I moved from Ohio to California in June of 2019. I held a valid motorcycle endorsement on my Ohio license and I wanted it transferred when I got my California license. Here I will list what I had to do to make that happen.
What You Need Before You Go To The DMV
You will need to have some things in order before you go to the DMV. Note: This is not a exhausted list and if you want more information, I highly recommend you go to California’s DMV website. Motorcycle Resources
First and foremost, I highly suggest you fill out the REAL ID Electronic Driver License and Identification Card (ID) Application first before you even go into an office. Especially in California, the DMV line can be long so you want to do as much as you can ahead of time so that you aren’t there longer than you want to be. I don’t know about you but spending the day in that environment is not my idea of fun.
Not sure what the REAL ID is? The REAL ID is the identification needed to board any domestic flight if you don’t have a passport. That means that even if you are just flying the next state over to visit Grandma, if you don’t have a passport or the REAL ID, you aren’t getting on that plane. This law goes into effect on October 1, 2020. For more information, visit the REAL ID website
What To Bring To The DMV
- Two (2) Identification Documents (Social Security Card, Birth Certificate, State Issued ID)
- Two (2) California Residency Documents (Rent Contract, Electric/Gas Bill, Credit Card Bill, Internet Bill)
- Title of Motorcycle (If you are getting plates for it the same day)
- Proof of Insurance (Not sure if needed, I did just in case)
- Any Extra forms of Identifications (in the event one of your other forms can not be accepted. So I would try to bring three (3) if you can.)
To make life easy for everyone involved, have all the paperwork you need in one folder that you can hand to the DMV associate. You will need all the paperwork listed above. Also, don’t forget to bring your motorcycle! This is required, so they can inspect it for registration purposes. If you are just getting your license, then it won’t matter. However, if you want to register it at the same time as getting your license, make sure you drive it there.
What To Expect When You Get There
If you live in one of the Major cities in California (San Francisco, San Jose, Los Angeles) you have two options when going to the DMV. You can either go online and schedule a appointment or line up in front of the DMV’s office about two (2) hours before they open.
And I’m not kidding when I say people will start lining up at 6 am when the office opens at 8 am. I’m grateful to the people here in California that recommended this pro tip to me. (Another pro tip, bring a folding lawn chair so you don’t have to stand the entire time… maybe even a snack too)
Once you get in they will start having you fill out paperwork while you wait to see an associate. Once I was with a DMV associate, the process felt the same as when I got my license back in Ohio. They verify your paperwork, make you retake the vision and knowledge test, and then have you pay for registration fees. (DMV Fee Chart)
Once everything is squared away with the paperwork, and you’ve had your photo taken, you will get your receipts and a temporary license. The actual license will be mailed to the address you provided. I received mine around 2-3 weeks later.
Conclusion
Getting my Ohio motorcycle license transferred to California was relatively easy. I had all my paperwork ready to go and the knowledge test was pretty straight forward. I would look up all the lane splitting laws before you go in to take the test.
The whole process took about 4.5 hours from the time I lined up at the door until I was walking out. I was told that had I gotten there at 8 am when they actually opened, I would have been there all day.
I would suggest getting everything done and paid for all at once, so you don’t need to go through the waiting process multiple times.
Hopefully this article gives you a decent overview on what to expect when you go and get your license transferred to California. Also, I hope that the few Pro Tips I got help you as much as they helped me.
If you are interested in what Motorcycle and gear I own, you can check it all out on the Bike and Gear page!