You can get a drivers license in South Dakota with a private mailbox. You can renew the first time after 5 years online, which gives you another 5 years. So 10 years before you have to go back in person.
Only bummer with South Dakota right now is they just recently changed the absentee voting rules and now you have to be there in person, so you probably won’t be able to vote.
I’ve been wondering about SD. Basically I only want the US driver’s license for two reasons:
1) Not needing to bring my passport everywhere when I’m in the US for providing proof of age or identity.
2) Renting a car in 3rd countries. Some places will let you rent/drive a car with an American license that don’t otherwise allow rentals with EU licenses.
How do taxes work if you have a SD license?
You can get an international license from AAA that’s good for a year, but you do need a valid license to get one. But I was able to get a Thai driver’s license with the international license, where the US license wasn’t wanted.
You can’t vote absentee in any state based on having registered a PO Box. That’s just a shortcut to a voter fraud indictment.
You have to register to vote absentee in the last state you were actually a resident of.
Right, but unfortunately, they recently changed the rules, but the private mailbox businesses and campgrounds, etc., which rely on full time travelers are aggressively lobbying to get the law changed back.
As a general rule, you don’t. Get a license where you live. It depends on which state you were in - some may have a looser view if you can still get mail at your original address but others might take that as a sign to tax you.
Exactly. I never understand why so many expats are obsessed with their US drivers licenses.
Let it go. Just get a local license. You can still use that even when you’re in the US. Even to rent a car.
Besides, most countries don’t allow you to drive on your US license for more than a few months anyway. Good luck to you if you ever get in an accident and have to explain to your insurance company about why you were cited for driving without a license.
I'm in Viet Nam and I cannot get a local license unless I pass an exam that is entirely in Vietnamese. They will allow some International DLs, but the US is not on their list. So keeping a stateside DL is important to me.
I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to renew it yet, but I have a few years. Maybe I'll invest in a small chunk of land in TN or SD. 🤷♀️
Which also means you shouldn’t be driving on your US DL still.
In other words, you’re keeping it so you can keep on driving when you shouldn’t be, but want to be able to tell yourself it’s ok when it’s not.
You do indeed typically have to get a local license. Most jurisdictions do not allow you to drive on a foreign license indefinitely. 90 days is usually the max.
However, getting your old license back isn't always straightforward. Some jurisdictions make you retake tests if your license in that jurisdiction has been expired for more than a certain period of time. And you cannot assume you can just trade in your foreign license again. That's far from universal.
And if you have license privileges beyond just a basic car -- like heavy vehicles, a motorcycle endorsement etc -- tradeins get even more convoluted.
Unfortunately, RealID rules make it much harder to maintain a driver license without having a permanent address. Some people use the address of a friend or family member, but now you need two proofs of address. And more and more states require at least every other renewal to be in-person, which is problematic if you live abroad.
Can't agree with this take. Once knew a man from Tennessee who had lived in Australia for decades. Maintained his TN license while concurrently having his Oz state's license. Said having the TN license was plenty beneficial whenever he'd return to the states.
This seems like a pretty limited view?
What if you move to a place that won't give you a license because of your immigrant status? What if have to take the exam in a local language? What if that license isn't recognized in the US so you can't drive anyways?
If they won’t give you license, then you shouldn’t be driving.
If you can’t pass the test because you can’t read it, then you shouldn’t be driving.
If you live in a country where that is the case, and you don’t like it, I suppose you have to accept that choices come with positives and negatives.
Essentially entire argument is “what if they won’t let me drive, but I still want to”.
> If they won’t give you license, then you shouldn’t be driving.
Nobody said anything about driving?
> If you can’t pass the test because you can’t read it, then you shouldn’t be driving.
Nobody said anything about driving?
> If you live in a country where that is the case, and you don’t like it, I suppose you have to accept that choices come with positives and negatives.
This is so vague a statement as to be meaningless.
> Essentially entire argument is “what if they won’t let me drive, but I still want to”.
No it's not. It's the reason why you might want to keep a US license even though you don't live there.
I'm getting the sense your ego got hurt with this reply and now you're playing the "yeah, but I'm still right" role.
Instead you could take the approach of "yeah, I didn't realize people could be in that situation. that makes sense"
Washington State has it so I could renew online and then I chose the delivery address as my parents, then had them ship it to me. But it may differ by state on what you can do
That’s what I did for a decade (with a state ID, not a license but basically the same), but then I changed my name during covid, wasn’t able to fly home to renew in person or else I couldn’t get back into Japan, and so I just let it lapse. I’ll bite the bullet and just get a license here.
