out-of-state student and car registration (apartment, lease, insurance)

[Dwayne Lassiter]

Student from another state is attending school in California. Her car is registered in that other state. I've heard that the student is not obligated to register the car in California until school is done. But I can't find any references to that on CA DMV documents.

Is that true or is it not? Reference to the rule that applies? When is the student supposed to have registered her car in California?

[marcopolo666]

Students are sometimes exempted. Google "california resident" (on dmv.ca.gov) to see the requirements.

[marcopolo666]

First hit (using search criteria : "California resident" site:dmv.ca.gov ) :

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/?1...s/howto/htvr33


{{It wasn't rocket science }}

[Dwayne Lassiter]

Originally Posted by marcopolo666

First hit (using search criteria : "California resident" site:dmv.ca.gov ) :

https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/?1...s/howto/htvr33


{{It wasn't rocket science }}

I'm well aware of that page, except that doesn't say anything about students when I search on it. Hope you're not launching any rockets!

Closest I can see is "Resident tuition is paid at a public institution of higher education." Well, since she's not a resident, she doesn't pay "resident tuition".

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by Dwayne Lassiter

I'm well aware of that page, except that doesn't say anything about students when I search on it. Hope you're not launching any rockets!

Closest I can see is "Resident tuition is paid at a public institution of higher education." Well, since she's not a resident, she doesn't pay "resident tuition".

Unless she is establishing permanent residency (i.e., living here year round, enrolling in college as an instate resident, etc.), she probably does not need to register her car here. As a college student, her permanent place of residence is going to remain the state where she lives and that is where her car should be registered.

However, I'd suggest contacting your insurance company to let them know that she will be taking her car to school in California, just to make sure there won't be any issues with insurance coverage.

After she graduates, if she finds a job in California and stays here permanently, she will need to register her car here within 20 days of deciding that she will live here permanently.

When in doubt, the California DMV has a handy dandy 800 line: 1 (800) 777-0133

One tip: If you haven't already done so, call the Parking Office of the school she'll be attending to inquire about the cost and availability of on-campus parking, especially during school breaks. When my kids went to college and grad school out of state, they took their cars (after freshman year), and it was sometimes a bit of an issue as to where to safely leave their cars during vacation breaks and summer visits home. Not every college/university will let kids leave their cars on campus during breaks. (Note: we never changed our kids' car registrations while they were attending school in another state. )

And, of course, it would be smart to make sure she is familiar with the motor vehicle laws in California before she begins driving here. Freeway driving in California can be challenging for many less experienced drivers, especially in and around major California cities.

[Dwayne Lassiter]

Thank you. That's a good answer, but I guess I'd like to see that spelled out somewhere on the CA DMV website. Actually, daughter just graduated, has a job in the same city, and is now getting ready to register her car in CA. I'd just rather she not get hit by some penalty for not registering it already.

Now, she was living in CA for most of the time while going to school, so I guess that doesn't count as "permanent residency"?

Good idea about letting the insurance company know.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by Dwayne Lassiter

Thank you. That's a good answer, but I guess I'd like to see that spelled out somewhere on the CA DMV website. Actually, daughter just graduated, has a job in the same city, and is now getting ready to register her car in CA.

Sorry. I misunderstood; in your original post, it sounded like you were asking about a daughter who was about to BEGIN college in California. Since that is not the case, ignore what I said above.

Now that she has graduated and taken a job in California, she is no longer a student. She is now considered a permanent resident.. It doesn't matter that she WAS a student; her status has changed to permanent resident because she's taken a job here.

She needs to register her car within 20 days of establishing permanent residency. She will also need to make sure her insurance policy covers her as a resident of California and pay California state income taxes.

.If in doubt, she or you can call the DMV number I provided for further clarification.

[Dwayne Lassiter]

We know that once she is out of school and has a job (as of a week or two ago) she is a permanent resident. The question was whether when registering, she can be penalized for not having registered while she was a student. That is, when she was a student, should she have registered?

I think the issue is "permanent residency". Permanent residency isn't defined by where you sleep or eat your meals, but where you work, what drivers license you carry, and perhaps where you vote. I mean, for the last many years, she has permanently slept and eaten her meals in California, and only occasionally ended up back home out of state.

I wish there were a DMV page that spoke directly to this. She has an appointment with the DMV already.

[RosieSD]

Originally Posted by Dwayne Lassiter

We know that once she is out of school and has a job (as of a week or two ago) she is a permanent resident. The question was whether when registering, she can be penalized for not having registered while she was a student. That is, when she was a student, should she have registered?

No. It shouldn't be a problem. She doesn't even have to mention that she went to college in California. Frankly, the DMV only cars about getting the registration fee.

Don't overthink this.

Best wishes to your daughter!

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by Dwayne Lassiter

Student from another state is attending school in California. Her car is registered in that other state. I've heard that the student is not obligated to register the car in California until school is done. But I can't find any references to that on CA DMV documents.

Is that true or is it not? Reference to the rule that applies? When is the student supposed to have registered her car in California?

Student is required to register car in California within 20 days of becoming a resident. Criteria for determining when one is considered a resident were listed on the page I linked before ( https://www.dmv.ca.gov/portal/dmv/?1...s/howto/htvr33 ). It's a straight-forward list.

You are considered a California resident if you are present in this state on more than a temporary or transient basis for 6 months or more in a 12-month period (CVC §516) and/or California is the state where:

You are registered to vote.
You are gainfully employed. Military personnel are not considered gainfully employed in California, even if they also hold a civilian job.
Your place of business is located.
Resident tuition is paid at a public institution of higher education.
Dependents attend a primary or secondary school.
Homeowner's property tax exemption is declared.
Property is leased for use as a residence.
Residence is declared to obtain a license, privilege, or benefit not ordinarily extended to a nonresident.
Your current driver license was issued.
You are determined to be a resident as evidenced by acts, occurrences, or events that indicate presence in the state is more than temporary or transient.


So (for example) if she were here for 6 months or more in a 12-month period, or she leased a place to live (rented an apartment and is on lease) or if she had a job, (or something else on the list) she's a resident.


The same page I linked also says :
Do I Need to Register My Vehicle?
A vehicle must be registered in California if it is based in California or is primarily used on California highways (located or operated in this state for a greater amount of time than any other individual state during the registration period), even if registered to a nonresident owner (CVC §4000.4).

So if the car is in the state for over 183 days, it should have been registered.

But as somebody else said, if all her paperwork is from out-of-state (incl her driver's license), they won't care. Even so, all she has to say that she just brought the car here from her home state. The only problem I can see is if anybody has already gotten a ticket on that vehicle, and it was more than 6 months ago. Otherwise all she has to say is "I was planning on going right back home, but I got this great job offer and decided to stay." (Or, "yeah, my uncle Bob was here with the car 8 months ago and he got a ticket.")