When can I get drivers license?

[Talo 26]

Hi all, I entered Colorado on December 21st 2019.

I am still waiting for my SSN and my green card.

Do you know if I can still get a driver's license? What about when I get SSN but not green card? Any experience?

I called the DMV of colorado and the lady said that I had to wait for the green card but she didn't sound very confident. Plus, its taking a looong time for people to get their green cards nowadays.

Thanks in advance.

[Boiler 45,557]

You have the I 551 stamp in your passport.

[Talo 26]

44 minutes ago, Boiler said:

You have the I 551 stamp in your passport.

I'm not sure. The stamp that I got when I entered is super fadey. You can barely read "admitted.." And then the officer wrote with a pen "IRI 015" Or "IRI D15". I have no idea what that means 👀

[gonzolux 82]

In our state you definitely need your Social Security Number. But my husband had no problem using his Visa within his passport. We don't have his actual green card in hand yet. He got his SSN about 2 weeks after arriving.

[Girl-S 30]

26 minutes ago, gonzolux said:

In our state you definitely need your Social Security Number. But my husband had no problem using his Visa within his passport. We don't have his actual green card in hand yet. He got his SSN about 2 weeks after arriving.

which state is that?

I am in texas and got my SS but waiting for GC, not sure if i can apply for license

[gonzolux 82]

7 minutes ago, Girl-S said:

which state is that?

I am in texas and got my SS but waiting for GC, not sure if i can apply for license

https://www.dps.texas.gov/DriverLicense/documents/verifyingLawfulPresence.pdf

 

We are in Alabama. See the attached link that shows you can use the I-551 stamp in your passport in conjunction with your visa in your passport to verify your status in the US to apply for a license. 

[Talo 26]

4 hours ago, gonzolux said:

https://www.dps.texas.gov/DriverLicense/documents/verifyingLawfulPresence.pdf

 

We are in Alabama. See the attached link that shows you can use the I-551 stamp in your passport in conjunction with your visa in your passport to verify your status in the US to apply for a license. 

Good! I asked them again via email and they again said that I need the green card. But when I checked in their website it says: "I-551 (Permanent Resident) verified by SAVE (unexpired)".

Does that mean that I can go with the stamp? Maybe they are not aware of it. It would suck to wait since I'm interviewing for jobs that require a driver's license.

[Girl-S 30]

1 minute ago, Talo said:

Good! I asked them again via email and they again said that I need the green card. But when I checked in their website it says: "I-551 (Permanent Resident) verified by SAVE (unexpired)".

Does that mean that I can go with the stamp? Maybe they are not aware of it. It would suck to wait since I'm interviewing for jobs that require a driver's license.

which state are u in? I havent physically been there as my husband has busy job hours and I am soo dependent on him bec of no license...

[Talo 26]

2 minutes ago, Girl-S said:

which state are u in? I havent physically been there as my husband has busy job hours and I am soo dependent on him bec of no license...

I am in Colorado. Same here! I think im gonna print what it says on their webpage plus this from uscis and give it a try.

https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/temporary-i-551-stamps-and-mrivs

[carmel34 3,635]

Sometimes you have to ask for a supervisor.  Many DMVs still have old sample documents in their policies so they may not know that the stamped visa "serves as an I-551 for one year from entry to the US," it says it right on the visa.  In California, the DMV did not accept my husband's stamped CR-1 visa as proof of LPR status, they had old sample visas that had an actual I-551 stamp but they don't do that at POE anymore, they just stamp the visa with the date of US entry.  He had to wait for his green card (3 months) to get his driver's license.  And even then, he had to send a photocopy of his green card to Sacramento for legal status verification.  Every state is different, hopefully you will be okay in Colorado if you politely ask for a supervisor and explain that the stamped visa serves as a green card for one year.  Good luck!

Edited January 24, 2020 by carmel34

[Boiler 45,557]

Both CA and CO issuesa license without the need for documentation.

[Talo 26]

18 minutes ago, carmel34 said:

Sometimes you have to ask for a supervisor.  Many DMVs still have old sample documents in their policies so they may not know that the stamped visa "serves as an I-551 for one year from entry to the US," it says it right on the visa.  In California, the DMV did not accept my husband's stamped CR-1 visa as proof of LPR status, they had old sample visas that had an actual I-551 stamp but they don't do that at POE anymore, they just stamp the visa with the date of US entry.  He had to wait for his green card (3 months) to get his driver's license.  And even then, he had to send a photocopy of his green card to Sacramento for legal status verification.  Every state is different, hopefully you will be okay in Colorado if you politely ask for a supervisor and explain that the stamped visa serves as a green card for one year.  Good luck!

Thanks for the info. Yes, I will print the USCIS info about the stamp and hope I get a good employee. Fingers crossed.

[Ontarkie 14,234]

~~Moved to Moving Here and Your New LIfe, from General Immigration Discussion - as the topic of DL comes up often here.~~

[K-Kwette 114]

I went to the DMV in New Jersey with my social security number and my stamp in the passport as I also don't have the actual green card yet.

I registered like everybody else, with my 6 points of ID, but then they called me back saying that they are not able to confirm my immigrant status. They said they will have to call directly USCIS to check my immigrant status and that they would call me within 2 weeks. They called me back after around one week once my status came back clear, and I could go back and take the written test. 

[Talo 26]

7 minutes ago, K-Kwette said:

I went to the DMV in New Jersey with my social security number and my stamp in the passport as I also don't have the actual green card yet.

I registered like everybody else, with my 6 points of ID, but then they called me back saying that they are not able to confirm my immigrant status. They said they will have to call directly USCIS to check my immigrant status and that they would call me within 2 weeks. They called me back after around one week once my status came back clear, and I could go back and take the written test. 

Great! Thanks for the info. My appointment is on Thursday. Fingers crossed! 😁