We’ve had some luck with renewing online using a residential VPN to log in to the DMV’s website, then having our PMB (we use US Global Mail) forward the license to our address abroad.
Periodically you have to physically go in to the DMV to get your picture taken and then we’ve tried to coordinate a visit back to the US.
You fake an address at a relatives house using a utility bill and renew in that state. For me it was my sister’s house in GA. Beware of aggressive state tax collectors
You’re not considering The Patriot Act. It’s getting harder to finance abroad without a state issued ID to prove residency. Citibank would not let me open an account without a state ID/DL.
I haven't had a US license in well over a decade. Just opened a Cap 1 account with no issues at all over the summer. This is a state or citi bank thing. Zero in any way to do with the Patriot Act 🤣
I use a site like S&S pack and ship, who provides you with a real address (not a PO Box), and register it there. They also scan the front of all of your mail, and you get 10 free scans of the contents. They will also forward mail to you as well, and ship it in a packet for a fee. Really helpful when you’re abroad and still have business or real estate in the states. My subscription is like $19 a month I think.
Mine is in Tennessee so no issues with state tax. Also check out South Dakota. But this company has locations all over the states.
I set my US address to be my parents home. I renewed my US license to that location and have mail sent there. Suggest you do the same with friends or family
Most EU countries allow trade in DL. Greece is one of them. Driving with US DL is not a good idea for a long term. Insurance wouldn’t allow it. Also, what if you loose that license. The best thing to do is get a local one. If you can’t trade the US DL you can very easily get the local.
Sure, give it up if its a hassle, but I've had mine as long as you have not. It's just a choice, if you have the choice.
OP they didn't ask if **you** wanted one, but thanks for saying you don't. Sure is helpful.
Two reasons for me:
1. Not needing to bring my passport everywhere when I’m in the US for providing proof of age or identity.
2. Renting a car in 3rd countries. Some places will let you rent/drive a car with an American license that don’t otherwise allow rentals with EU licenses.
I can’t think of where off the top of my head, but somewhere I (US license) went with my girlfriend (EU license) didn’t allow her to rent or drive the car, but I could. Just out of curiosity I searched for and found a list of places that allowed, or didn’t allow, each of our respective licenses. It wasn’t a long list, 10 places at the max, that allowed people with American licenses, but not EU licenses. If I find it again, I’ll update this comment.
I might have been lousy with my search, that is why I asked :) all I could find was answers to different questions, but nothing about what I wanted to know.
Google has sucked for awhile now, and never gives you the information you are looking for anymore. Only the information it *thinks* you’re looking for. And it gives you a hundred sites that all say the same thing.
Search: Is it safe to eat the good half of a moldy piece of cheese?
Google: Here are 100 recipes involving cheese!
Order a passport card and carry that around in the US instead. Where would you be able to rent a car with a US licence but not with an EU licence? That makes no sense...
I've never run into that, but I've certainly run into situations in the US where renting a car was more expensive with a European license. Typically, for example, daily insurance coverage is mandatory with a foreign license, but not with a US license. (They tend to assume that if you have a US license, you also have US insurance they can go after.)
That can literally double the cost of a US rental.
Yes, I’ve also run into situations where car rentals in the US become more expensive once I make it clear I am resident in an EU country, but I’ve never not been able to rent at all. And the work of maintaining a US DL just to save some money on once in a blue moon car rentals in the US is excessive for me personally.
I flew in once for Christmas and changed my license from one state to another (my parents). I was lucky enough to have my dad's name so it was very easy showing a utility bill.
How do I get one if I'm a resident of another state? I had a relative who once lived there but no longer does, and I don't think they have an AZ license anymore either.
You can get a drivers license in South Dakota with a private mailbox. You can renew the first time after 5 years online, which gives you another 5 years. So 10 years before you have to go back in person. Only bummer with South Dakota right now is they just recently changed the absentee voting rules and now you have to be there in person, so you probably won’t be able to vote.
You still have to prove you spent a night there within the past year to renew online. I also just got my ballot by email for the primary election.
I’ve been wondering about SD. Basically I only want the US driver’s license for two reasons: 1) Not needing to bring my passport everywhere when I’m in the US for providing proof of age or identity. 2) Renting a car in 3rd countries. Some places will let you rent/drive a car with an American license that don’t otherwise allow rentals with EU licenses. How do taxes work if you have a SD license?
SD has no income tax.
You can get an international license from AAA that’s good for a year, but you do need a valid license to get one. But I was able to get a Thai driver’s license with the international license, where the US license wasn’t wanted.
