Driver's License Dillema

[DeathValleyDon]

Surely someone else has come across this problem:

I have been a full time RV'r for just over a year. A few years back, I sold everything and now travel and have no physical address. I travel the country and have my mail (junk mail) forwarded once a month to where ever I happen to be. I own no property (home) nor do I normally stay in established campgrounds very long.

Problem: My New Mexico driver's license has just come up for renewal and they do not recognize a PO Box as an address. Plus you have to show 2 forms of proof that you actually reside at a physical address. A supervisor at the NM DMV had no answer to this problem. As far as they're concerned, I'm up a creek without a paddle. What to do?

Don in Death Valley

[2gypsies1]

Don and Eileen wrote:
We own a townhouse in AZ now, but my question rests on whether or not we can keep our motorhome registered in SD after establishing residency in AZ.

The Arizona confusion is because she said she's going to establish residency in Arizona. If so, the motorhome and all vehicles should be registered in Arizona.

[Cummins12V98]

My Domicile is SD I own a house in WA that I have not lived in for 5+ years. I have registered a truck and boat in WA and listed my house as the address within the last year. I also have a SD drivers license. WA has no problem with this nor does SD.

[Cummins12V98]

My Domicile is SD I own a house in WA that I have not lived in for 5+ years. I have registered a truck and boat in WA and listed my house as the address within the last year. I also have a SD drivers license. WA has no problem with this nor does SD.

[brookside]

lbrjet wrote:
If you are in AZ less than 7 months a year there is no legal reason to declare residency unless you want to. Owning property really has nothing to do it.

I got the impression that the person wanted to be a resident of AZ, but keep the motorhome registered in SD, actually, I believe that is what the question amounted to. If one is a resident of AZ, they cannot choose another state to register their vehicle in. Wouldn't everyone then choose to do this? We lived in AZ in the 90s and they can be aggressive about taxation.

[lbrjet]

If you are in AZ less than 7 months a year there is no legal reason to declare residency unless you want to. Owning property really has nothing to do it.

[RoadXYZ]

We have been using our daughter's address ... we have a UPS mail box, but the state of Washington doesn't recognize the UPS mail box address, so went with daughter's address ... all is solved that way .. besides should something happen to us .. the PD will go to her address to notify her ... another problem solved ...

[BarbaraOK]

Owning a piece of property does not equal a domicile/residency. Thousands upon thousands of people own a home in AZ but are not residents of AZ. A fulltimer gets to decide where they want to be a 'resident', establish that by getting a drivers license, registering their vehicles, voting, doing jury duty (when available), etc. If you have "fulltimers" insurance on your vehicles, the insurance companies know you will not be in any one specific place all of the time - that you are traveling.

Of course, we've only been doing this for 10+ yrs so what do we know.

[dvv711]

Terri told us that it does not matter if we have a residence elsewhere - as long as we are honest and fill out the non-resident form for registering a vehicle in SD.
Definitely call her to answer any questions!

[Don_and_Eileen]

Terri is who we've been using for mail service and residency. She is fabulous.

[Cummins12V98]

If a person is interested in having their Domicile in SD contact this lady. She has every answer to every question you may have. Great service!!!

Terri Lund
My Dakota Address
110 E. Center St.
Madison, SD 57042
www.mydakotaaddress.com
Phone: 605-427-5863
Fax: 605-427-9626

[Don_and_Eileen]

I'm not sure now what's necessary. I appreciate all your responses.
As to the question of how long we're in AZ. We are definitely there less than 7 months out of the year.
As for being able to register our RV in SD, if they're asking for our "actual, honest state of residence as the registration address", how does that work if we put down AZ since that's the state where we own property?
Thanks all!

[lbrjet]

Now the facts from the Arizona Department of Transportation:

Resident Definition

State law requires that you obtain an Arizona vehicle registration and driver license, immediately if any of the following apply:

You work in Arizona (other than for seasonal agricultural work).
You are registered to vote in Arizona.
You place children in school without paying the tuition rate of a nonresident.
You have a business with an office in Arizona that bases and operates vehicles in this state.
You obtain a state license or pay school tuition fees at the same rate as an Arizona resident.
You have a business that operates vehicles to transport goods or passengers within Arizona.
You remain in Arizona for a total of seven months or more during any calendar year, regardless of your permanent residence.

[BarbaraOK]

dvv711 wrote:
I guess you'd better listen to these folks with lots more experience than I have. AZ is pretty strict - giving you only 15 days to register vehicles. Here in NY , we have 6 mos.to do so. Hope you haven't been confused by the info I shared. SD definitely allows NON-residents to register an rv in SD. You just must put your actual, honest state of residence as the registration address.
We hope someday to be fulltimers (nomads) like you were, but for now we'll be in NY part of the year and Florida & Idaho the rest of the time.
Enjoy life's journey!!

Residency in AZ is more than just having an Arizona address. The state considers you a resident if any one of the following situations applies to you:

You obtain an Arizona driver's license.
Your kids attend school here without paying an out-of-state tuition rate.
You're employed in Arizona (seasonal agricultural workers exempt).
You remain in the state for 7 months or more in one calendar year.
You have an Arizona business that houses and operates vehicles here.
You own an AZ business that transports people or goods in the state.
You're registered to vote in AZ.

[dvv711]

I guess you'd better listen to these folks with lots more experience than I have. AZ is pretty strict - giving you only 15 days to register vehicles. Here in NY , we have 6 mos.to do so. Hope you haven't been confused by the info I shared. SD definitely allows NON-residents to register an rv in SD. You just must put your actual, honest state of residence as the registration address.
We hope someday to be fulltimers (nomads) like you were, but for now we'll be in NY part of the year and Florida & Idaho the rest of the time.
Enjoy life's journey!!