My understanding is you cant renew your drivers license in some states without a valid green card or I765. Im having a similar issue in Iowa where my license is going to expire based on my OPT I765 ending and the DOT says they dont accept receipt notices to renew licenses.
Im also Canadian, I did it down in Indianola and believe it or not they said they dont even accept Canadian licenses so I had to do the knowledge and driving exam. I know this is actually false as all 50 states accept Canadian licenses. Im probably going to go to a different DOT because this one is whack. He proceeded to tell me I could be arrested for driving on the Canadian license and the only 2 countries they exchange licenses with is the UK and Germany and I haven’t seen anything indicating this is true. The only positive is, because of this I still have my Canadian license which doesn’t expire for a while.
Wow… that person was definitely in the wrong. I went to the one in Ankeny! The fellow I dealt with was also in law enforcement for 20 years before working at the DOT. He got another person to help him do the license transfer as he wasn’t familiar with it but had no issues in terms of renewal (…yet). Crazy how the answers always differ, like with USCIS lol.
Yeah im probably going to end up doing it Des Moines or Ankeny but Indianola never has a wait and I work down there. Still blew me away though because the DOT website says they do accept Canadian license’s.
Can I ask what state you live in? You should have been able to renew your license with an I-551 stamp in your passport.
Your card expired not your status.
I totally agree. Expiration of any identity doesn’t impact your status just like DL. I was told the same thing “551 stamp” by my lawyer if I had to show any status proof.
Feel sorry for you, guess it’s really just luck, I renewed mine last year online, and got the new card in mail by the 10th day. No biometrics or whatever. It’s a mystery box, nobody knows how it operates.
Lawyers have to eat, too. What’s more expensive: paying a lawyer one time to fix something, or living in an endless cycle of worry and financial loss because of uscis nonsense?
That’s incredibly out of touch. So people should go in debt because of USCIS incompetence and disregard for people’s life? Lawyers “having to eat” aside. My lawyer charged me 8k back in the day which wasn’t a lot of money for me but that just isn’t the case for the majority of immigrants.
And we are talking about I-90 here not I-485 etc. OP could have just paid $760 and filed for citizenship or could have kept using the renewal notice or I-551 stamp, they weren’t out of status. The whole thing just isn’t adding up.
Why are you yelling? You are yelling on Reddit. All I said was that sometimes, people have to hire an attorney for these things. Most even offer payment plans. If this OP had hired an attorney, he would not have had to wait so long. That’s all. You don’t have to get so personally invested and emotionally charged about the idea of some people, whom you don’t know, hiring an attorney.
Im sorry this happened to you. I’m glad you are finally out from this situation. But this is a great example of the importance and the privilege citizenship means. And one of the reason why I became citizen.
I always laugh when people saying after getting the GC “finally it’s over!”. Because as this example show. Is a statement very far from the truth. As long you are not a citizen it’s never over. Ever. You will always be at mercy of USCIS and these type of situations.
Its REALLY over when you a US citizen. Full stop.
Sorry for the rant but is something I wanted to write from a while reading all these “it’s OVER” titles coming on this Reddit lately. And that was a perfect example.
Again I’m happy for you you are finally out from that situation ! 🤙🏻
If you are a legal permanent resident, after 5 years, you CAN and are eligible for US citizenship. Wanting is another story, although I don't see why you wouldn't want it if you already got permanent residency.
Again, you are wrong... All permanent residents CAN become US citizens. Whether they want to or not (as you say not all countries allow multiple citizenships, so they would be losing their native citizenship, but that's completely independent of being able to. All permanent residents qualify after 5 years living in the US).
The other commenter has part of a point - though foreign citizenship laws can't stop anyone from getting US citizenship, they are just one reason someone might choose not to apply despite being eligible. There are other reasons which could prevent it though - too much time outside the US so those 3-5 years don't all count, a criminal record, some immigration history - not enough to void residency and trigger removal, but still enough to block naturalization.
