I am a UK citizen who recently married a US citizen and we both live in Atlanta, Georgia. I have a work permit and a SSN and am in the process of having my status changed to permanent resident when I will receive my green card. I can't take my Georgia drivers licence test until I have my green card so I am driving on my UK licence, which I can do for 12 months from date of entry into the country. Yesterday, I went into a car dealership and asked to test drive a car. I was told that they couldn't let me do that as I didn't have a Georgia drivers licence and their insurers wouldn't allow it but they took me for a drive around the car park. They then told me that, even if I liked it, that they couldn't sell it to me because I don't have a Georgia drivers licence. They seemed concerned about me getting finance without a green card but I told them that I could pay cash. They still said that they couldn't sell me any car because my drivers licence was needed for them to register it. I told them that my husband could do that and they said that that would be a 'straw purchase' and because they knew that the car would really be for me, that it would be illegal and that they would refuse to sell it to me. I was amazed and I felt like a criminal. My question is: can a UK citizen buy a car in Georgia and get it legally registered with a UK drivers licence? I would greatly appreciate feedback on this as it seems incredible that I cannot buy a car here even though I am legal to drive for another 3-4 months.
2006-08-27 01:40:50 · 5 answers · asked by Lemonice 2 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Buying & Selling
That dealer doesn't have a clue!
1. You don't need ANY license to buy a car. PERIOD!
2. You only need a valid license to drive a car. Your UK license IS valid.
3. You don't need a drivers license to register a car, only to drive it.
4. A husband purchasing a car for his wife is NOT a straw purchase.
5. You do NOT need a green card to get financing.
Simply ask the dealer to show you the relevant sections of the law on these issues. They won't be able to since they don't exist. Or better yet, find a dealer who knows what he's doing.
Your are mis-informed about the GA drivers license. Although many states require legal status to get a license, your work permit and SSN confer that. You do NOT need a green card! Here's a link to the GA drivers license manual. Page 18 clearly states the legal status requirements for non-US citizens.
http://www.dds.ga.gov/docs/forms/FullDriversManual.pdf
2006-08-27 02:59:27 · answer #1 · answered by Bostonian In MO 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Well as much as i know you already have a work permit and a ss# ...to work in the us,every state is deffrent but as much as i know the only thing they are concer about is your legal status in the coutry which you alredy have an step ahead of the game so the best thing to do is to go to your local DMV and bring a coppy of your applcation for ajusment of status and get your license if they say know tell them you wanna talk to the supervisor because sometimes the tellers don't have to much information about this cases since that could be a place where they don't get to see those cases so often
2006-08-27 13:25:49
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answer #2
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answered by Anonymous
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I think they were politely telling you they didn't want to talk with you because there was nothing in it for them at the moment. You are indeed talking to the wrong folks. Go to the licenseing office in your county and they will explain. You can get most of the info under Georgia Government on the internet...just go thru the prompts.
Bottom line is you can't own a car without a valid license and I think that is just about every state in the US. You and your husband maybe signed onto the titile and he may acaquire plates and with your UK drivers permit drive the vehicle but keep in mind the vehicle MUST BE insured....and that too is the case in most of the US.
Here driving is considered a privalage not a right.....similar to the UK I suspect.
Hope that helped as much as muddied the waters.
2006-08-27 02:17:59 · answer #3 · answered by Capt 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
. Wow that seems wrong. I would think Straw purchase would have worked and as long as both of your names were on the financing why not. Check with the DMV bring them a wedding photo and copy of marriage license explain that you are going to purchase a car and need a drivers license and they are unjustly keeping you from paying sales taxes, road use taxes, And supporting the local economy. I'm from Texas.
2006-08-27 01:52:03 · answer #4 · answered by John Paul 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
maybe that is true for georgia i dont know, but up here in MA we have brazilians driving cars that they bought while only having a brazil drivers license, i dont know how they do it, but they do.
2006-08-27 01:44:16 · answer #5 · answered by plcl32003 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