Obtaining a Wisconsin Driver's License

[P055UM 281]

I thought I would write a quick post about my experience of obtaining a Drivers' license in Wisconsin, for any other K1 beneficiaries who move to the Badger state. This is mostly just a brief timeline, calling out things I would have liked to have known before I started the process.

 

• First point is, pretty much all foreign drivers have to obtain a new license by taking a test. There are exemptions for only a few countries (Germany, France, Korea, Taiwan and Canada, I believe, but there may be more). Being from the UK and having driven my entire life on the left hand side, I had no choice but to take a new test.
• You can drive on a foreign license for 60 days “from the point that you establish residence”. I never got a straight answer on what “establishing residence” meant, however I always took it to mean 60 days from when you satisfy the criteria the state of Wisconsin has set out for you to be able to prove that you are resident. Here is a link to all of the documentation requirements https://wisconsindot.gov/Documents/dmv/shared/bds316-english.pdf - in my case, I took establishing residence to be 60 days from when I got the second piece of evidence that would prove my residence. The documents are kind of weird and include signing up for various services - in my case I used bank account and cycle sharing welcome letters - so it is worth signing up for things like that whilst you have free time!
• You must get an instruction permit before you can take your road test. To get an instruction permit, you must complete the knowledge test. It is pretty straightforward and consists of 15 road sign recognition questions, and 50 road procedure/safety questions - all are multiple choice (signs out of 4 and other questions out of 3, if I recall), and the pass mark is 80%. There are apps available to practice on and also reading the WI driver handbook gives you a lot of good information.
• For newbies to the US, though, there are also a couple of immigration hurdles to jump - yahoo! 
  • Firstly, you will need a social security number. This is important - the Wisconsin DOT website definitely makes it seem like you can obtain a DL without an SSN, with the provision of the SSN just determining whether it is a “REAL ID” or not. Since I wasn’t bothered about having a REAL ID, I went to the DMV before I had an SSN. I got a long way through the process (including taking the knowledge test), before I was told that I couldn’t go any further since I didn’t have an SSN. At this point I had already spoken to and had my application cleared by one agent (and had extensive email correspondence with the “legal presence team”), and it was then denied by a second agent and a manger - so word of warning also some agents don’t appear to know the rules. I was then told that if you are someone who is eligible for an SSN (as K1’s are), it is not possible to obtain a DL without an SSN. This would appear to be the case even if you are in the unfortunate position of having been timed out of getting an SSN - so again, getting that SSN is really really important!
  • Secondly, you will need your I-797s from your AoS/EAD/AP application - so don’t bother going along until you have these. They need these to verify your immigration status (my verification included multiple internal DMV emails sent to the wrong mailboxes and cost me three hours of my life - but that was just unusual I suspect).
• Hopefully after this, you should have your instruction permit - congrats! This allows you to drive at any time with a licensed spouse or instructor in the car. You can book your road test immediately, but you need to wait a week in order to take it, presumably to fit some lessons in…
• My experience of the road test:
  • The practical portion was very pleasant. My examiner was incredibly professional and friendly and put me at ease. The test took around 10 minutes(!) and consisted of driving around the neighbourhood that the DMV is located in, as well as backing along a curb, a Y-turn and hill stop including correct wheel alignment. At the end of my test he informed me that I had passed. I did most of my learning just driving in the wild and watching Youtube videos. I’d guess this would be enough for most experienced drivers, but I would recommend reading the Wisconsin Drivers’ manual from cover to cover, in order to understand certain rules and situations which may not exist in your home country.
  • After you pass, you are instructed to go into the DMV building and start a whole new DL application - yep, including providing again all the documents that you have already provided them. This wasn’t something I was aware of (your confirmation email only instructs you to bring your instruction permit), and perhaps is buried somewhere in the WiDOT website, but it is at least not obvious. So while I was waiting in line, my wife had to scurry across the city to get my immigration paperwork. So, please, bring all the documentation you brought to your instruction permit application back for your road test.
• After that, pay your fee and boom, you’re done. Congrats, you can now resume your life without stressing about how you will get to places.

 

This was probably a bit long-winded and will only be relevant to a tiny fraction of the users of this site, but in the spirit of helping people out I just wanted to get down a few things that I wished I had known beforehand. Hope it helps someone out there!

[R1CH1991 247]

I moved to Milwaukee last December and can totally relate! Such a palaver to get the license! Thanks for posting the info!!

[yoda one for me 322]

Been meaning to take some lessons and a road test - got an instruction permit for WI and a full UK license and planned on refresher lessons before taking the test - but Covid made me a little freaked out to be enclosed with strangers (lol, I know). Ought to get that sorted now, sounds like it wasn't as much of a fuss in Madison as I expected. Thanks for the WI specific tips!