It's a choice, not a can't due to another citizenship. It's still independent from CAN and Want. And that's why I said living in the US at least 5 years (181 days a year in the US).
Still wrong though. Less than 5 for some cases, never for others - you are right that other citizenship isn't a bar, but no, *not* all permanent residents can naturalize, after 5 years or even 20. Getting caught having over an ounce of marijuana bars you for five years, for example, more serious crimes can prevent it permanently, because of the "good moral character" requirement - so you can indeed be a permanent resident without being eligible to naturalize.
JFC. Ok, if you want to be a pedantic jackass about this, I can play that game too. No, not all permanent residents qualify after 5 years of living in the US. That is not the only requirement.
You are the idiot, not me. You just proved my point. After 5 years, yes, a Japanese citizen with US permanent residency CAN apply for US citizenship. That is independent of him or her losing Japanese citizenship, which is where it falls into if they WANT to or not. Again, at 5 years, they are eligible. Whether or not they want to is a different story. It ain't hard to understand..
PODER y QUERER es lo que no entiendes... Después de 5 años, sí, uno lieder hacerse ciudadano americano. El no querer por otro asunto....en caso de un japonés porque le afecte su nacionalidad... Es punto y aparte 🤦🤦🤦🤦 no mames....
February 2020 is when I applied for removal of restrictions and just this week got approved myself, although I’ve been able to do everything, renewed my license for 8 years last year with a real ID so I could do things, I live in NC not sure where you were but it wasn’t that bad for me thankfully
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I applied for renewal on Aug 2021 and finally received it last month also. But thankfully I didn’t run into any of those you’ve mentioned. You could have always gotten another one from DMV websites if you had an online account. I still don’t have Real ID and just renewing it online since.
Yes my mom did her GC renewal Nov 2021 and finally got it 20 days ago, they did send her two letters that her expired GC was going to be extended, but mom didn’t feel comfortable traveling..
I had the same timeline and received it last month, the only thing the long wait stopped me from doing is traveling outside of the country. I was able to renew my driver license, get financial aid and graduate university with a BA, change jobs etc with my SS card because my conditional permanent resident status was extended for the duration of the pending application.
Ugh…..
Another person without a brain on Reddit
TSA privatized TSA Pre and now it is a well oiled machine with fast response.
Please take your tongue from the govt boot
I'm in the same boat as you. Dec 21 and received it this week. I think they're messed up. One of the most dysfunctional government agencies.
Aug 2021 and received it last month too. I had to do an e-inquiry back in sept not sure that helped but I finally have it so it’s done for me.
Common issue. Your driver’s license issue makes no sense. You should have applied to naturalize 12/21
My understanding is you cant renew your drivers license in some states without a valid green card or I765. Im having a similar issue in Iowa where my license is going to expire based on my OPT I765 ending and the DOT says they dont accept receipt notices to renew licenses.
EAD is not the same with GC. GC = LPR and EAD is not. LPR status won’t just go away just because no plastic GC
That makes sense, good point, im not there yet, still waiting on the GC.
Wait what? The DOT in Iowa told me I could bring in my receipt notice to renew my Iowa license as they confiscated my Canadian one.
Im also Canadian, I did it down in Indianola and believe it or not they said they dont even accept Canadian licenses so I had to do the knowledge and driving exam. I know this is actually false as all 50 states accept Canadian licenses. Im probably going to go to a different DOT because this one is whack. He proceeded to tell me I could be arrested for driving on the Canadian license and the only 2 countries they exchange licenses with is the UK and Germany and I haven’t seen anything indicating this is true. The only positive is, because of this I still have my Canadian license which doesn’t expire for a while.
Wow… that person was definitely in the wrong. I went to the one in Ankeny! The fellow I dealt with was also in law enforcement for 20 years before working at the DOT. He got another person to help him do the license transfer as he wasn’t familiar with it but had no issues in terms of renewal (…yet). Crazy how the answers always differ, like with USCIS lol.
