DMV Lists New Documents Required For Driver License Under AB 60

The following information is from the California DMV:

The California Department of Motor Vehicles has posted the list of documents that applicants will use to obtain a California driver license under AB 60—the new law requiring DMV to issue a driver license to individuals who can prove identity and California residence and meet all other licensing requirements, such as passing the driver license knowledge test and behind-the-wheel driving exams.

“Our commitment is to successfully implement this law to increase safety on California roads and protect the high level of security in our licensing and identity verification process,” said DMV Director Jean Shiomoto. “Californians planning to apply for a new driver license under AB 60 should study for their exams and gather the required documents for proving identity and residency.”

State law requires motorists to prove identity and legal presence to obtain a driver license. Under AB 60, motorists who cannot prove legal presence must prove identity and California residency—and pass the required vision test, driver license knowledge test, and the behind-the-wheel drive test—to obtain a license.

The regulations posted list the documents DMV will accept to verify the identity and California residence of future applicants.

DMV encourages applicants to begin gathering the necessary documents and studying the California Driver Handbook available on the DMV webpage at www.dmv.ca.gov.

In developing the list of necessary documents, DMV held public hearings across California and reviewed thousands of public comments and valuable community input. In general, DMV will require fewer documents for proving identity when those documents are very secure and electronically verifiable.

For example, the Mexican Passport (issued 2008 or later), Mexican Electoral Card (2013 version), or the Mexican Consular Card (2006 and 2014 versions) are each very secure and electronically verifiable and thus any one of those documents can be used to prove identity.

The regulations also describe a secondary review process for applicants who are unable to produce the documents otherwise required to prove identity. Under that secondary review, applicants must interview with DMV Investigative staff who will attempt to verify the applicant’s identity.

California is the first state in the nation to offer a secondary review process for applicants that lack typical identification documents to prove identity.

The list of necessary documents is posted on the DMV website here: http://ab60.dmv.ca.gov.

DMV is committed to implementing AB 60 by as required by law. To expedite the adoption of these regulations, DMV is mailing and posting notice of these regulations on an expedited basis for public comment and approval by the Office of Administrative Law.

For more information on AB 60, including sample interactive tests, webcasts, and information about public comment, visit: http://apps.dmv.ca.gov/ab60/index.html.

A full text of the regulations is available on DMV’s website, on the AB 60 webpage at http://ab60.dmv.ca.gov. A summary chart of the list of necessary documents is attached.

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