46.2-330 - Expiration and renewal of licenses; examinations required.
§ 46.2-330. Expiration and renewal of licenses; examinations required.
A. Every driver's license shall expire on the applicant's birthday at the endof the period of years for which a driver's license has been issued. At notime shall any driver's license be issued for more than eight years.Thereafter the driver's license shall be renewed on or before the birthday ofthe licensee and shall be valid for a period not to exceed eight years exceptas otherwise provided by law. In determining the number of years for which adriver's license shall be renewed, the Commissioner shall take intoconsideration the examinations, conditions, requirements, and other criteriaprovided under this title that relate to the issuance of a license to operatea vehicle. Any driver's license issued to a person required to registerpursuant to Chapter 9 of Title 9.1 shall expire on the applicant's birthdayin years which the applicant attains an age equally divisible by five.
B. Within one year prior to the date shown on the driver's license as thedate of expiration, the Department shall mail notice, to the holder thereof,at the address shown on the records of the Department in its driver's licensefile, that his license will expire on a date specified therein, whether hemust be reexamined, and when he may be reexamined. Nonreceipt of the noticeshall not extend the period of validity of the driver's license beyond itsexpiration date.
Any driver's license may be renewed by application after the applicant hastaken and successfully completed those parts of the examination provided forin §§ 46.2-311, 46.2-325, and the Virginia Commercial Driver's License Act (§46.2-341.1 et seq.), including vision and written tests, other than the partsof the examination requiring the applicant to drive a motor vehicle. Alldrivers applying in person for renewal of a license shall take andsuccessfully complete the examination each renewal year. Every applicant fora renewal shall appear in person before the Department, unless specificallynotified by the Department that renewal may be accomplished in another manneras provided in the notice. Applicants who are required to appear in personbefore the Department to apply for a renewal may also be required to presentproof of identity, legal presence, residency, and social security number ornon-work authorized status.
C. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the Commissioner, inhis discretion, may require any applicant for renewal to be fully examined asprovided in §§ 46.2-311, 46.2-325, and the Virginia Commercial Driver'sLicense Act (§ 46.2-341.1 et seq.). Furthermore, if the applicant is lessthan 80 years old, the Commissioner may waive the vision examination for anyapplicant for renewal of a driver's license which is not a commercialdriver's license, and the requirement or the taking of the written test asprovided in subsection B of this section, § 46.2-325 and the VirginiaCommercial Driver's License Act (§ 46.2-341.1 et seq.), for any applicant forrenewal who is at least 21 years old. Such written test shall not be waivedfor an applicant less than 21 years old if such applicant's driver's licenserecord on file with the Department contains a record of one or moreconvictions for any offense reportable under §§ 46.2-382, 46.2-382.1, and46.2-383. However, in no case shall there be any waiver of the visionexamination for applicants for renewal of a commercial driver's license or ofthe knowledge test required by the Virginia Commercial Driver's License Actfor the hazardous materials endorsement on a commercial driver's license. Nodriver's license or learner's permit issued to any person who is 80 years oldor older shall be renewed unless the applicant for renewal appears in personand either (i) passes a vision examination or (ii) presents a report of avision examination, made within 90 days prior thereto by an ophthalmologistor optometrist, indicating that the applicant's vision meets or exceeds thestandards contained in § 46.2-311.
D. Every applicant for renewal of a driver's license, whether renewal shallor shall not be dependent on any examination of the applicant, shall appearin person before the Department to apply for renewal, unless specificallynotified by the Department that renewal may be accomplished in another manneras provided in the notice.
E. This section shall not modify the provisions of § 46.2-221.2.
F. 1. The Department shall electronically transmit application information,including a photograph, to the Department of State Police, in a formatapproved by the State Police, for comparison with information contained inthe Virginia Criminal Information Network and National Crime InformationCenter Convicted Sexual Offender Registry Files, at the time of the renewalof a driver's license. Whenever it appears from the records of the StatePolice that a person has failed to comply with the duty to register orreregister pursuant to Chapter 9 (§ 9.1-900 et seq.) of Title 9.1, the StatePolice shall promptly investigate and, if there is probable cause to believea violation has occurred, obtain a warrant or assist in obtaining anindictment charging a violation of § 18.2-472.1 in the jurisdiction in whichthe person last registered or reregistered or in the jurisdiction where theperson made application for licensure. The Department of State Police shallelectronically transmit to the Department, in a format approved by theDepartment, for each person required to register pursuant to Chapter 9 ofTitle 9.1, registry information consisting of the person's name, all aliasesthat he has used or under which he may have been known, his date of birth andsocial security number as set out in § 9.1-903.
2. For each person required to register pursuant to Chapter 9 of Title 9.1,the Department may not waive the requirement that each such person shallappear for each renewal or the requirement to obtain a photograph inaccordance with subsection C of § 46.2-323.
(1968, c. 642, § 46.1-380.1; 1975, c. 24; 1976, c. 48; 1984, c. 780; 1989,cc. 705, 727; 1993, cc. 471, 501; 1997, c. 486; 2001, cc. 659, 665; 2003, c.333; 2004, cc. 112, 218, 975; 2005, c. 302; 2006, cc. 857, 914; 2008, cc.487, 866; 2009, c. 872.)