Edited November 29, 2021 by yoda one for me

[P055UM 281]

17 minutes ago, yoda one for me said:

Been meaning to take some lessons and a road test - got an instruction permit for WI and a full UK license and planned on refresher lessons before taking the test - but Covid made me a little freaked out to be enclosed with strangers (lol, I know). Ought to get that sorted now, sounds like it wasn't as much of a fuss in Madison as I expected. Thanks for the WI specific tips!

I totally get it and also wasn't keen to be getting in a car with strangers. I kind of reasoned that the test was very cheap, so to give it my best shot first time round and then get an instructor if needed after that. FYI, I took mine at Madison East. Good luck!

[yoda one for me 322]

Ahh, cool! I'll be taking it Madison West. My husband has a truck I've been leery about driving but I feel like I'm going to have to just bite the bullet. I don't relish the idea of doing maneuvers in it though! (We're planning on selling it for something smaller once I have my full license anyway.)

[P055UM 281]

1 hour ago, yoda one for me said:

Ahh, cool! I'll be taking it Madison West. My husband has a truck I've been leery about driving but I feel like I'm going to have to just bite the bullet. I don't relish the idea of doing maneuvers in it though! (We're planning on selling it for something smaller once I have my full license anyway.)

Aha! Right there with you! Being in those trucks is fun, but much better when driven by others! Best of luck when the time comes!

[Wuozopo 4,293]

3 hours ago, yoda one for me said:

Ahh, cool! I'll be taking it Madison West. My husband has a truck I've been leery about driving but I feel like I'm going to have to just bite the bullet. I don't relish the idea of doing maneuvers in it though! (We're planning on selling it for something smaller once I have my full license anyway.)

Rent or borrow a car for your test??

[Siddsgal 80]

On 11/29/2021 at 1:28 PM, AW1704 said:

I thought I would write a quick post about my experience of obtaining a Drivers' license in Wisconsin, for any other K1 beneficiaries who move to the Badger state. This is mostly just a brief timeline, calling out things I would have liked to have known before I started the process.

 

• First point is, pretty much all foreign drivers have to obtain a new license by taking a test. There are exemptions for only a few countries (Germany, France, Korea, Taiwan and Canada, I believe, but there may be more). Being from the UK and having driven my entire life on the left hand side, I had no choice but to take a new test.
• You can drive on a foreign license for 60 days “from the point that you establish residence”. I never got a straight answer on what “establishing residence” meant, however I always took it to mean 60 days from when you satisfy the criteria the state of Wisconsin has set out for you to be able to prove that you are resident. Here is a link to all of the documentation requirements https://wisconsindot.gov/Documents/dmv/shared/bds316-english.pdf - in my case, I took establishing residence to be 60 days from when I got the second piece of evidence that would prove my residence. The documents are kind of weird and include signing up for various services - in my case I used bank account and cycle sharing welcome letters - so it is worth signing up for things like that whilst you have free time!
• You must get an instruction permit before you can take your road test. To get an instruction permit, you must complete the knowledge test. It is pretty straightforward and consists of 15 road sign recognition questions, and 50 road procedure/safety questions - all are multiple choice (signs out of 4 and other questions out of 3, if I recall), and the pass mark is 80%. There are apps available to practice on and also reading the WI driver handbook gives you a lot of good information.
• For newbies to the US, though, there are also a couple of immigration hurdles to jump - yahoo! 
  • Firstly, you will need a social security number. This is important - the Wisconsin DOT website definitely makes it seem like you can obtain a DL without an SSN, with the provision of the SSN just determining whether it is a “REAL ID” or not. Since I wasn’t bothered about having a REAL ID, I went to the DMV before I had an SSN. I got a long way through the process (including taking the knowledge test), before I was told that I couldn’t go any further since I didn’t have an SSN. At this point I had already spoken to and had my application cleared by one agent (and had extensive email correspondence with the “legal presence team”), and it was then denied by a second agent and a manger - so word of warning also some agents don’t appear to know the rules. I was then told that if you are someone who is eligible for an SSN (as K1’s are), it is not possible to obtain a DL without an SSN. This would appear to be the case even if you are in the unfortunate position of having been timed out of getting an SSN - so again, getting that SSN is really really important!
  • Secondly, you will need your I-797s from your AoS/EAD/AP application - so don’t bother going along until you have these. They need these to verify your immigration status (my verification included multiple internal DMV emails sent to the wrong mailboxes and cost me three hours of my life - but that was just unusual I suspect).
• Hopefully after this, you should have your instruction permit - congrats! This allows you to drive at any time with a licensed spouse or instructor in the car. You can book your road test immediately, but you need to wait a week in order to take it, presumably to fit some lessons in…
• My experience of the road test:
  • The practical portion was very pleasant. My examiner was incredibly professional and friendly and put me at ease. The test took around 10 minutes(!) and consisted of driving around the neighbourhood that the DMV is located in, as well as backing along a curb, a Y-turn and hill stop including correct wheel alignment. At the end of my test he informed me that I had passed. I did most of my learning just driving in the wild and watching Youtube videos. I’d guess this would be enough for most experienced drivers, but I would recommend reading the Wisconsin Drivers’ manual from cover to cover, in order to understand certain rules and situations which may not exist in your home country.
  • After you pass, you are instructed to go into the DMV building and start a whole new DL application - yep, including providing again all the documents that you have already provided them. This wasn’t something I was aware of (your confirmation email only instructs you to bring your instruction permit), and perhaps is buried somewhere in the WiDOT website, but it is at least not obvious. So while I was waiting in line, my wife had to scurry across the city to get my immigration paperwork. So, please, bring all the documentation you brought to your instruction permit application back for your road test.
• After that, pay your fee and boom, you’re done. Congrats, you can now resume your life without stressing about how you will get to places.

