From a view overseas it does seem strange how the US driving licence has become adulterated into a pseudo-ID card scheme instead of anything to do with being good enough to drive a vehicle on the public roads.

All this stuff about having social security numbers; what does that have to do with driving ability.

Meanwhile the actual examination for driving standard seems extremely lax compared to here in the UK. I have been with a couple of recent "student drivers" in the US who No Way would have passed the test in Britain (where the pass rate is about 50%, it is very common for people to need two or three goes at it before they are judged good enough).

This is the new Michigan rule, apparently, which makes no sense:


The Michigan Secretary of State's office has just established new requirements for obtaining a Michigan driver's license or a State of Michigan Identification Card. Effective immediately, anyone applying for a Michigan driver's license or State I.D. card will have to present proof that s/he is a U.S. citizen or a lawful permanent resident (green card holder) of the United States.

Driver's licenses that have already been issued remain valid, and no changes to the procedures for renewing a Michigan driver's license are being made at this time.

Now we know your age

I think I'll give the paperclip idea a try next time my passport book gets full of stamps. When I had my older (now expired) book, it was constantly pawed through by TSA and Gate agents. I've even been mildly "interrogated" by those who, after seeing the stamps, refuse to believe the passport belongs to me. Before I renewed my passport, mine was an older style Canadian book that still had the laminated page over photo look. It was a perfectly valid document, but quite a many immigration and customs officers refused to believe it was real. The most annoying time came when I was flying Alitalia home and a gate agent pawed through my book. She saw all the stamps and then proceeded to interrogate me about my name, my birthdate, where I was born, how old I was, where the passport was issued,what visas were in it and then said to me with a snarl on her face, "you've been to a lot of places".

As for the DL, I tried using just my DL flying domestically in the USA. They wouldn't accept my Canadian license stating that it was only for US Citizens

Wow! No more driving for legal H-visa holders in Michigan. I wonder how they will get to and from work?

Kind of obviates the need for the H visa in the first place, eh?

Is Terri Lynn Land, Michigan Secretary of State, completely out of her tree? Or just out of touch...

At first I thought it must have just been misreporting, but, no, it really means that only citizens or permanent residents are allowed to apply for a license or ID in Michigan now.

That makes no sense. There are lots of people who are legally in the US for multiple years for legitimate reasons (students, scholars, employees on assignment, etc). I'd heard of plans to issue licenses only to those with valid visas, but this is absolutely absurd.

http://www.michigan.gov/documents/so...8_222146_7.pdf

If you don't want to hand over your passport *and* the circumstance fits, here's a handy one-liner: "Sorry, it's off getting an emergency visa put in."

Wrong, wrong, wrong, wrong...so wrong.

I am not a US citizen, and I use my FL drivers license, and if you or any of your colleagues ever challenged my national origin or demanded a passport for domestic travel, you'd be getting more flack than you'd want - including an escalation to the FSD.

You will accept a foreign drivers license because it's a photo ID issued by a government agency, not because you feel like it. If you are assigning selectee status solely on the basis of national origin (bad passport according to your interpretation), you need to be removed from duty....that is assuming you're really even a screener.

I have always used a paper clip in my passport. Everyone wants to stamp on a fresh page and when it comes to getting a visa sticker there are no more "full" empty pages left. Apart from one INS agent, so far no one has bothered to notice the paper clip. They search through the unclipped pages to find an empty spot - which is exactly what I want them to do.

Once I had 60 pages full of stamps in my passport and checking in for a flight from IAH-EZE, the gate agent flipped through it and called her friend over to see the stamps. They were amazed at the stamps and wished me luck in future travel

If non-citizens always have to carry their passports, can a judge legally demand the passport from them as a condition of bail? Handing the judge your passport would put you in violation of that law.

AFAIK Permanent residents don't have to have their passports, but do need their green card on their person.

Wow. I guess all those people with green cards and other long-term visas are driving illegally.

A friend of mines recently returned from ATL. He told me he showed his Ontario Driver's License (of course along with the BP) while keeping his Canadian Passport in the pocket going through ATL's TSA prior to his flight back to YYZ and they waved him through.

Not even the older Green Cards are allowed. So you have to fork out $300 to get a new card first, then you can apply for a license. Does Michigan get a royalty on that?

Here's the relevant section of the Immigration and Nationality Act:
http://www.uscis.gov/propub/ProPubVA...b0686648558dbe
So I guess you don't actually need your passport--those flimsy I-94 slips of paper seem to fulfill this requirement (which is sort of funny). (Or the 'Green Card' form I-551 for permanent residents.)

$370, to be precise.
http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/usc...0045f3d6a1RCRD

INCORRECT!


Many state if not all state DL's don't say nationality on it, and you don't have to be a US citizen to get DL in the first place.

For daeira's case, based on what they told you, a US citizen with a Canadian DL can use it, while a Canadian with a Canadian DL cannot. Pure lunacy!