Getting a License in Puerto Rico
This is not going to be as easy as I had hoped. I thought there was a slim chance that I would be able to exchange my California drivers license for a Puerto Rico license and be on my way. Not so much. It really isn’t an easy thing to do, there are many hoops to jump through, and of course, the hoops are in espanol. I will do my best to explain what you need to do to get your license here in Puerto Rico.
Getting Your Drivers License in Puerto Rico;
- Original Birth Certificate
- Passport
- Social Security Card
- Official Copy of your drivers record from your home state
- Written Test
- Health Physical (Certificacion Medical)
- Three 2×2 passport photos
- Sellos (DMV Stamps)
Most of the things you need to give the Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico Departamento de Transportacion y Obras Publicas would be realatively easy to find if Summer and I weren’t in the middle of a move. I have my birth certificate, passport and social security card in a travel folder….that is packed away somewhere…so that may take a while to find.
The Health Exam, passport photos and sellos can all be purchased right next door to the DMV for $30..so that’s not hard either.
Puerto Rico does offer the Drivers Test in English by special request, and although they don’t have English versions of the Puerto Rico drivers manual, the pharmacy right down the walkway of the mini-mall sells them for $2.99. There are two mistakes in the English Version of the handbook.
Mistakes in the English Puerto Rico Drivers Test Handbook
- Between midnight and five am (12:00am-5:00am) you must stop and red lights, then you can go through them.
- Parking next to a sidewalk with Yellow paint is a $50 fine
I really think the most difficult aspect of all this is going to be getting a copy of my California Driving Record. Have you ever tried calling the DMV in California? It’s all automated messaging that has never offered the option of “Fax Copy of California Driving Record to Puerto Rico”. Regardless of this not being an option, I am going to try to get a human being on the line and explain my situation. If they send me in the right direction, I will report back to you guys with my findings.
September 21st, 2007 at 1:25 pm
Hello again. Those are not mistakes in the handbook. You can run red lights between 12a-5a. That’s due to the high carjacking incidence in the Metro Area. I’m also pretty sure it is a $50 fine for parking in a no parking zone (yellow) even though it is rarely enforced.
I don’t know when your CA driver’s license expires, but on my CO license I have until 2012 so I just got a Rican license as if I were a new driver. It did mean a driving test but you get a temporary permit on the day you take your written, so your covered for Marbete purposes. It makes travel in the US a whole lot easier with a domestic license.
Tip for the test: Memorize the fine values, there will be a few questions asking what the fine for “X” is. Also, getting the test in English is easy so don’t sweat that.
Good luck with it, and I hope the “DMV” out your way is a bit better than Carolina, as that is just a zoo. It took me two trips and lots of waiting in line to get my written done.
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September 21st, 2007 at 1:31 pm
Eric:
Good advice. Start from scratch and take the drivers test as if you have never had a license….thanks for the contribution!
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September 21st, 2007 at 7:27 pm
Haha…that picture is hilarious…
Getting a license in Puerto Rico is like trying to get a buddist to make a cat jump through a tiny hoop.
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October 14th, 2007 at 2:38 pm
I moved from Burbank to PR this past July. To get my PR license, I cheated a bit
I have family in Miami, FL, so I spent 2 days there, went to the DMV and swapped my California license for a Florida one. Once I got to PR, I was able to get away with not taking the test, since I was surrendering a FL license… and PR has full reciprocity with Florida.
It’s a bit convoluted, but it worked!
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October 14th, 2007 at 5:14 pm
Robert:
You weren’t cheating, you were just doing what needed to be done. That is a good idea. I have some friends in Florida…maybe it’s time for a visit!
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October 21st, 2007 at 6:07 pm
What you’ll need for this, (Still a ton of paperwork):
In florida, bring your Cal license and passport or birth certificate in case. With an appointment, the total process took me about a half hour.
Once back in PR, go to CESCO (local DMV office) and bring the following paperwork:
-Original Florida license
-Copy of Florida driving record (emailed to you as a PDF for like $25)
-PR license application and all pertinent PR paperwork (dr. examination, stamps from the colecturia, photo, etc)
-original birth certificate & photocopy
-original social security card & photocopy
-original passport (if you have it) & photocopy
-proof of residence (I brought a power bill under the landlords name and a letter from the landlord stating I’m renting from him, since I didn’t sign a lease)
This plus patience and a few hours, and you should get your license.
Also, if you want to keep a mainland license (I did), Florida will mail a duplicate to the address on file. I did this online and had my relatives mail it to me in PR once they received it. The benefit this offers is a more official looking ID for when I go to the mainland and get carded for a drink. Puerto Rico’s DMV isn’t tied into any mainland compy system, so there’s no way for Florida to know you got a PR license as well
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November 7th, 2007 at 2:51 pm
I am wondering if I never had a Drivers License, and live in California, will I still need a print out? Let me know.
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June 27th, 2008 at 11:10 pm
hey, does anyone if pr reports to the national drivers registry? And what does reciprocity mean
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January 22nd, 2009 at 12:29 pm
anyone havea sample of the english version of the driving test in puerto rico??????/the questions?
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January 23rd, 2009 at 5:00 pm
minie:
I have a the booklet to study for the test in English, but I don’t have a copy of the test in English. If you get it, definitely send me an email
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February 11th, 2010 at 12:00 pm
If your license is revoked in one state is it still possible to obtain one in puerto rico?
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March 19th, 2010 at 4:05 pm
Lady V,
if you have a residency in PR, yes you can get a PR Dr Lic. No Network is in place between PR and main land US-YET.
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November 14th, 2010 at 11:55 am
can I buy your driver’s manual from you if it’s in English? I live in Aguadilla and my husband and I are trying to get our licenses and cannot find the manual.
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November 15th, 2010 at 4:48 am
@Peggy; Let me see if I can find my old manual around here. I bought the Puerto Rico drivers license manual in English right next door in the little store there. It is literally two doors down in the mini-mall. Did you check in there?
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November 29th, 2010 at 6:18 am
what mini-mall did you go to? Where exactly is it? I need one of those for my mom
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January 20th, 2011 at 10:40 pm
you can buy the English version of the handbook at Borders @ Plaza das Americas near San Juan on the first floor near the art section. They have a huge stack of them….
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April 7th, 2011 at 7:16 am
you can also buy the English version of the CESCO handbook at Caguas copy (two blocks from Walmart and Krispie Kreme) in Caguas. call them to confirm but when I was there I saw a stack!! : ) 787 746 8288
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