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I understand the basic process of getting a license here. I have some questions though:
1. The "have to get your license within 60 days of moving NC". OK. I'm over that limit. Do they actually check for this? Do they fine you?
2. I understand that they now give you a temp license then mail you the photo one. I'm assuming they take your out of state license. How long does it take to get the photo one? I have to fly a lot. Airlines don't care for non-photo IDs and I'm not about to spend hours sitting on Amtrak.
3. Is the written test as Draconian as its made out to be? From what I've read here, writing out the Illiad in long hand from memory would be easier.
4. If you fail do you have to pay again when you take it or is it "one fee, take it until you pass"? If you do fail do they take your old license away or do you get it back?
5. I've read you can't get a registration until the car is inspected. Since the car has no plates, how is this possible? Its an old used car and I had to turn my old plates in when I got the NC insurance.
6. When you turn in your title for an NC title, about how long does it take to get the new title?
Sorry for my ignorance. Any help is most appreciated.
1. The "have to get your license within 60 days of moving NC". OK. I'm over that limit. Do they actually check for this? Do they fine you?
Generally, no, they don't check. It's never happened to me, at least.
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2. I understand that they now give you a temp license then mail you the photo one. I'm assuming they take your out of state license. How long does it take to get the photo one? I have to fly a lot. Airlines don't care for non-photo IDs and I'm not about to spend hours sitting on Amtrak.
Under the new central issuance system, they let you keep your old out of state license. Not all counties have converted to central issuance yet - Wake County has converted, but Durham County has not, for example. You could just go to a DMV location in Durham County and receive your NC license on the spot, since you're not restricted to using DMV offices in your county of residence.
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3. Is the written test as Draconian as its made out to be? From what I've read here, writing out the Illiad in long hand from memory would be easier.
It's not Draconian, but it consists of a number of completely insipid questions. Search on this forum for information on the BrainDumps website, which lists just about every question you might encounter on the test. Remember, you only need 20 out of 25 correct answers to pass. If you find a question you're unsure about, you can skip it and come back to it later, if necessary. Once you get to 20 correct answers, though, the test will end no matter how many you've skipped.
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4. If you fail do you have to pay again when you take it or is it "one fee, take it until you pass"? If you do fail do they take your old license away or do you get it back?
You don't pay until you've actually passed the test, and (as mentioned above), you keep your old license either way under the central issuance system.
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5. I've read you can't get a registration until the car is inspected. Since the car has no plates, how is this possible? Its an old used car and I had to turn my old plates in when I got the NC insurance.
The inspection results are going to be recorded by the VIN, not the plate number. Of course, driving it with no plates brings up another entire set of problems, so it would be best to get that taken care of as soon as possible.
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6. When you turn in your title for an NC title, about how long does it take to get the new title?
I've only converted out-of-state titles for cars that were financed, meaning that I didn't receive the title directly, so I'm not sure about this one. Anyone else?
The above poster answered most of your questions, but I'll chime in on a few since I did this all less than a month ago. They gave me my NCDL immediately, with my photo on it ,and I went to a Wake County location. Unless that has changed in the last 30 days, you should get your actual, permanent DL as soon as you pass. When I went to register my car, there was a sign saying you had to have your inspections done prior to registering, which I didn't know. The lady saw me looking at it, and said I didn't have to worry about it. I got my title put in my name, registered my car, and got my license plate. She said I had 15 days to get it inspected. Also, I got my title in the mail in about a week.
The above poster answered most of your questions, but I'll chime in on a few since I did this all less than a month ago. They gave me my NCDL immediately, with my photo on it ,and I went to a Wake County location. Unless that has changed in the last 30 days, you should get your actual, permanent DL as soon as you pass.
You just missed the cut! It did change in the last 30 days - Wake County started using central issuance on July 1.
i got my DL, then my plates. Title has come in the mail.
now i have to get inspection; didn't do b4 license plate & not a problem.
From what I've read, the state hasn't fully implemented the new inspection rules yet because of some problems. According to this article (http://www.newsobserver.com/1565/story/1619756.html - broken link), people moving from out of state (after this new law takes effect) won't have to have inspections done until their first annual renewal. As usual, the DMV hasn't done a great job of getting the word out.
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