Every time you get or renew a license, permit or nondriver ID, you prove who you are and where you live. New drivers and people transferring an out-of-state license have slightly different steps. Bring every document with you—it saves a second trip.
To obtain or renew a license, permit or nondriver ID, show proof of:
- Lawful status
- Identity (full legal name and date of birth)
- Social Security number
- Name change, if applicable
- Missouri residency
- Mailing address, if different from your residential address
Know the rule
You must also present and surrender your current license, permit or nondriver ID.
Handbook p. 8 ↗Know the rule
New residents transferring an out-of-state license must surrender it and take the vision and road sign tests. Any license, permit or ID from another state is then invalidated.
Handbook p. 8 ↗You must take the four-part driver exam if:
- You're applying for a new Missouri driver license
- Your Missouri license has been expired more than six months (184 days)
- Your out-of-state license has been expired more than 184 days
- Your license was revoked for too many points or an Administrative Alcohol Revocation
- The Director of Revenue asks you to, even if your license is current
Lawful status documents for a U.S. citizen include:
- U.S. birth certificate certified with an embossed, stamped or raised seal by a vital records agency
- A valid, unexpired U.S. passport
- Certificate of Citizenship, Certificate of Naturalization, or Certificate of Birth Abroad
Know the rule
Hospital birth certificates and birth registration cards are not acceptable.
Handbook p. 8 ↗Know the rule
If you're 65 or older renewing a non-REAL ID non-commercial permit, license or nondriver ID, you may be exempt from presenting place-of-birth documents.
Handbook p. 8 ↗Missouri residency documents needed for a REAL ID-compliant card (1 for a non-REAL ID card)
Handbook p. 9 ↗Residency proof examples:
- Any two current utility bills (phone, electric, gas, water, sewer or cable)
- Property tax receipt or voter ID card
- An official letter on letterhead from a government agency, issued within the last 90 days
Know the rule
A Post Office Box is not acceptable as a residential address. If you're under 21 and lack a residency document, a parent or guardian may provide one (for REAL ID it counts as only one of the two).
Handbook p. 9 ↗Residential address
Where you're physically present and regard as home: your true, fixed, principal and permanent home that you intend to return to, even if living elsewhere now.
Handbook p. 9 ↗Proof of Social Security number:
- Social Security card (original, signed, not laminated)
- W-2 Wage and Tax Statement or 1099 form
- A paystub showing your name and Social Security number
- No SSN? A letter from the Social Security Administration about your SSN status
Name change documents:
- Last name: certified marriage license, divorce decree, court order, adoption papers, or amended birth cert.
- First name: certified court order
- Middle name: certified court order
Put it into practice
You move from Kansas with a valid Kansas license. Bring proof of lawful status, identity, SSN and Missouri residency, surrender the Kansas license, and pass the vision and road sign tests. If it had been expired 200 days, you'd take the full four-part exam.