 

This was probably a bit long-winded and will only be relevant to a tiny fraction of the users of this site, but in the spirit of helping people out I just wanted to get down a few things that I wished I had known beforehand. Hope it helps someone out there!

As a fellow Wisconsinite that hopefully will be

bringing her Indian hubby here soon, his interview is tomorrow night WI time, I appreciated this!! He doesn’t have an Indian license so he’ll be starting from scratch. Cuz he’ll be coming on an IR1 visa he’ll be able to work right away so he’s been studying the WI DOT drivers manual while waiting for his interview. I live in the country in the middle of nowhere & there’s not a taxi service in our entire county so driving (or horse & buggy) is a requirement for all of us here if we wanna go to work or anywhere lol. Once he gets SS card hopefully he’ll be ready to get license. 
Thanks for sharing your experience and all the tips!! 

[P055UM 281]

19 minutes ago, Siddsgal said:

As a fellow Wisconsinite that hopefully will be

bringing her Indian hubby here soon, his interview is tomorrow night WI time, I appreciated this!! He doesn’t have an Indian license so he’ll be starting from scratch. Cuz he’ll be coming on an IR1 visa he’ll be able to work right away so he’s been studying the WI DOT drivers manual while waiting for his interview. I live in the country in the middle of nowhere & there’s not a taxi service in our entire county so driving (or horse & buggy) is a requirement for all of us here if we wanna go to work or anywhere lol. Once he gets SS card hopefully he’ll be ready to get license. 
Thanks for sharing your experience and all the tips!! 

You're very welcome - like I said in the post I know it's niche but I am glad to know it has helped! I just checked your area on the map and oh boy I can sure imagine how important driving is for you all! Sending luck for his interview tomorrow

[Siddsgal 80]

20 minutes ago, AW1704 said:

You're very welcome - like I said in the post I know it's niche but I am glad to know it has helped! I just checked your area on the map and oh boy I can sure imagine how important driving is for you all! Sending luck for his interview tomorrow

Ya, there’s not a Walmart or any other big store in my county, think we got 1 town that has 1 traffic light in entire county 😂. 
Coming from Mumbai, it’s gonna be a huge culture & temperature shock but he absolutely hates big city life and loves everything about the peace, quiet & remoteness around me he’s seen through the phone screen for yrs so hopefully he’ll be ok. I know that the best thing I can do to help him adjust is to help him get a job & driving is a huge part of that. 
The DMV is an hour away from me so I really appreciated you sharing that you needed your forms when went the second time, I screenshoted that so I don’t have to waste 2 hours of a day driving for his forms in the future lol. 
Thanks again!!

[P055UM 281]

15 hours ago, Siddsgal said:

Ya, there’s not a Walmart or any other big store in my county, think we got 1 town that has 1 traffic light in entire county 😂. 
Coming from Mumbai, it’s gonna be a huge culture & temperature shock but he absolutely hates big city life and loves everything about the peace, quiet & remoteness around me he’s seen through the phone screen for yrs so hopefully he’ll be ok. I know that the best thing I can do to help him adjust is to help him get a job & driving is a huge part of that. 
The DMV is an hour away from me so I really appreciated you sharing that you needed your forms when went the second time, I screenshoted that so I don’t have to waste 2 hours of a day driving for his forms in the future lol. 
Thanks again!!

Oh yeah, that will be some change, but I am sure it'll be great for your guys  sending good wishes for tonight!

[Siddsgal 80]

1 hour ago, AW1704 said:

Oh yeah, that will be some change, but I am sure it'll be great for your guys  sending good wishes for tonight!

Thanks a lot!! Even if we get a 221, we’re so thankful to finally have made it to this stage♥️