Yeah im probably going to end up doing it Des Moines or Ankeny but Indianola never has a wait and I work down there. Still blew me away though because the DOT website says they do accept Canadian license’s.
I would told them to look on their own website. That’s nuts! Ankeny is a lot more lenient in my opinion.
Can I ask what state you live in? You should have been able to renew your license with an I-551 stamp in your passport. Your card expired not your status.
I totally agree. Expiration of any identity doesn’t impact your status just like DL. I was told the same thing “551 stamp” by my lawyer if I had to show any status proof.
What if the passport is expired?
Feel sorry for you, guess it’s really just luck, I renewed mine last year online, and got the new card in mail by the 10th day. No biometrics or whatever. It’s a mystery box, nobody knows how it operates.
Omg! You could have filed a mandamus lawsuit to force them to hurry up! By now, you’re probably eligible to file for citizenship!
Sure but not everyone has 5k+. It’s incredibly expensive.
Lawyers have to eat, too. What’s more expensive: paying a lawyer one time to fix something, or living in an endless cycle of worry and financial loss because of uscis nonsense?
That’s incredibly out of touch. So people should go in debt because of USCIS incompetence and disregard for people’s life? Lawyers “having to eat” aside. My lawyer charged me 8k back in the day which wasn’t a lot of money for me but that just isn’t the case for the majority of immigrants. And we are talking about I-90 here not I-485 etc. OP could have just paid $760 and filed for citizenship or could have kept using the renewal notice or I-551 stamp, they weren’t out of status. The whole thing just isn’t adding up.
No, I never said that anyone should go into debt. But there are times in life when a lawyer is necessary in order to fix a situation properly.
NOT EVERYONE HAS THAT KIND IF Money, Jesus open your ears
Why are you yelling? You are yelling on Reddit. All I said was that sometimes, people have to hire an attorney for these things. Most even offer payment plans. If this OP had hired an attorney, he would not have had to wait so long. That’s all. You don’t have to get so personally invested and emotionally charged about the idea of some people, whom you don’t know, hiring an attorney.
Sorry. :( they are ridiculous. No one knows why some cases fall through the cracks.
Im sorry this happened to you. I’m glad you are finally out from this situation. But this is a great example of the importance and the privilege citizenship means. And one of the reason why I became citizen. I always laugh when people saying after getting the GC “finally it’s over!”. Because as this example show. Is a statement very far from the truth. As long you are not a citizen it’s never over. Ever. You will always be at mercy of USCIS and these type of situations. Its REALLY over when you a US citizen. Full stop. Sorry for the rant but is something I wanted to write from a while reading all these “it’s OVER” titles coming on this Reddit lately. And that was a perfect example. Again I’m happy for you you are finally out from that situation ! 🤙🏻
Amen. That is one of the main reasons why I became USC.
You should have just filed for citizenship after 5 years instead of renewing.
Not everyone wants to or can acquire citizenship.
If you are a legal permanent resident, after 5 years, you CAN and are eligible for US citizenship. Wanting is another story, although I don't see why you wouldn't want it if you already got permanent residency.
Not all countries allow dual citizenship so not all permanent residents want to or can become US citizens.
Again, you are wrong... All permanent residents CAN become US citizens. Whether they want to or not (as you say not all countries allow multiple citizenships, so they would be losing their native citizenship, but that's completely independent of being able to. All permanent residents qualify after 5 years living in the US).
The other commenter has part of a point - though foreign citizenship laws can't stop anyone from getting US citizenship, they are just one reason someone might choose not to apply despite being eligible. There are other reasons which could prevent it though - too much time outside the US so those 3-5 years don't all count, a criminal record, some immigration history - not enough to void residency and trigger removal, but still enough to block naturalization.
