SSN card + IL license = CA license ?

August 13, 2014 10:11 PM

Are an out-of-state license and a social security card enough to establish "birth date and legal presence" for the California DMV?

I made an appointment a few weeks ago at a California DMV location in order to get a CA license, after asking here. The appointment is tomorrow morning. I neglected to read the checklist until just now and realized I don't have a birth certificate here -- all I've got is my social security card and my out-of-state driver's license. Those aren't listed in the list of accepted documents, as far as I can tell, but: are those enough? How rigid is this limitation, in practice? It's a nontrivial commute tomorrow morning: is it worth going anyway?

Thanks!

posted by wayland to Law & Government (7 answers total)

The point is proof of residency and proof of identity. I had my passport on me as proof of citizenship, but I don't think it was necessary. They just used my TX license and scanned to see if there were any holds on renewal. Since I don't have utilities in my name, I used my lease as proof of residency. Worked out fine for me.
posted by politikitty at 10:20 PM on August 13, 2014

Do you have a passport at all? I didn't need a birth certificate, but I did need a passport (or one of the documents on this list.)
posted by jetlagaddict at 10:20 PM on August 13, 2014

(maybe this varies by DMV-- they didn't ask to see my lease or utilities at all)
posted by jetlagaddict at 10:21 PM on August 13, 2014

Best answer: When I did this in another state, the license + ssn was not enough and they sent me home to get my passport. It was also a non trivial commute.
posted by LaunchBox at 10:25 PM on August 13, 2014

Response by poster: No, no passport, or anything else on the list.
posted by wayland at 10:32 PM on August 13, 2014

Best answer: CA will want a notarized copy of your birth certificate.
posted by brujita at 10:33 PM on August 13, 2014

Yeah, California was a complete pain in the ass about this when I tried to get a CA license. You will need a birth certificate.
posted by usonian at 2:19 AM on August 14, 2014