I needed a non-drivers ID. I held onto an old invalid ID for the past 8 years as proof of identity,…read morebut I need to find a new apartment in the new year and my old ID wouldn't cut it anymore (for that and other reasons).
First, the good thing is that I didn't have to wait too long being it's Christmas Eve.. but the process of getting a non-drivers REAL ID didn't turn out to be anything like I expected. :(
I did extensive research before I visited to ensure I had all my documentation. I even had to get a certified birth certificate since when I visited about two weeks earlier, they told me that my copy wasn't good enough.
A couple of weeks prior to that, I mistakenly forgot my documentation, so this was my third visit.
Within about 15 minutes or so, I was called. I presented everything needed according to the NY DMV website and was told I was short by one point. :( Then I was asked for my old ID. I thought that would help with the identification process and presented it. I was told it was expired (that's why I was there, and I clearly indicated on my application that I had an expired ID!)
THE REP GAVE ME BACK MY OLD ID, and then asked if I had a credit card. He said it would satisfy the last point. I gave him my debit card and that satisfied all criteria. I got my (UGLY) picture taken and then met him back at his window.
He told me everything was just about done, but then asked for my ID again. I gave it to him and he told me that I had to surrender it. SURRENDER IT?!?!?!? I was shook! WHY??? It's 8 years expired with my 28 year old face on it! I explained that I got a driver's license but wound up never driving due to anxiety and poor vision, and used it for identity purposes. He was intrigued and understanding, but told me it was part of their protocol. I asked him what they do with the old licenses and he said they SHRED them! I said if you're just going to shred them why can't I keep it? He spoke to a fellow Rep and she came over and said they take your license and staple it to your paperwork! (I question how true that is since my old license was INVALID by many years, so what's the point of THEIR keeping it, especially since it didn't satisfy proof of identity, ANYWAY??) Then she said that if I'm caught with an old license and a new one, it's a $10,000 fine!
Make it make sense!
I saw in Reddit that not every DMV takes away your license. They'll just punch a hole in it and give it back to you, or tell you to destroy it, yourself. And we're talking about UNEXPIRED licenses that are being upgraded or replaced, for some reason. In contrast, my old license has long been invalid and I had a photo on it that was nearly 33 years old!!!
WHY is keeping my old license so important to me? Well, that's a pretty personal matter, but the short answer is for nostalgic reasons... so it hurts me SO much to have to give it up, only to know that they're just going to destroy it. :(
As an aside, I want to say that I didn't mean to give the Rep that serviced me a hard time. :( I just couldn't understand, first, why I didn't INITIALLY meet the 6 point criteria when the NYS DMV says otherwise, and two, WHY surrending an 8 year EXPIRED/INVALID driver's license administered almost 33 years ago with my 28 year old face on it HAD TO HAPPEN. :'(
The 4 stars this place would have gotten was ruined (for me) by this very thing.
It's NOT fair, and I HATE their stupid "protocol". :(