Virginia DMV now allows drivers to renew license online

A majority of Virginia drivers may now renew their driver’s license for up to two years without having to enter a DMV location to have a photo taken.

The DMV in Richmond says the new system allows drivers to new on its website and was brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.

The new system is expected to save 500,000 residents a trip to a DMV office. Since the pandemic hit, many have waited a month or more to be seen by appointment only at DMV offices across the state.

Drivers in the state have long been able to renew their license plates online.

Virginia’s DMV included more information about its online license renewal program in a press release.

This service option postpones the requirement for eligible customers, regardless of age, to visit a DMV customer service center until it is time for their next renewal. When the two-year credential expires, customers will then visit DMV to renew and obtain a five-year or eight-year credential and have a new photograph taken. DMV is currently notifying customers eligible for the two-year renewal by their preferred contact methods. More than 50,000 customers have taken advantage of this service since September 15. Customers opting for the two-year renewal who had already made DMV appointments are urged to cancel the appointments so they are available for other customers needing in-person service.

“We wanted to be creative to help our customers who are navigating the challenges of the pandemic,” said DMV Commissioner Richard D. Holcomb. “By providing this new online and mail-in two-year option, we are giving as many approximately a half-million Virginians over the next 14 months the ability to skip a trip to the DMV. This frees up appointment space for other customers who must visit us in order to conduct their business.”

The validity of DMV-issued credentials expiring during the health crisis has been extended under Governor Ralph Northam’s Executive Directive 7. The credentials of customers who have received extensions are considered valid as long as the extension has not expired.

Customers ineligible for this new two-year renewal option include those who:

• hold a limited duration license issued for one year or for a period of authorized stay in the U.S.,
• are required to register in accordance with Va. Code Chapter 9 or Title 9.1, or
• have a school bus endorsement

These customers are required to renew in person due to statutory requirements.
A driver’s license renewal costs $4 per year, therefore, a two-year license will cost $8. A typical in-person license renewal, which is valid for either five or eight years, costs $20 or $32, respectively. An identification card (ID) renewal costs $2 per year which means if you are receiving an ID that is valid for two years from the expiration date on your prior ID, it costs $4. An eight-year ID renewal typically costs $16.

Those who would like to renew their credential for five or eight years, or need a REAL ID compliant credential, must make an appointment at dmvNOW.com/appt for in-person service.