TL;DR – REAL ID takes your old license and does not return it. This creates a physical gap in your driving history. Plan accordingly.
Just ran into this issue at the licensing center while trying to convert my USA license in Japan.
When USA issues your REAL ID version of the driver's license, they keep your most recent issued one. The reason this is a problem, it creates a gap in your driving history unless you either:
- Have a duplicate of your most recently license. You can pay for duplicates through the DMV.
- Go through the effort to get your extended driving history (MVR) & an I-94 stating your detailed travel history in and out of the USA.
- -Maybe- Do not travel internationally within 6 months of getting your REAL ID issued
I had a 2 year gap in my physical card license history because of the REAL ID nonsense. When they looked at my passport, I left the country within 100 days of the REAL ID being issued, which caused another gap in "continuous driving inside the USA." Thankfully the guy agreed to just convert it as normal, but said I will not be exempt from using the V shaped "new driver sticker". I still didn't have to take the test. I just sadly will have a sticker that feels like I have a target on my back. I had all the other documents requested. I had every passport I have ever owned and also at least 10 years of driving history worth of old licenses (minus the one forfeited during the REAL ID).
What is weird, the rule is that your license needs to be issued more than 90 days before entering the country on your visa. However, mine was issued more than 6 months. But because I traveled to Japan slightly more than 90 days after the license issuance on a tourist trip, that somehow caused the above mention continuance gap problem. I do not think this makes sense because I was still in the USA for 90+ days after returning to USA before returning and moving to Japan. I think the biggest issue was the gap in physical licenses because of REAL ID forfeiting the old one.
Edit Extra Pro Tip: Arrive way earlier than you think you need to be. My DMV only gives you a 30minute window 9:30 AM – 10AM for application to be screened. I arrived at 8AM, and I still barely made the cutoff for the afternoon session. There was already 20 people ahead of me. It seems they only had enough bandwidth to handle 25-30 people max. That is assuming there were no complicated cases that ate up agents time. Overall 10/10 way better experience than USA DMVs.
by Lulizarti