Department of Motor Vehicles
How to Renew Your Driver License by Mail

Read This Summary First!

First...	Read the requirements and restrictions on this page. Use these instructions to renew your driver license by mail. You can renew by mail from another state or country. Note: Read the instructions in the form MV-2 non-driver ID card renewal notice sent to you by mail. You can renew by mail if your Social security Number has been verified. You cannot renew by mail if your Social security Number has not been verified. You must renew at a DMV office and show your Social Security Card or proof that you are not eligible for a Social Security Card. See the proof of identity requirements. To replace a lost photo document, see the instructions to replace a lost photo document.
Next...	Get the forms. Download form MV-44 form MV-44.1 and form MV-619. You need Adobe Acrobat Reader®. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader®, get the instructions.
Then...	Determine the fee. Use the chart to determine the amount of your fee.
Last...	Complete the forms. Mail the forms, fee and proofs of identity. Mail the completed forms to the address shown on this page. Include a personal check or a money order for the fee and the copies of your proofs of identity.

Read This Important Information

• An original driver license is valid for approximately five years. When you renew a driver license, you pay fees for an eight-year period.
• If you have a Class A, Class B or Class C commercial driver license (CDL) with an H or X endorsement, you must pass the hazardous materials knowledge test during the two years before renewal. You must pay an additional fee of $5 for the test. Most drivers who must take this test renew at a DMV office and take the test at that time.
• See the important information about changes for CDL drivers that result from a law that eliminates the Non-CDL Class C license.

All drivers must take a vision test when they renew their driver licenses. You can take the vision test by two methods:

1. An eye-care professional must conduct your vision test, and complete form MV-619 or form MV-619R (Eye Test Report). The form MV-619R is included with your driver license renewal notice. If the form MV-619 or form MV-619R has a print date of 9/03 or earlier, the form is valid for 6 months after the date of the eye test. If the form has a print date of 3/04 or later, the eye-care professional marks a box on the form to indicate if the form is valid for 6 months or for 12 months after the date of the eye test.
   
   Mail form MV-619 or MV-619R that your eye-care professional completed with your renewal application.
   
   An eye-care professional in another state or country can complete form MV-619 or form MV-619R. The eye-care professional must report the results on the Snellen visual acuity scale. The eye-care professional must complete the form in English. The eye-care professional must provide a professional license number if a number was assigned by the other state or country.
   
   You can send a form or a letter from a motor vehicle office in another state that indicates that you passed a vision test at a motor vehicle office in that state during the past six months. The form or letter must indicate that you passed a vision test for a visual acuity of 20/40 (or better) on the Snellen Visual Acuity Scale.
   
    - or -
2. Go to a NYSDMV office to take the vision test and renew your driver license. There is no additional fee to take the vision test at a DMV office.

How to Renew by Mail

Read the instructions on form MV-44.1, and complete form MV-44. Make sure that you answer the questions on the back (page 2) of form MV-44. Sign your name in the space provided on form MV-44. If you do not know your DMV Client ID Number, write your full name and date of birth exactly as shown on your photo document.

Copy your proofs of identity and send the photocopies with your application. See form ID-44 (Proofs of Identity for Learner Permit, Driver License, and Non-Driver ID Card). Note: Form MV-44.1 states that photocopies are not acceptable, but photocopies are acceptable if you apply by mail. If you lost your photo driver license, you must send photocopies of other proofs of identity that equal a value of six points. If you do not have proofs of identity that equal a value of six points, you must apply at a DMV office. Bring all the proofs of identity that you have to the office.

You can have your document sent to an address that is different from the address on your document. Include a separate note and clearly print the alternate address. Do not write the alternate address on form MV-44. The mailing address you write on form MV-44 is the address that is listed on your photo document and your DMV record.

If your current document is marked "VALID WITHOUT PHOTO" and your photo does not appear, call the DMV Call Center for information.

Download the Forms

Download and print these three forms: (Adobe Acrobat Reader® is required.)

• Form MV-44 (Application for Driver License or Non-driver Photo ID)
• Form MV-44.1 (How to Apply for a New York: Learner Permit / Driver License / Non-Driver Photo ID)
• Form MV-619 (Eye Test Report)

Determine Your Fee

Fees (The fees listed include the photo document fee.) * IMPORTANT For driver licenses that expire on and after September 1, 2009, there is a supplemental Metropolitan Commuter Transportation District (MCTD) fee of $1.00 for every six months the permit or driver license will be in effect. The fee is paid by residents of the five New York City counties of: Bronx, Kings (Brooklyn), New York (Manhattan), Queens and Richmond (Staten Island). The MCTD fee is also paid by residents of the counties of Dutchess, Nassau, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Suffolk and Westchester. The MCTD fees are marked with an * in the chart below.

Fees to Renew a Driver License   Class A, Class B or Class C - $164.50/$180.50* 1,2- Valid for eight years Class E - $112.50/$128.50* 1,2- Valid for eight years Class D or Class DJ, or Non-CDL Class C** - $64.50/$80.50* 1- Valid for eight years Class M or Class MJ - $72.50/$88.50* - Valid for eight years   1. If you also hold Class M or Class MJ (for example, photo document reads "Class DM"), add $8 to this renewal fee.   2. If you have a Class A, Class B or Class C CDL with an endorsement of H or X, you must pass the hazardous materials knowledge test at a DMV office within two years before your renewal and pay an additional fee of $5 for the test.

** See the important information about changes for CDL drivers that result from a law that eliminates the Non-CDL Class C license.

Fees to Renew a Non-Driver Photo ID Card

4-year - $10.00  8-year - $14.00 10-year for a person age 62 or older who does not receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) - $ 6.50 10-year for a person of any age who receives Supplemental Security Income (SSI) - $ 6.50 - The person must receive SSI. Bring proof that you receive SSI. 10-year for a person who is both age 62 or older and receives Supplemental Security Income (SSI), there is no renewal fee.

If you owe a fee, pay your fee by check or by money order payable to "Commissioner of Motor Vehicles".

Mail the Forms, Fee and Proofs

To renew your license and receive delivery of your photo document by US Postal Service send all of your documents and payments to the Utica address listed below.

To renew your license and receive delivery of your photo document by express mail, you must enclose a pre-paid, pre-addressed express mail package with your application and send all of your documents and your payment to the Albany address listed below.

Mailing Addresses
To receive by US Postal Service:   Department of Motor Vehicles State Office Building 207 Genesee St Ste 6 Utica, NY 13501-2874	To receive by express mail (see above instructions):   DMV License Production Bureau Room 331 6 Empire State Plaza Albany, NY 12228