I am a permanent resident who recently moved to California from another state. I will be traveling on an airplane six months from now so I want to make sure I have a REAL ID card available. If I apply for a REAL ID driver's license now, will the license only be valid for six months as my green card expires in six months?
2
-
1You can use your green card for the TSA. You don't need a Real ID driver's license. You can also use your foreign passport, if you have one.– phoogCommented Jun 25, 2022 at 6:55
-
Also, Real ID isn't to be enforced for nearly a year. It starts on May 3, 2023, so you can use a non-Real-ID driver's license six months from now.– phoogCommented Jun 25, 2022 at 8:09
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
You should get a full-time Real ID license. From https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/driver-licenses-identification-cards/real-id/what-is-real-id/real-id-info-non-u-s-citizens/:
Any Californian who can prove their current legal presence in the United States (U.S.) with one of the accepted identity documents (original or certified copy) is eligible to receive a REAL ID driver license or identification (DL/ID) card. This includes all U.S. citizens, permanent residents who are not U.S. citizens (Green Card holders), and those with temporary legal status, such as recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) or Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and holders of a valid student or employment visa. For Californians with temporary legal status, their REAL ID DL/ID card will expire on the same date as their U.S. legal presence document, and they can receive a new card with a documented extension of their legal status.
Since a permanent resident does not have "temporary legal status," the last sentence does not apply.
If you are a first-time DL or ID applicant and your BD/LP document expires in:
- Less than five years from the date you applied for your DL (less than six years for your ID card), your photo DL/ID card will be considered a “limited term (LT)” DL.
- More than five years from the date you applied for your DL (more than six years for your ID card), your photo DL/ID card will be considered full term.
No mention is made of an exception for LPRs. This is probably an oversight.
As noted in comments, however, you can always use your green card, so if you're in the habit of carrying it with you (as the law requires, although many don't comply), there's not much benefit to having a Real ID license. Also, since the flight will be before May 3, 2023, a non-Real-ID license will suffice.
-
1"No mention is made of an exception for LPRs." No mention is made of an exception for US citizens either, so taken literally, it would mean that if you used a US passport as your LP document, and it expires in less than 5 years, your DL would be limited term, which seems unlikely. Commented Jun 25, 2022 at 16:03
-
@user102008 I first got to that page through a link offering information relevant to non-US citizens, so it did not occur to me to consider how it might apply to US passports.– phoogCommented Jun 26, 2022 at 14:33
-
3I applied for a RealID license at a CA DMV with an expired green card and an I-797 giving me a 1 year extension with 9 months remaining. My clerk told me I couldn't apply for RealID until the lady in the next booth told him he had to read the I-797. He then told me the license would expire in 9 months, as my wife's clerk told her she would note in the application file. What arrived in the mail, however, were full-term RealIDs. In California people who can prove they are LPRs when they apply get full-term licenses, whether the clerks know it or not. Only non-immigrants are limited.– DennisCommented Jul 27, 2022 at 18:14
-
1@Dennis if you add that as an answer, ping me, and I'll upvote it. There's no reason for this question to continue to be bumped to the top of the active list.– phoogCommented Jul 27, 2022 at 22:27