Foreign driver’s licenses.

Plain English Breakdown

It is unclear whether the bill will be signed into law or what further actions may occur after its passage through the legislature.

Foreign Driver's Licenses

This law would allow people from Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea who are at least 18 years old to get a California driver’s license without taking the driving test if they meet certain conditions.

What This Bill Does

• Allows the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to waive the driving test for people from Japan, Taiwan, or South Korea who want a noncommercial class C driver's license.
• Requires these applicants to be at least 18 years old and have proof they live legally in California.
• Needs the foreign country to agree to give similar licenses to Californians under an agreement called a memorandum of understanding (MOU).
• Limits this waiver if federal law or treaties don't allow it, and if there are issues with the applicant's driving record.

Who It Names or Affects

• People from Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea who want to get a California driver’s license.
• The Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in California.

Terms To Know

memorandum of understanding

An agreement between two or more parties that outlines their intentions and responsibilities, often used for international agreements.

noncommercial class C driver’s license

A type of driver's license in California that allows someone to drive a regular car but not commercial vehicles like trucks.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill only applies if federal laws and treaties allow it.
• It does not change the requirement for people from other countries to surrender their foreign licenses before getting a California license.
• The DMV must verify that there are no issues with an applicant's driving record.

Official Summary Text

AB 2196, as introduced, Ta.
Foreign driver’s licenses.
Existing law prohibits a person from having in the person’s possession or otherwise under the person’s control more than one driver’s license. Existing law prohibits the Department of Motor Vehicles from issuing a driver’s license to, or renewing a driver’s license of, a person who holds a valid driver’s license issued by a foreign jurisdiction unless the license has been surrendered to the department, or is lost or destroyed. Except as specified, existing law requires the department to require an applicant for an original driver’s license to submit satisfactory proof of California residency and that the applicant’s presence in the United States is authorized under federal law.
Existing law requires the department, upon application for an original driver’s license, except a student license, to require an examination of the applicant. Existing law
requires the examination to test, among other things, the applicant’s knowledge and understanding of the provisions of the Vehicle Code governing the operation of vehicles upon the highways, an actual demonstration of the applicant’s ability to exercise ordinary and reasonable control in operating a motor vehicle by driving it under the supervision of an examining officer, and a test of the hearing and eyesight of the applicant, as specified. Existing law authorizes the department to waive the driving test part of the examination for an applicant who submits a license issued by another state, territory, or possession of the United States, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico if the department verifies through any acknowledged national driver record data source that there are no stops, holds, or other impediments to its issuance.
This bill would authorize the department, for purposes of the issuance of a noncommercial class C driver’s license,
to the extent not prohibited by federal law or treaty, to waive the driving test part of the examination for an applicant who submits a driver’s license issued by Japan, the Republic of China (Taiwan), and South Korea, also referred to as “foreign nation,” under specified conditions, including a requirement that the foreign nation, in a memorandum of understanding, extends the same reciprocal privilege relating to the issuance of a driver’s license to a person who holds a valid California driver’s license. The bill would require an applicant to be 18 years of age or older, to submit satisfactory proof of legal residency in California and specified documents issued by the foreign nation, and to have no stops, holds, or other impediments to issuance in the person’s driving record. The bill would specify that an applicant may submit a driver’s license issued by a foreign nation that is equivalent to a noncommercial or a commercial class A, class B, or class C California driver’s license, but would require the
California driver’s license issued by the department to the applicant to be a noncommercial class C driver’s license only.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF