Car License

Technically you're supposed to get a VI license if you're here more than thirty days but few people do and if you are ever pulled over you can always claim that you're still driving on your stateside license because when you went to get your VI license the rules of the road booklet was missing or the laminating machine was broken...

Okay, but I will be buying a car in St Thomas and registering it as well. I'll have to get insurance.

when you buy and register the car you probably won't have been there 30 days yet and nobody will expect you to have a USVI driver's license already.

We bought a car on St croix, registered it and got insurance. Still had our Missouri driver's license - no problem at all.

Cool, so as usual just play the system against itself!

Hello,

The VI drivers manual basically says a resident driving on VI roads needs to have a valid license... and a resident is someone that spends 3 or more months of a calendar year on island. So a non-VI license is good for 3 months. It also has a few exceptions; ie. out-of-state University students wouldn't be considered a resident for drivers license purposes.

--Islander

How do they know when you got there?

You ask, "How do they know when you got there?"

Depends on who you mean by "they."

I know people who have been driving on island for years with no license at all. They worry that someday they'll be caught with a broken tail light or involved in an accident but they don't care enough to do anything about it.

I also know someone with an obnoxious neighbor. My acquaintance had a problem with the neighbor and the neighbor had a friend in the police department. In no time at all my acquaintance had a problem with the police.

Most people who move here from the states get a VI license before their stateside license expires so that they do not have to retake the driving test.

Yes, but I'll be living on St Thomas for only 6 months, then back to Boston for the other 6 months. Can I keep both licenses?

No, you have to surrender your stateside license to get a VI license.

Oh, that's not good. Then what happens when I come home? I have to do it all over again?

Where will your permanent address be (usvi or US mainland)? Will you be working 6 months at each place? I wonder if you would need to bother changing licenses if it is a "toss-up". Maybe the VI Driver's Manual will help you with some answers http://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/VIRGIN_ISLANDS_DRIVERS_MANUAL.pdf

When I split my year among multiple places I kept my driver's license, bank accounts and similar things in my place of legal residence i.e. where I was paying taxes at the time.

Well my legal residence will be Massachusetts. But I am buying a property in St Thomas. I'll have to research this some more.

Well I read the rules and it clearly states that if you reside in the USVI for more than 3 months you must surrender your out of state license. But once again how does anyone know when you officialy got to the island? I guess if you are stopped twice in 4 months the police would have a record otherwise they would just think I'm a tourist....right?

Just get a VI license then report your other license lost in the other state. I have a valid VI driver's license and MI license now just in case.

You state the manual to say, "If you reside in the USVI..." I could be wrong, but it sounds to me like a "permanent" residence and a "winter/summer/vacation" residence are two different things. For example, a lot of Canadians move to Florida for the winter and keep their Canadian driver's licenses since Canada is their legal residence. The same goes for residents from all of the states who "adopt" second residences in different states for any of the seasons (some move in the summer from the south to the mts., etc.) None that I know of take out driver's licenses in their "second home" states.

Will you be employed in USVI? I would think that if you do not work, nor vote in USVI and if you keep your permanent residence, tax records, voting privileges, etc. in Mass., then maybe you are NOT a resident of USVI even if you own property.

Will you have a car in USVI registered with a USVI tag? I wonder what the rules are in that case. I'll ask my friends who permanently reside in US and who own a condo in STX and who has a car on island how they handle the situation. In their case, though, they travel back and forth every several weeks, so it is not like they are on the island for 6 straight months.

I just spoke with my friend who says you don't need a driver's license if you will be on island just 6 months and your permanent residence is in US - at least that is what they do! All of their bills go to their permanent residence in US. I hope this helps!

The USVI defines residency differently than other places on the mainland. You can fit the USVI definition of a resident and also fit the definition another state has for residency. The USVI would love to claim additional residents, as you would then pay your taxes to the USVI BIR and they definitely want the money.

The common sense approach to whether you fully comply with USVI desires might include considering your intent. If you do intend to live in the USVI long-term, then you probably should get a driver's license here and register to vote and pay your taxes here, etc. If you know you are coming for a specific period of time for an employment contract or other similarly defined time period and your intent is to return to your previous location on the mainland when that time is done, then you probably have valid reason to maintain your residency where you are coming from.

College students all over the country often cross state lines to attend school. They do not automatically become residents of the state their university is located in unless they have no remaining ties to the state from which they came. They have a specific purpose and time period for which they are temporary residents of a different state, but they keep their driver's licenses and other resident's rights back in their home state.

If you come to the USVI for a 6 month contract and don't get a driver's license here... and then decide at the end of the contract to renew for another 6 months or a year.... then at that point it might be time to accept that you may be staying even longer and go through the steps required of residents, including getting your license and filing tax returns in the islands. If you do leave after 6 months, then you were acting in good faith and not depriving the islands of tax $$ or other funds that they should have gotten if you had truly been a resident. It seems to me that your intent is relevant... and legally defensible should someone give you grief for being on the island for 4 months and you still have a stateside driver's license. There is the letter of the law and the spirit of the law. And there is common sense.

