Michigan Will Issue Driver Licenses to DACA Grantees

"The Michigan Department of State – in light of a recent reversal by federal officials on whether Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals participants are lawfully present – is now required to issue those participants driver’s license and identification cards, the department announced today." - Ruth Johnson, Secretary of State, Feb. 1, 2013.

Text of Feb. 1, 2013 E-Mail: "To All Branch Office Staff: 

Limited Term Driver Licenses and IDs – effective February 19, 2013

Effective February 19, 2013, the Michigan Department of State (MDOS) will begin issuing driver licenses and personal identification cards (PIDs) that expire on the date a non-citizen applicant’s legal presence expires.  This change will align Departmental procedures to the Michigan vehicle code. 

This change will affect driver licenses and PIDs issued to all non-citizen applicants whose term of stay in the United States is limited.  When running a non-citizen SAVE inquiry, SAVE will display a “date admitted to” with a calendar date or the notation D/S (duration of status).  The DL/PID expiration date will be this date provided by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) through SAVE.  Categories of affected non-citizens include F and J student/scholar visas, foreign workers, parolees, asylees, and those granted deferred action. 

New training procedures will be distributed to branches next week to assist branch office staff in correctly processing these transactions.  Please ensure your staff have the opportunity to review the new procedures provided and ask any questions they may have before the scheduled February 19, 2013 implementation.  Please direct questions to your Region office so they can compile and submit to the Office of Program Support and Development (OPSD) for a statewide response.  MDOS will be issuing information to law enforcement and other stakeholders on the new limited term driver licenses and PIDs within the next two weeks.

Additionally, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has posted new information regarding the legal presence of individuals under the Deferred Action – Childhood Arrival (DACA) program.  Based upon this new information, individuals with the C33 classification code on their Employment Authorization Document (EAD) (I-766), once verified through SAVE, will be eligible for limited term driver licenses and PIDs effective on February 19, 2013.

Message Authority: 

Grace Ueberroth

Office of Program Support & Development"