New York State driver's license and ID

To drive you need a license or learner permit; if you only need a state ID, get a non-driver ID. A REAL ID is a license or non-driver ID that meets the federal REAL ID Act; airports accept it.

1. Check that you qualify

   You must be 16 or older; citizenship and status don't matter. The law covers only non-commercial licenses: no commercial license (CDL), no voter registration, and no path to citizenship.

2. Choose an office and check the reservation rules

   Find the nearest office on the DMV website and open the appointment rules for your county. Every office helps people with limited English.

3. Prepare for the written test

   Study the Driver Manual and take practice tests on the DMV website. The Class D test is offered in 20 languages, Russian included.

4. Gather your documents

   A completed form MV-44, documents proving your name, age and address, and the test fee. The DMV's interactive pre-screening tool tells you what to bring and lets you print a filled-in application.

5. Sign the statement that you have no SSN

   If you were never issued an SSN, sign a sworn affidavit saying so at the DMV. It is worth 0 points.

6. Pass the written test

   You take the test at a DMV office, with your documents. An online test is only for people under 18: the DMV then needs 3 business days to check the result and documents, and if you come in earlier you have to retake it.

7. Take the required course

   Before the road test, every new driver takes a DMV-approved Pre-Licensing Course (the “five-hour course”) or a 48-hour Driver Education program at a school or college. You need the original MV-278 certificate (or MV-285 after a school program); copies are not accepted.

8. Practice with a licensed driver

   With a learner permit you always drive with a licensed driver and follow the permit's limits. Under-18s must wait 6 months after getting the permit. Junior licenses DJ (cars) and MJ (motorcycles) also need at least 50 practice hours, 15 after sunset, and form MV-262 signed by a parent or guardian.

9. Book the road test

   Book on the DMV website; you can reschedule or cancel there too. You need a valid learner permit, the original MV-278 and the ZIP code where you want to test (it doesn't have to be where you live). The next date is usually 3 to 5 weeks out, up to 10 weeks in summer and holidays; there is no waitlist.

10. Prepare for test day

    Bring your physical learner permit, the original MV-278, glasses or lenses if your permit requires them, and MV-262 if you are under 18. The car must be registered, insured and inspected, with permanent plates. A driver with a physical license comes with you: over 18 if they drive you there, over 21 if you drive yourself there. No other passengers; Mobile ID is not accepted. Arrive 15 minutes early: if you are late you may lose the test.

11. Get your result

    Results are online after 6 pm on the test day. If you passed, a temporary license is available online; keep it with your permit; the photo license comes by mail in about 2 weeks. If not, the permit stays valid until it expires, you can retest after 14 days, and after two failures each new attempt has a fee. All new drivers have a 6-month probation.

• DMV reservations

  Any status

  Reservations at DMV offices. Rules for your county are under “Instructions and Reservation Information for Your County”. Every office helps people with limited English.

  dmv.ny.gov

• Road test bookings

  Any status

  Book, reschedule or cancel the road test on the DMV website.

  dmv.ny.gov

Documents must prove your name, date of birth and that you live in the state. You need 6 points for your name plus one proof of address. Only originals or copies certified by the issuing agency are accepted; documents not in English need a certified translation. The full list is in DMV brochure ID-44.

A standard license needs one proof of address, and REAL ID needs two. The DMV accepts one document per source.

• The DMV pre-screening tool and the ID-44 booklet

  Any statusFree

  The DMV website has an interactive pre-screening tool: from your answers it builds a list of forms and documents and lets you print a completed application. The full list of documents is in the booklet ID-44, "How to Apply for a New York Learner Permit, Driver License, Non-Driver ID Card."

  dmv.ny.gov

1. Check your status

   A non-driver ID is only for people with lawful status, at any age; the Green Light Law does not cover it. A valid EAD proves status; a foreign passport alone does not.

2. Prepare documents and the fee

   Bring the documents from brochure ID-44 (the DMV website tool helps) and the fee. You apply only at a DMV office, not online.

3. If you are under 21

   A parent or guardian can confirm your identity with form MV-45, signing it at the DMV in front of staff and showing 6 points of their own ID. You still show proof of your date of birth and your Social Security card or proof you are not eligible. A parent can apply for a child under 16.

4. Receive the temporary document

   At the office you get a temporary document without a photo, valid 60 days. The permanent card comes by mail; you can track it online.

