CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — If you’re an overseas Defense Department employee
trying to renew a stateside driver’s license, even an expired one, your life is
going to be a lot simpler if you’re wearing a uniform.
Not as much if you’re a DOD civilian.
And probably not at all if you’re a DOD civilian who let that state license
expire.
All states have measures in place to honor a driver’s license until the
servicemember returns home.
“If your driver’s license expires while you’re overseas, and you’re staying
overseas, you don’t have to worry about renewing it until you go back to the
state,” said Master Sgt. Jeff Loftin, 18th Wing spokesman at Kadena Air Base,
Okinawa. Servicemembers who want to keep their stateside licenses current anyway
can apply online or by mail, he added.
There’s even a simple, one-stop Web site —
www.dmv.org — likely to provide
all needed information for each state and Washington, D.C., he said.
On Marine bases in Japan, “servicemembers can always contact the Marine Corps
Bases Japan Safety Office or visit their state’s department of motor vehicles
Web site for information on their state’s licensing requirements,” said Gunnery
Sgt. Chuck Albrecht, a public affairs spokesman.
“It is up to the individual to contact his or her state’s department of motor
vehicles prior to the expiration of his or her stateside driver’s license,” he
said. “Requirements vary from state to state. Some can be renewed through the
mail … some require a photo.”
A dependent or civilian living overseas should contact that state’s motor
vehicle department about renewing a still-valid stateside license. Most states
allow for renewals by mail or online. Some require certified eye exams and other
documents; others require little more than filling out a few forms and paying a
renewal fee.
Again, www.dmv.org may contain all the information needed. A private company
sponsors the Web site, which has become an authority on stateside vehicle
registration and driver licensing information. The site is supported by
advertising, but there is no charge for the information.
Civilian Defense Department employees or dependents returning to America with
an expired state license may have to jump through more hoops. In fact, some
states require returning civilians seeking new licenses to establish state
residency and undergo written and road tests.
Rules for obtaining stateside licenses for persons who have POV licenses but
have never had a stateside one, or who have a POV license and didn’t renew their
stateside one in the time required, vary by state.
For example, servicemembers who have a license issued by the U.S. Armed
Forces may drive in New York for a maximum of 60 days. Dependents who have only
military-issued driver licenses cannot drive in New York.
Also, a military POV driver’s license cannot be exchanged for a New York
state driver license. If you have only a military driver license, you must apply
for an original state driver’s license.
One bit of good news about that POV license, though: Even if a person has let
the POV license expire, all that’s needed to renew it is the expired license and
a copy of the license-holder’s orders.
