POLICIES
AND INSTRUCTION FOR OBTAINING A
The New Jersey Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has announced the following new rules effective Monday, November 19, 2001. These rules will directly affect all nonimmigrant students and scholars at Montclair State University who wish to drive in the state of New Jersey. A nonimmigrant is a person in the United States on a valid temporary visa such as an F-1 or J-1 visa.
All nonimmigrant visa holders who want or need to apply for a New Jersey driver’s license (see below) will have to apply at one of the DMV’s four regional centers. Nonimmigrants may no longer obtain New Jersey driver’s licenses at local DMV offices.
The DMV regional center closest to Montclair State
University is in Wayne:
(We have been advised that nonimmigrants should be
prepared to wait as long as 4 or 5 hours for complete processing.
Take your lunch, homework, or some other reading with you.)
1578 Route 23 North
Wayne, New Jersey 07470
Rt. 80 to Rt. 23 North. Once you drive through the first traffic light,
stay in
For details on the other regional DMV centers, or for
more information of any kind, call 1-888-486-3339 toll free in New Jersey or 1-609-292-6500
from out of state. To access the
website of the DMV, go to: http://www.state.nj.us/mvs/
WHO
NEEDS TO APPLY FOR A NEW JERSEY DRIVER’S LICENSE?
For nonimmigrants
who will be in the U.S. for less than one year:
§ If you have a valid driver’s license from your home country or an international driver’s license, you do not need to apply for a New Jersey driver’s license, and may use your home country license throughout your stay.
§
If you do not wish to drive
in New Jersey, you do not need a valid driver’s license at all.
For nonimmigrants
who will be in the U.S. for more than one year:
§
If you have a valid
driver’s license from your home country (or one that expired within the past
12 months) and you wish to drive in New Jersey, you may use your home
country license for the first two months of your stay in New Jersey.
After that, you must apply for a New Jersey driver’s license at one of
the DMV’s 4 regional centers.
§
If you do not have a valid
driver’s license from your home country (or one that expired within the past
12 months) and you wish to drive in New Jersey, you must apply for a New
Jersey license at one of the DMV’s 4 regional centers.
§
If you do not wish to drive
in New Jersey, you do not need a valid driver’s license at all. However,
if you would like to have a photo ID card issued by the DMV, you will have to go
to one of the DMV regional centers to obtain one.
WHAT
IS THE PROCEDURE FOR APPLYING FOR A NEW JERSEY DRIVER’S LICENSE?
If
you do not have a valid or recently-expired driver’s license from your home
country, you
will first be required to purchase a permit and will be subject to normal
“Graduated Driver License Program” rules outlined on the DMV’s website (http://www.state.nj.us/mvs/)
before being able to obtain an actual driver’s license.
If you have a valid or recently-expired driver’s license from your home country, you must still purchase a permit, but will not be not subject to the rules of the “Graduated Driver License Program.” You need only take and pass a written test at a regional DMV center in order to obtain an actual driver’s license.
All nonimmigrants must have the following documents with them when applying for a New Jersey driver’s license, driver’s permit or photo ID card:
§ If you have one, a valid or recently expired driver’s license from your home country. If the license from your home country is not in English, you will probably be asked to supply an English translation of the license, as well.
§ Valid passport
§ Valid I-94 card (white card in passport)
§ Valid visa document to correspond with nonimmigrant status:
-F-1/F-2: valid I-20 (Check item five, completion date, to be sure of validity)
-J-1/J-2: valid IAP-66
-H-1/H-4:
valid I-797