§383.21 – Number of Drivers Licenses

Guidance Q&A

Question 1: Is a person from Puerto Rico required to surrender his or her driver’s license in order to obtain a non-domiciled CDL?

Guidance: No. Since Puerto Rico and the U.S. Territories are not included in the definition of a State in section 12016 of the CMVSA (49 U.S.C. 31301(14)), they must be considered foreign countries for purposes of the CDL requirements. Under part 383, a person domiciled in a foreign country is not required to surrender his or her foreign license in order to obtain a non-domiciled CDL. There are two reasons for permitting this dual licensing to a person domiciled in Puerto Rico: (a) There is no reciprocal agreement with Puerto Rico recognizing its CMV testing and licensing standards as equivalent to the standards in part 383, and (b) the non-domiciled CDL may not be recognized as a valid license to drive in Puerto Rico.