What's happening
This bill allows individuals with valid or recently expired driver's licenses from specified Caribbean countries and territories to exchange them for a New York license after passing written and vision tests.
Why it matters
Expands access to New York licenses for Caribbean immigrants and visitors,. potentially easing integration and employment opportunities for individuals from the listed countries by recognizing their prior driving experience.
Maintains safety standards. by still requiring applicants to pass a written test and vision exam, ensuring that all drivers meet New York’s knowledge and physical requirements before being licensed.
Specifies strict eligibility criteria. only licenses that are currently valid or expired within the last six months, and issued at least six months prior, can be exchanged, which helps prevent abuse and ensures recent driving experience.
May reduce unlicensed driving and related legal issues. among Caribbean nationals in New York, as it provides a clear, legal pathway to licensure for a sizable immigrant population.
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Who cares
License holders from the listed countries and territories
They could exchange qualifying licenses for New York licenses, subject to written and vision tests.
New York Department of Motor Vehicles
The department would have to accept qualifying licenses as proof of identity, age and examination and issue New York licenses under the exchange rules.
Applicants with recently expired foreign licenses
They could qualify if their licenses expired within the past six months, were issued at least six months before application and were not suspended, revoked, lost or stolen.
Headline styles
Allow Caribbean License Exchange
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
Senator · Senate District 14
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to transportation
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
Exchange Foreign Driver's Licenses
In Assembly Committee · Transportation · Sponsor N. Nick Perry
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
8300
IN SENATE
May 8, 2020
Introduced by Sen. COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to permitting the exchange of drivers licenses from certain countries
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 502 of the vehicle and traffic law is amended by adding a new subdivision 1-a to read as follows:
1-a. License exchange for certain countries. (a) Notwithstanding any provisions of this section, the commissioner shall accept as valid for purposes of identification, age and examination a driver's license issued from a country listed in paragraph (b) of this subdivision and shall issue a license to drive in this state to an individual holding a license described in paragraph (c) of this subdivision, provided however, the individual shall be subject to the written examination and the vision test required by subdivision four of this section.
(b) A drivers license issued by the following countries or territories shall be valid for purposes of paragraph (a) of this subdivision: Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, Saba, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sint Eustatius, Sint Maarten, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the Virgin Islands of the United States.
(c) A license issued by a country listed in paragraph (b) of this subdivision shall be accepted for exchange if it: is valid or has expired within the past six months; states the date upon which it was issued and it was issued a minimum of six months prior to the date of the application; and is not suspended, revoked, lost or stolen.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD07205-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to permitting the exchange of drivers licenses from certain countries
Purpose
To allow individuals who have obtained their driver's license from a Caribbean country to convert it to a New York State driver's license.
Summary of provisions
Section one of the bill adds subdivision 1-a to § 502 of the vehicle and traffic law to direct the commissioner of the department of motor vehi- cles to accept as valid for proof of identification, age, and examina- tion a driver's license issued by Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guya- na, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinque, Montserrat, Puerto Rico, Saba, Saint Barthelemy, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Martin, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Eustatius, Saint Maarten, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands, and the Virgin Islands of the United States. This section also provides that an individual who has been issued a license by one of the aforementioned countries shall be issued a New York state driver's license provided the individual passes the written and vision tests, the license is valid or has expired within the past six months, states the date it was issued and issued at least six months prior to the date of application, and has not been suspended, revoked, lost, or stolen.
Section two of the bill provides the effective date.
Justification
According to the US Census, over 4.4 million immigrants live in New York. A significant percentage of the immigrant population emigrated from a Caribbean county. According to Wadabagei, a Journal of the Carib- bean and Its Global Diasporas, in New York City alone, the people born in a Caribbean country make up 20.8 percent of the foreign-born popu- lation.
Many of these immigrants have moved to New York in search of a better life for themselves and their loved ones. Because driving is a necessity in every practical sense, one of the ways New York can help Caribbean immigrants is by giving them the opportunity to convert the license they have obtained from their home country to a New York State driver's license. Currently, if a person moves to New York State from another country, in order to obtain a New York State driver's license they must get a learner's permit and pass a road test, just like an individual who had never had a driver's license. Other states, such as New Jersey and Connecticut, allow immigrants to convert their driver's license by requiring little more than the passage of a written test. New York should help the Caribbean immigrant population by allowing them to convert their driver's license to a New York State driver's license.
Prior legislative history
2017-2018: A.8204 - Referred to Transportation
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
Immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.