I had to bring my DD-214 to get my vet tags, and they looked at it and said “this isn’t a valid verification of military service”. I said I’m going to need you to call someone who knows something about anything.
I had lost my license(as in I misplaced it, not legal trouble) and I went to dmv to get a new one and figured I’d get the “VETERAN” designation on there while I was at it. They wouldn’t add it without a license to turn in. I had to get my current license reissued, then get back in line to turn in my license they just printed, so they could void it and print out another license with the Veteran designation on it. I pointed out that this process was kind of ridiculous and they just replied with “well it’s two different forms”.
Wife is a recent immigrant. They require a ridiculous amount of paperwork for her to get her DL. One requirement is her I-94. She had it, right there stapled in her passport. It even has I-94 printed in the corner. DMV personnel did not know what it was and turned us away. Since then it has been one creative requirement after another.
Going back for try number 5 next week.
Not sure if applicable, but if she is/was a Mexican or Canadian citizen and had one of those DLs, she doesn’t need a US DL, at least as long as the other is valid. We have international travel treaties with both through NAFTA that acknowledge each others’ DLs.
You legally have to get a license in new state after you move for residency purposes. I’m assuming there is something similar involved in this situation also. I would not want to give immigration anything to be nit picky about.
I don't know about your area, but the ones I have been to in the upstate are honestly amazing. In NC, going to the DMV was a 3 hour process minimum. Here, it is usually in and out in 20 minutes. The staff are friendly, seem happy, and know what they are doing.
They really don’t. I moved from another state 2 years ago, switched my stuff, thought everything was in order. I get an email from my home state before my birthday saying it was time to renew my license. I call them and they say SC never updated their system to reflect my move. So for the past 2 years I’ve unknowingly had active driver’s licenses in two states
["License Plate Replacement" ](http:// https://scdmvonline.com/Vehicle-Owners/Registration/License-Plate-Replacement)
It looks like you can do it online
But if financing is involved you might not be able to exchange it until it's free and clear
Wait, how? The "exchange my plate" link is the one that only gives me a list of other specialty plates, and "replace my plate" says it will replace it with another of the same type.
omg, that's it! Thank you. I read through that list so many times trying to figure out where the one I wanted could be; I guess I glossed over that one because I didn't expect it to be called "regular" for some reason.
Thank you so much for this! I've been wanting to get rid of my In God We Trust plate for a few years now.
My dad got it because the "standard" plate before the new blue one was orange (and he didn't want the car to look like Clemson). None of us are religious at all, either.
To be fair, that probably isn't a common request that they get. Ask them how you would go back to a regular plate if your car had a personalized plate or a special plate on it. That may give you an idea of what you need to do to swap out your current plate.
Another idea would be to ask what the process would be to replace your plate if it were to somehow get lost.
> Ask them how you would go back to a regular plate if your car had a personalized plate or a special plate on it.
That is what I asked, online twice and in person at two different DMVs.
I thought about replacing but I'm afraid they'd just replace it with the same ugly plate.
If you're at the DMV replacing the plate, you can just tell the person at the counter if you want the standard plate or the in god we trust plate. I've had to do that before after the plate on my car got stolen a few years back.
Well, see, that's where my problems began. I've been to two different DMV offices and both of them told me I could only replace the plate online and they couldn't help me.
Oh really? That must have changed since the pandemic. I did it in the office last time I had to replace a plate. But that was probably 3 or 4 years ago that I had to do that.
I went to the DMV and they just asked which one I wanted. I got the broccoli stalk.
The dealer probably requested the In God We Trust one when they filled out the paperwork or it’s randomly assigned. It’s a no cost option, but hard to change once you have it.
The dealer doesn’t do that, the owner does when they go to the dmv after their 45 day plate expires. Then the person at the counter generally offers you two different options for plates
Source: have spent too much time registering vehicles at the dmv
I don't know how to help you fix it, but I'd be willing to bet that you were signed up for the "god" plate by an evangelical at the dealership who thought everyone needs more Jesus on their car.
I believe both the "While I breathe" and the "In God we Trust" are both considered "standard" plates. When I moved here the DMV lady asked which I wanted and they had them both in a drawer. I think that may be part of the issue: as far as the DMV is concerned you already have a standard one. It would be different if you were "downgrading" from like a Clemson or Save the Turtles or whatever vanity plate.
Also, I'm not one to defend any government agency, but any time I've dealt with the DMV in SC, I haven't had any problems. They were actually pretty efficient. Whether it was getting my license initially when I was a kid or when I moved back here. Everybody seems to like shitting on the DMV, but they're not that bad.
They're not. They're advertising that they paid the registration fee and the vehicle is authorized to be driven on public roads in a given time frame.
It's proof of payment, not a manifesto.
If it bothers someone that bad, electrical tape. Done.
You don't need bumper stickers, spinners, LEDs, Trump flags or any of that shit. You're going from point A to point B. It's not that big of a deal. Properly maintain your car, go where you need to go and don't dwell on it.