People who have lived here for several years and never complied with residency laws are overdue to stand in line at the DMV. The many people who come here from December to April to work during the tourist season and then leave probably shouldn't clutter up the DMV lines.

NO, I am coming there to live only. I own an ad agency back in Boston so i can work from home (wherever that is). But I'll be employed from my company in Boston. So I'll be paying Massachusetts taxes. I will be buying a car and insuring it on St Thomas though. Maybe I should call a lawer because if you look on page 5 here: http://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/VIRGIN_ISLANDS_DRIVERS_MANUAL.pdf

It clearly states that a resident is someone who resides on the island for a period of 3 months (continuous or not). It's probably to get taxes...

Here's my go at this discussion.

swhitey wrote: "how does anyone know when you officially got to the island? I guess if you are stopped twice in 4 months the police would have a record otherwise they would just think I'm a tourist....right?"

Comment: You know when you got onto the island officially and as is the case with most laws they are followed because we choose to follow them as law abiding citizens. 😉 As for the police knowing; your comment about getting stopped twice is basically right on. Or if a police officer saw you in a grocery store or church and for some reason recognizes you when he/she stops you a few months later for some other thing (its a small island so it can happen). In both cases you could say you left and came back... I suppose they could give you a ticket and say bring in your proof of travel and we will remove the ticket.

Vshoppell wrote: "Just get a VI license then report your other license lost in the other state. I have a valid VI driver's license and MI license now just in case."

Comment: Sounds like a plan. Does anyone know if its illegal to have two licenses?

Outsider wrote: "I just spoke with my friend who says you don't need a driver's license if you will be on island just 6 months and your permanent residence is in US - at least that is what they do!"

Response: Yes some people do go several months, years without applying for a VI license by just holding onto their stateside license and some never bother to get a VI license. It’s done, but the DMV regulations is a stateside license is good for 90 days (exception for transfer students at the university).

Alexandra wrote: "The USVI would love to claim additional residents, as you would then pay your taxes to the USVI BIR and they definitely want the money."

Response: The tax office has their own stipulations on who is a resident for tax paying purposes. It is:

"If you are a bona fide resident of the Virgin Islands on the last day of the tax year, you must file your tax return on Form 1040 with the Government of the Virgin Islands and pay the entire tax due to the Virgin Islands. You do not have to file with the IRS for any tax year in which you are a bona fide resident of the Virgin Islands on the last day of the year, provided you report and pay tax on your income from all sources to the Virgin Islands and identify the source(s) of the income on the return. If you have non-Virgin Islands source income, you must also file Virgin Islands Form 1040 INFO, Non-Virgin Islands Source Income of Virgin Islands Residents, with the Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue."

Swhitey wrote: "Maybe I should call a lawyer."

Reply: What would you want the lawyer to look into?

After giving this a little thought it does seem like there should be other exceptions besides the transfer university students. Anyone know what the policy is in their state... how long an out of state license is good for? Or can you keep say a Fl license if living in CA as long as its current and not expired?

Anyhoo, hope this helps. 😀

--Islander

Islander-In Ohio, your out of state license is good until you establish residency in Ohio. That law states residency begins when you have mail delivered in your name to an Ohio address, and completes after six months from that date. Not the best guage of others, but the way it is here...

It might not be perfectly legal to have two licenses but I've had two for nearly 13 years and I've never had any trouble. When I moved to massachusetts I still had a maine license, which I kept until it expired (they never made me surrender it). I only used the Maine license for when I went back home to cash checks and whatnot.

In 1994, I lost my wallet and was faced with the disturbing notion of having to do my 50 mile commute with no drivers license at all. Since then I've always kept two licenses - one as a backup in case the wallet gets stolen/lost, which usually happened when I moved. I just tell them I lost the old one and *poof* - new license (well, after a ~$50 fee...)

It would be easy enough to "surrender" only one of these for a VI license and maintain the MA license. As long as you keep your nose clean (no overdue speeding tickets, child support that's not paid, etc), no one will ever figure it out. Just keep renewing your MA license whenever it expires. Get a MA-based UPS store mailbox so you continue to have a MA address.

You will find that many of the laws are enforced as the the officer sees fit. If you get pulled over, you are kinda at their mercy. I know people who have lived here 20 + years and don't have a local license (also don't vote, etc.) Do you want to be part of the community here, or are you just passing through? 🙂

BTW, the legislature passed a bill requiring drivers to have hands-free devices for their cellphones. It went into effect 1/2/06, however, the police say that they have to "educate" the people before they enforce the law. Stateside, the police just enforce the law, That is your education!! 😉