• A free or low-cost ID

  Any statusFee can be waived

  On the DMV fee table a non-driver ID for people 62 and over costs $6.50 for 10 years, and is free with SSI (federal benefits for low-income older and disabled people). Anyone on temporary assistance gets a 4-year ID for free. Apply at an office or by mail (not online) with proof of benefits: for SSI a Notice of Award; for other benefits a Client Notice System (CNS) notice or, in New York City, a Budget Letter from the Department of Social Services. Bring originals to an office; mail photocopies. The fee is not refunded. You can ask for a Budget Letter on the DSS line, 718-557-1399: its menu has Russian, and staff bring in a free interpreter.

  718-557-1399dmv.ny.gov

The total depends on your age and where you live: the application, the license class fee, the document fee and the MCTD fee (a regional transportation fee, $1 for every 6 months of validity). MCTD applies to residents of the Bronx, Brooklyn (Kings County), Manhattan (New York County), Queens, Staten Island (Richmond County) and Dutchess, Nassau, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester counties.

• Other DMV fees

  Any statusLow cost

  A replacement license or permit is $17.50; changing details on a license is $12.50, on a non-driver ID $5. A new photo outside renewal: $17.50 for a license, $13 for a non-driver ID. An Enhanced document adds $30, not included in the table. Go by the DMV fee table (from $64.25); Green Light Law materials give a range of $64.50 to $107.50.

  dmv.ny.gov

• How to pay

  Any status

  At an office: cash, most credit, debit and prepaid cards without a PIN (American Express, Discover, MasterCard, Visa), a personal check or money order to “Commissioner of Motor Vehicles”; you can split between cash and check. By mail: check or money order only.

  dmv.ny.gov

• Exchanging a foreign license

  Any status

  Licenses from outside the US and Canada usually can't be exchanged: apply for a new one and take the tests. The exception is a “select foreign jurisdiction” license: under DMV brochure ID-44 (2/26 edition) the written and road tests may be waived if it has been valid at least 6 months and expired no more than 2 years ago. You hand your foreign license to the examiner at the road test. Once you become a resident you must get a New York license within 30 days. Living in the state 90 days is presumptive evidence of residence, and police can use it to ticket you for driving without a New York license. A judge, not the DMV, decides whether you are a resident; foreign students usually are not.

  dmv.ny.gov

• If you never had a license at home

  Any status

  If you have never had a license, take the written test, the five-hour course and the road test.

  dmv.ny.gov

• If you are only visiting

  Any status

  Visitors from abroad don't need a New York license: you can drive on your foreign one until you become a resident. An International Driving Permit is optional but useful: it repeats your details in several languages, which helps police read it. You get it in your home country.

  dmv.ny.gov

• Data protection under the Green Light Law

  Any status

  The law limits the sharing of DMV data, including with agencies that primarily enforce immigration laws, and requires the DMV to tell the license holder when an immigration enforcement agency requests their data.

  dmv.ny.gov

• The federal government's lawsuit against the law

  Any status

  The federal government sued over the law. On December 23, 2025 the Northern District of New York (Judge Anne Nardacci) dismissed the suit; on February 20, 2026 the government appealed to the Second Circuit. According to the Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse, there is no ruling on the appeal as of November 2026.

  clearinghouse.net

• Renewing and replacing without an SSN

  Any status

  If your license was issued without proof of SSN, renew or change it by mail or at an office: DMV online services need an SSN. A license expired less than two years ago may still be renewable.

  dmv.ny.gov

• What the law does not give

  Any status

  The law gives no commercial license (CDL), does not change voter registration rules (only US citizens vote) and does not lead to citizenship: it covers only the right to drive in the state.

  dmv.ny.gov

• REAL ID

  Any status

  A REAL ID needs proof of SSN, citizenship or lawful status, two proofs of address and 6 name points. Without proof of SSN (or an SSA letter that you are not eligible) or lawful status, your license will say “NOT FOR FEDERAL PURPOSES”. With a temporary status, a REAL ID expires no later than your status document.

  dmv.ny.gov

• Changing the name or gender marker on your license

  Any statusLow cost

  Changing your name or gender marker costs $12.50 on a license and $5 on a non-driver ID, unless the DMV quotes another amount.

  dmv.ny.gov

• ONA hotline

  Any statusFree

  New York State's Office for New Americans (ONA) hotline helps DMV customers with immigration-related questions and discrimination at DMV offices. Live operators speak more than 200 languages; anyone can call, confidentially and anonymously. Say "Russian" and they answer through an interpreter.

  1-800-566-7636dos.ny.govMon–Fri 8 am–8 pm, Sat–Sun 9 am–5 pm (Eastern time)