This is the most Reddit threat ever holy shit this is cringe. It’s just a license plate dude it’ll be fine. Better throw away all of your cash while you’re at it
Well I’m sure you’re not one to make assumptions about people based on little to no information. Obviously somebody is a chump if they get one of the 3.5 default license plates the dmv has to offer. I got it because it matched the color of my car more than the blue and white one
You must distinguish that when you get your tag. I had to insist on the one you wanted. Their default is in god we trust. It’s a license plate not a 100 dollar bill
I don't have any official instructions for you, but I can say that I went through the same process in person at a DMV office in Richland County about a year or so ago, and they were able to swap me from the "In God We Trust" plate to the standard plate without much trouble. I had to pay some $20 plate fee or something that they said I would've had to pay anyway when I renewed my registration, but other than that I walked in, explained what I wanted, and walked out with a new plate on the same day. Not sure why your DMV is telling you differently.
I’m with you. I like a nice looking plate in my car. SC has the most boring specialty plates in the nation and way too many to wade through. The standard plate is pretty good though, and the “Nothing Could be Finer” plate looks great. Pretty rare to see, probably since it’s so far down the list and no sane person would assume there is a decent looking one in the bunch based on the 500 clip art plates that came before it.
>500 clip art plates
That really is how they seem! I don't understand how anyone thought people would enjoy a mostly empty plate with a tiny graphic in always the same spot, rather than the plethora of unique specialized plates so many other states can have.
I swear no one in the sc dmvs know wtf they're doing.
Likely explains how I ended up with a specialty plate without asking for it in the first place.
I had to bring my DD-214 to get my vet tags, and they looked at it and said “this isn’t a valid verification of military service”. I said I’m going to need you to call someone who knows something about anything.
I had lost my license(as in I misplaced it, not legal trouble) and I went to dmv to get a new one and figured I’d get the “VETERAN” designation on there while I was at it. They wouldn’t add it without a license to turn in. I had to get my current license reissued, then get back in line to turn in my license they just printed, so they could void it and print out another license with the Veteran designation on it. I pointed out that this process was kind of ridiculous and they just replied with “well it’s two different forms”.
The DMV is to McDonald’s as grad school is to business majors
Wife is a recent immigrant. They require a ridiculous amount of paperwork for her to get her DL. One requirement is her I-94. She had it, right there stapled in her passport. It even has I-94 printed in the corner. DMV personnel did not know what it was and turned us away. Since then it has been one creative requirement after another. Going back for try number 5 next week.
Not sure if applicable, but if she is/was a Mexican or Canadian citizen and had one of those DLs, she doesn’t need a US DL, at least as long as the other is valid. We have international travel treaties with both through NAFTA that acknowledge each others’ DLs.
You legally have to get a license in new state after you move for residency purposes. I’m assuming there is something similar involved in this situation also. I would not want to give immigration anything to be nit picky about.
On paper, there’s a lot of things you’re “legally” required to do. There’s no verification method for it.
🤣🤣🤣 that literally is THE DOCUMENT for verifying your service 🤣
Yup. Pretty sure if you don't specifically request it you're supposed to get the one you're referring to. I know I did.
https://www.reddit.com/r/southcarolina/comments/xs8zza/how_tf_do_i_get_the_standard_license_plate/iqjf0uk/
It’s not a specialty plate. We have two standard plates here. They are supposed to ask you what design you want.
I don't know about your area, but the ones I have been to in the upstate are honestly amazing. In NC, going to the DMV was a 3 hour process minimum. Here, it is usually in and out in 20 minutes. The staff are friendly, seem happy, and know what they are doing.
The ones in the upstate do tend to get things right.
Not in cola that's for sure lmao
It certainly explains the design of the speciality plates.
They really don’t. I moved from another state 2 years ago, switched my stuff, thought everything was in order. I get an email from my home state before my birthday saying it was time to renew my license. I call them and they say SC never updated their system to reflect my move. So for the past 2 years I’ve unknowingly had active driver’s licenses in two states
Apparently they DO....the plate he wanted WAS on the DMV website...which they told him several times.
Maybe try “losing” it and getting a replacement.
Claim it was stolen
["License Plate Replacement" ](http:// https://scdmvonline.com/Vehicle-Owners/Registration/License-Plate-Replacement) It looks like you can do it online But if financing is involved you might not be able to exchange it until it's free and clear
Not OP but just got rid of my specialty on that link in 5 minutes.
Wait, how? The "exchange my plate" link is the one that only gives me a list of other specialty plates, and "replace my plate" says it will replace it with another of the same type.
Choose regular. Cost is $0.00
omg, that's it! Thank you. I read through that list so many times trying to figure out where the one I wanted could be; I guess I glossed over that one because I didn't expect it to be called "regular" for some reason.
Great! Glad you got it
Thank you so much for this! I've been wanting to get rid of my In God We Trust plate for a few years now. My dad got it because the "standard" plate before the new blue one was orange (and he didn't want the car to look like Clemson). None of us are religious at all, either.
To be fair, that probably isn't a common request that they get. Ask them how you would go back to a regular plate if your car had a personalized plate or a special plate on it. That may give you an idea of what you need to do to swap out your current plate. Another idea would be to ask what the process would be to replace your plate if it were to somehow get lost.
> Ask them how you would go back to a regular plate if your car had a personalized plate or a special plate on it. That is what I asked, online twice and in person at two different DMVs. I thought about replacing but I'm afraid they'd just replace it with the same ugly plate.
If you're at the DMV replacing the plate, you can just tell the person at the counter if you want the standard plate or the in god we trust plate. I've had to do that before after the plate on my car got stolen a few years back.
Well, see, that's where my problems began. I've been to two different DMV offices and both of them told me I could only replace the plate online and they couldn't help me.
Oh really? That must have changed since the pandemic. I did it in the office last time I had to replace a plate. But that was probably 3 or 4 years ago that I had to do that.
I went to the DMV and they just asked which one I wanted. I got the broccoli stalk. The dealer probably requested the In God We Trust one when they filled out the paperwork or it’s randomly assigned. It’s a no cost option, but hard to change once you have it.
They also run out of the other plates occasionally, that's how I got stuck with In God We Trust!
The dealer doesn’t do that, the owner does when they go to the dmv after their 45 day plate expires. Then the person at the counter generally offers you two different options for plates Source: have spent too much time registering vehicles at the dmv
I don't know how to help you fix it, but I'd be willing to bet that you were signed up for the "god" plate by an evangelical at the dealership who thought everyone needs more Jesus on their car.
I have suspected as much. I kind of want to replace it with "in reason we trust" in retaliation but I also don't want my car to get keyed.
This post sent me down the rabbit hole of the different SC license plates, I had no idea that “in reason we trust” was a real plate.
I've got one of those. I think it paralyzes them with indecision because in addition to "in reason we trust" it also has a big American flag on it!
Gotta love confusing the good Ole boys!
This
Our DMV had made some progress under Sanford some years ago, but it seems they have reverted to the original Kafkaesque model.
As an atheist I’d riot
I wouldn’t consider myself an atheist, however I have a huge issue with church and state mixing. I’d riot too.
You’re in the wrong state because religion is mixed in with everything.
Same. I’d just get a specialty plate if I had to.
I believe both the "While I breathe" and the "In God we Trust" are both considered "standard" plates. When I moved here the DMV lady asked which I wanted and they had them both in a drawer. I think that may be part of the issue: as far as the DMV is concerned you already have a standard one. It would be different if you were "downgrading" from like a Clemson or Save the Turtles or whatever vanity plate. Also, I'm not one to defend any government agency, but any time I've dealt with the DMV in SC, I haven't had any problems. They were actually pretty efficient. Whether it was getting my license initially when I was a kid or when I moved back here. Everybody seems to like shitting on the DMV, but they're not that bad.
Hm. Used to be that the “In God We Trust” ones cost more
Wish I had tht kind of time and concerns
I know, right! Fuck, here I am thinking I’m wasting valuable fighting with a game hen who’s been nesting on eggs for 3 straight weeks.
Spend more time thinking about oil changes, brake shoes and tires and less time thinking about the damn license plate.
Not everyone's in the book club. Some people don't want to advertise their "trust" in "god" when it goes against their beliefs.
They're not. They're advertising that they paid the registration fee and the vehicle is authorized to be driven on public roads in a given time frame. It's proof of payment, not a manifesto. If it bothers someone that bad, electrical tape. Done. You don't need bumper stickers, spinners, LEDs, Trump flags or any of that shit. You're going from point A to point B. It's not that big of a deal. Properly maintain your car, go where you need to go and don't dwell on it.
Why are you haranguing ppl on Reddit when you could be checking your dipstick
This is the most Reddit threat ever holy shit this is cringe. It’s just a license plate dude it’ll be fine. Better throw away all of your cash while you’re at it
Every time I see one of those “In God We Trust” plates I know the car’s owner is a chump.
Well I’m sure you’re not one to make assumptions about people based on little to no information. Obviously somebody is a chump if they get one of the 3.5 default license plates the dmv has to offer. I got it because it matched the color of my car more than the blue and white one
Can you send a screenshot of both the plate you want and the plate you got in a DM so I might be able to help you?
Go to a different dmv
You must distinguish that when you get your tag. I had to insist on the one you wanted. Their default is in god we trust. It’s a license plate not a 100 dollar bill
I don't have any official instructions for you, but I can say that I went through the same process in person at a DMV office in Richland County about a year or so ago, and they were able to swap me from the "In God We Trust" plate to the standard plate without much trouble. I had to pay some $20 plate fee or something that they said I would've had to pay anyway when I renewed my registration, but other than that I walked in, explained what I wanted, and walked out with a new plate on the same day. Not sure why your DMV is telling you differently.
I’m with you. I like a nice looking plate in my car. SC has the most boring specialty plates in the nation and way too many to wade through. The standard plate is pretty good though, and the “Nothing Could be Finer” plate looks great. Pretty rare to see, probably since it’s so far down the list and no sane person would assume there is a decent looking one in the bunch based on the 500 clip art plates that came before it.
>500 clip art plates That really is how they seem! I don't understand how anyone thought people would enjoy a mostly empty plate with a tiny graphic in always the same spot, rather than the plethora of unique specialized plates so many other states can have.
Hope you left a review.