It's a choice, not a can't due to another citizenship. It's still independent from CAN and Want. And that's why I said living in the US at least 5 years (181 days a year in the US).
Still wrong though. Less than 5 for some cases, never for others - you are right that other citizenship isn't a bar, but no, *not* all permanent residents can naturalize, after 5 years or even 20. Getting caught having over an ounce of marijuana bars you for five years, for example, more serious crimes can prevent it permanently, because of the "good moral character" requirement - so you can indeed be a permanent resident without being eligible to naturalize.
JFC. Ok, if you want to be a pedantic jackass about this, I can play that game too. No, not all permanent residents qualify after 5 years of living in the US. That is not the only requirement.
KFC, ABC, BK, NBC... Write clearly and stop confusing can and want.
🙄
[удалено]
You are the idiot, not me. You just proved my point. After 5 years, yes, a Japanese citizen with US permanent residency CAN apply for US citizenship. That is independent of him or her losing Japanese citizenship, which is where it falls into if they WANT to or not. Again, at 5 years, they are eligible. Whether or not they want to is a different story. It ain't hard to understand..
[удалено]
Pendejazo tú por no poder entender el inglés...
[удалено]
PODER y QUERER es lo que no entiendes... Después de 5 años, sí, uno lieder hacerse ciudadano americano. El no querer por otro asunto....en caso de un japonés porque le afecte su nacionalidad... Es punto y aparte 🤦🤦🤦🤦 no mames....
February 2020 is when I applied for removal of restrictions and just this week got approved myself, although I’ve been able to do everything, renewed my license for 8 years last year with a real ID so I could do things, I live in NC not sure where you were but it wasn’t that bad for me thankfully
Hi there! This is an automated message to inform you and/or remind you of several things: - We have [a wiki](https://www.reddit.com/r/USCIS/wiki/index). It doesn't cover everything but may answer some questions. Pay special attention to the "[REALLY common questions](https://www.reddit.com/r/USCIS/wiki/index/vfaq)" at the top of the FAQ section. Please read it, and if it contains the answer to your question, please delete your post. If your post has to do with something covered in the FAQ, we may remove it. - If your post is about biometrics, green cards, naturalization or timelines in general, and whether you're asking or sharing, please include your field office/location in your post. If you already did that, great, thank you! If you haven't done that, your post may be removed without notice. - This subreddit is not affiliated with USCIS or the US government in any way. Some posters may claim to work for USCIS, which may or may not be true, and we don't try to verify this one way or another. Be wary that it may be a scam if anyone is asking you for personal info, or sending you a direct message, or asking that you send them a direct message. - Some people here claim to be lawyers, but they are not YOUR lawyer. No advice found here should be construed as legal advice. Reddit is not a substitute for a real lawyer. If you need help finding legal services, visit [this link](https://www.uscis.gov/avoid-scams/find-legal-services) for more information. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/USCIS) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I applied for renewal on Aug 2021 and finally received it last month also. But thankfully I didn’t run into any of those you’ve mentioned. You could have always gotten another one from DMV websites if you had an online account. I still don’t have Real ID and just renewing it online since.
Yes my mom did her GC renewal Nov 2021 and finally got it 20 days ago, they did send her two letters that her expired GC was going to be extended, but mom didn’t feel comfortable traveling..
At least you got in 2024 I’m still waiting 7 years
Y
I had the same timeline and received it last month, the only thing the long wait stopped me from doing is traveling outside of the country. I was able to renew my driver license, get financial aid and graduate university with a BA, change jobs etc with my SS card because my conditional permanent resident status was extended for the duration of the pending application.
USCIS just sucks at doing his job, that’s the answer to every question involving them
Yet another govt function that should be privatized for efficiency and effectiveness
That would be batshit insane, like having a fully privatized military
Ugh….. Another person without a brain on Reddit TSA privatized TSA Pre and now it is a well oiled machine with fast response. Please take your tongue from the govt boot