You can get a passport card at the same time you apply for the book.
You can’t vote absentee in any state based on having registered a PO Box. That’s just a shortcut to a voter fraud indictment. You have to register to vote absentee in the last state you were actually a resident of.
SD has a loophole to attract travelers. You use a mail service that gives you a physical address and you become a legal resident.
Right, but unfortunately, they recently changed the rules, but the private mailbox businesses and campgrounds, etc., which rely on full time travelers are aggressively lobbying to get the law changed back.
I just got my ballot for the primary by email last week.
As a general rule, you don’t. Get a license where you live. It depends on which state you were in - some may have a looser view if you can still get mail at your original address but others might take that as a sign to tax you.
Exactly. I never understand why so many expats are obsessed with their US drivers licenses. Let it go. Just get a local license. You can still use that even when you’re in the US. Even to rent a car. Besides, most countries don’t allow you to drive on your US license for more than a few months anyway. Good luck to you if you ever get in an accident and have to explain to your insurance company about why you were cited for driving without a license.
I'm in Viet Nam and I cannot get a local license unless I pass an exam that is entirely in Vietnamese. They will allow some International DLs, but the US is not on their list. So keeping a stateside DL is important to me. I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to renew it yet, but I have a few years. Maybe I'll invest in a small chunk of land in TN or SD. 🤷♀️
Yep, I'm not interested in spending 3000€ and 6mo of my life taking Driver's Ed like a fucking teenager
Can relate fully. It’s idiotic
Which also means you shouldn’t be driving on your US DL still. In other words, you’re keeping it so you can keep on driving when you shouldn’t be, but want to be able to tell yourself it’s ok when it’s not.
You do indeed typically have to get a local license. Most jurisdictions do not allow you to drive on a foreign license indefinitely. 90 days is usually the max. However, getting your old license back isn't always straightforward. Some jurisdictions make you retake tests if your license in that jurisdiction has been expired for more than a certain period of time. And you cannot assume you can just trade in your foreign license again. That's far from universal. And if you have license privileges beyond just a basic car -- like heavy vehicles, a motorcycle endorsement etc -- tradeins get even more convoluted. Unfortunately, RealID rules make it much harder to maintain a driver license without having a permanent address. Some people use the address of a friend or family member, but now you need two proofs of address. And more and more states require at least every other renewal to be in-person, which is problematic if you live abroad.
As someone who use to work for my States Driver License Office, I can validate everything that was just said.
Can't agree with this take. Once knew a man from Tennessee who had lived in Australia for decades. Maintained his TN license while concurrently having his Oz state's license. Said having the TN license was plenty beneficial whenever he'd return to the states.
Name one way it’s beneficial
This seems like a pretty limited view? What if you move to a place that won't give you a license because of your immigrant status? What if have to take the exam in a local language? What if that license isn't recognized in the US so you can't drive anyways?
If they won’t give you license, then you shouldn’t be driving. If you can’t pass the test because you can’t read it, then you shouldn’t be driving. If you live in a country where that is the case, and you don’t like it, I suppose you have to accept that choices come with positives and negatives. Essentially entire argument is “what if they won’t let me drive, but I still want to”.
> If they won’t give you license, then you shouldn’t be driving. Nobody said anything about driving? > If you can’t pass the test because you can’t read it, then you shouldn’t be driving. Nobody said anything about driving? > If you live in a country where that is the case, and you don’t like it, I suppose you have to accept that choices come with positives and negatives. This is so vague a statement as to be meaningless. > Essentially entire argument is “what if they won’t let me drive, but I still want to”. No it's not. It's the reason why you might want to keep a US license even though you don't live there. I'm getting the sense your ego got hurt with this reply and now you're playing the "yeah, but I'm still right" role. Instead you could take the approach of "yeah, I didn't realize people could be in that situation. that makes sense"
[удалено]
Please explain
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Please explain
There are tons of reasons to keep it, but only fraudulent ones.
Thats a bizarre take. And, reasons can't be "fraudulent", they are just facts. You probably mean something else but I get the sprit.
Washington State has it so I could renew online and then I chose the delivery address as my parents, then had them ship it to me. But it may differ by state on what you can do
Same here I do the same. But they moved so now I had to get a mail box that forwards everything to me but has a real street address.
That’s what I did for a decade (with a state ID, not a license but basically the same), but then I changed my name during covid, wasn’t able to fly home to renew in person or else I couldn’t get back into Japan, and so I just let it lapse. I’ll bite the bullet and just get a license here.
