Supplemental Social Security Information for Applicants with VISA E1/E2 and L1/L2 (and others).
Social Security Number Eligibility Verification
Documents issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identify legal presence status and social security eligibility.
California state law requires the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to collect your social security number (SSN), if applicable, when you apply for a driver license or identification (DL/ID) card.
DMV electronically verifies your name, birth date, and SSN with the Social Security Administration (SSA), and the DHS while you are in the DMV office.
If the response from the SSA states that you, your spouse, or your minor child is not eligible for an SSN, the field office technician will issue the appropriate license or identification document.
If the response from SSA states that you, your spouse, or your minor child is eligible for an SSN, and an SSN is not provided, the field office technician cannot issue a DL/ID document until an SSN is obtained or until the DMV Issuance Unit can confirm that an SSN is not required.
Dependents of a person with specific Visa types (such as E1/E2 or L1/L2) may not be eligible for an SSN, but the system response in the DMV field office, may show “SSN required” because the system does not distinguish between principal and dependents.
A secondary verification of the legal presence document(s) is required and conducted in the DMV Issuance Unit in Sacramento. It takes approximately two weeks from the date of your application in the DMV field office for the documents to be received and processed by the DMV Issuance Unit. After the two week waiting period, you may call the DMV Issuance Unit, at (916) 657-7790 to inquire about the status of your DL/ID card.
Resources
Social Security Administration (SSA)
Social security cards are issued by (SSA). Contact SSA by:
- Calling 1-800-772-1213.
- Going to your local SSA Office.
- Visiting SSA’s website at www.ssa.gov.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
If you need to replace or obtain your birth date/legal presence document, call the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a bureau of (DHS), National Customer Service Center at 1-800-375-5283. For a list of local USCIS offices visit www.uscis.gov.
California (DMV)
For appointments, office services hours, and locations:
- Visit our web site at www.dmv.ca.gov.
- Call 1-800-777-0133.
- For speech and hearing impaired service only – TTY 1-800-368-4327.
All phone numbers are subject to change without notice.
The following additional brochures on this subject may be found at DMV brochures.
