Non-immigrant Driver’s License

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The State of Illinois recently passed a law, which will allow certain non-immigrants the ability to obtain an Illinois Driver's License. In summary, the law states that the Illinois Secretary of State's office can issue temporary driver's licenses to foreign nationals who reside in Illinois, are ineligible to obtain a social security number, and present documentation issued by the USCIS authorizing the individual's lawful presence in the country. The law indicates that the temporary driver's license to be issued to the foreign national will be valid for three years or the period of time that the foreign national is authorized to remain in the U.S., whichever is earlier.

The new law becomes effective on January 1, 2005; however, before the new law can come into effect, the state of Illinois will need to devise regulations to implement the law. This means that non-immigrants may not be able to benefit from this new law until some time after January 1, 2005.

If you like to read the Illinois House bill please visit http://www.ilga.gov/ and look for HB5320.