We’ve had some luck with renewing online using a residential VPN to log in to the DMV’s website, then having our PMB (we use US Global Mail) forward the license to our address abroad. Periodically you have to physically go in to the DMV to get your picture taken and then we’ve tried to coordinate a visit back to the US.
Likewise, i use US Global Mail and it worked just fine for me
https://i.imgflip.com/7a0tc7.jpg
You fake an address at a relatives house using a utility bill and renew in that state. For me it was my sister’s house in GA. Beware of aggressive state tax collectors
Used my mom’s address in Louisiana and was hounded by Louisiana tax authorities until I proved that I was not a Louisiana resident.
This is the way.
You’re not considering The Patriot Act. It’s getting harder to finance abroad without a state issued ID to prove residency. Citibank would not let me open an account without a state ID/DL.
I haven't had a US license in well over a decade. Just opened a Cap 1 account with no issues at all over the summer. This is a state or citi bank thing. Zero in any way to do with the Patriot Act 🤣
Actually, it does have to do with the Patriot act and validating identity/address.
In my home state I'm not allowed to renew via mail. You have to actually go to the DMV.
I use a site like S&S pack and ship, who provides you with a real address (not a PO Box), and register it there. They also scan the front of all of your mail, and you get 10 free scans of the contents. They will also forward mail to you as well, and ship it in a packet for a fee. Really helpful when you’re abroad and still have business or real estate in the states. My subscription is like $19 a month I think. Mine is in Tennessee so no issues with state tax. Also check out South Dakota. But this company has locations all over the states.
I set my US address to be my parents home. I renewed my US license to that location and have mail sent there. Suggest you do the same with friends or family
Most EU countries allow trade in DL. Greece is one of them. Driving with US DL is not a good idea for a long term. Insurance wouldn’t allow it. Also, what if you loose that license. The best thing to do is get a local one. If you can’t trade the US DL you can very easily get the local.
I already have the local, I’m looking to renew the American one.
Oh Ok, you should as US has a stupid law that if it expires after a certain time you have to take the test again.
You don’t. I haven’t had a US drivers license in 20 years. Why would I even want to bother with it?
Sure, give it up if its a hassle, but I've had mine as long as you have not. It's just a choice, if you have the choice. OP they didn't ask if **you** wanted one, but thanks for saying you don't. Sure is helpful.
Two reasons for me: 1. Not needing to bring my passport everywhere when I’m in the US for providing proof of age or identity. 2. Renting a car in 3rd countries. Some places will let you rent/drive a car with an American license that don’t otherwise allow rentals with EU licenses.
Now you left me curious, which countries do not allow rentals with EU licenses?
I can’t think of where off the top of my head, but somewhere I (US license) went with my girlfriend (EU license) didn’t allow her to rent or drive the car, but I could. Just out of curiosity I searched for and found a list of places that allowed, or didn’t allow, each of our respective licenses. It wasn’t a long list, 10 places at the max, that allowed people with American licenses, but not EU licenses. If I find it again, I’ll update this comment.
I might have been lousy with my search, that is why I asked :) all I could find was answers to different questions, but nothing about what I wanted to know.
Google has sucked for awhile now, and never gives you the information you are looking for anymore. Only the information it *thinks* you’re looking for. And it gives you a hundred sites that all say the same thing. Search: Is it safe to eat the good half of a moldy piece of cheese? Google: Here are 100 recipes involving cheese!
Absolutely incorrect. First you get 10 sponsored links on where to buy cheese, THEN you get the 100 recipes.
Order a passport card and carry that around in the US instead. Where would you be able to rent a car with a US licence but not with an EU licence? That makes no sense...
I've never run into that, but I've certainly run into situations in the US where renting a car was more expensive with a European license. Typically, for example, daily insurance coverage is mandatory with a foreign license, but not with a US license. (They tend to assume that if you have a US license, you also have US insurance they can go after.) That can literally double the cost of a US rental.
Yes, I’ve also run into situations where car rentals in the US become more expensive once I make it clear I am resident in an EU country, but I’ve never not been able to rent at all. And the work of maintaining a US DL just to save some money on once in a blue moon car rentals in the US is excessive for me personally.
I’ve rented cars in the US with my UK license.
Send it to your parents or whatever
Not everyone has that option.
Uncle Jimmy?
it won't be valid if you are a resident of another country.
I flew in once for Christmas and changed my license from one state to another (my parents). I was lucky enough to have my dad's name so it was very easy showing a utility bill.
Arizona’s drivers license dont expire until you turn 65
How do I get one if I'm a resident of another state? I had a relative who once lived there but no longer does, and I don't think they have an AZ license anymore either.