with the best of intentions !!!

AlanR

I'm in MA too and my understanding by reading the RMV book was that the 12months rule was applicable only if visiting. Once resident, then I thought that there is no (or is it 7 days?) grace period. Now I'm sure that the RMV and insurance company will give better advice than I!
I did have problems insuring my car in MA when I first came - mainly inexperience on the insurance broker (I went with Commerce eventually). I had to get a statement from my UK insurance company to prevent me going on Band 15.
Good luck with the court case and let us know how you get on. It's an important point for anyone coming to MA from England.

ian-mstm

Just so you know, your intentions won't much matter, and while you may have received information, it remains to be seen whether or not it was "right".

Ian

georgiaw

I'm fully aware that intention isn't law .. our attorney's view is that we acted in good faith .. that said i didnt post to debate my situation just to inform you of it ...

The RMV provided us with the booklet that states that as soon as you become a resident you have to "apply for a licence" no grace period .. which is what we did. They are adamant that we were legal and we have a letter stating that to take to court ... that said to be fair to the police the law they are judging against makes no mention of this.

it simply states resident, license required, so in their own way they are both right but neither is backing down .. which leaves us in the middle.

My advice, if we could do it over is get a license, period.. Don't obsess about whether you are or not a resident because if you get stopped like we did on a cold and snowy night with a 3yr old .. they will decide for you ! and take the car and make you walk ...

We aren't stupid people .. we acted on the information we were given as we weren't sure we were going to stay in massachusetts over a year .. which we still aren't.

Like i said i'll post the outcome here to add to people's information but my situation and how I got there isn't up for debate ... or dissection