Driver and Vehicle Services closes offices to help slow the spread of COVID-19
April 2, 2020
Some of the information in this blog has changed due to new federal guidelines. Some deputy registrars are now offering limited vehicle services. Find list of open locations on the right side of the DVS locations page, and call your local office before you visit to see what services they are offering.
As you know, Gov. Walz issued a stay at home order last week – and Minnesotans are taking it very seriously. Non-essential businesses are shuttered, people are limiting their movements, bicycle and pedestrian traffic is up 20 percent. The Department of Public Safety Driver and Vehicle Services division (DPS-DVS) is no exception: They have closed all their exam stations statewide, and independently owned and operated deputy registrar and driver’s license agent offices are closed as well.
The closure started at the end of the business day on Friday, March 27, and will continue through April 10, which is when the stay at home order expires. This means Minnesotans won’t be able to do things like renew their driver’s license or ID cards, but don’t worry: If yours expires during this peacetime emergency, you’ll get an extension to two months after the month the emergency ends. Gov. Walz signed this bill into law on March 28.
There’s a similar extension for REAL ID. The full enforcement deadline was originally Oct. 1, 2020, but the federal government has extended that for a full year. The new deadline is Oct. 1, 2021.
You can still renew your vehicle registration online and by mail, so there are no extensions for expiring registrations. To renew, go to drive.mn.gov or send in the bottom half of your renewal notice, along with your payment, to:
DVS Renewal
PO Box 64587
St. Paul, MN 55164-0587
If you have already submitted a driver’s license or ID card application, it will still get processed. Some DPS-DVS staff are teleworking to process previously submitted applications, including those for REAL ID and enhanced driver’s licenses and ID cards.
You can still contact DPS-DVS staff with driver services questions and vehicle services questions. If you have questions about the stay at home order or any of Gov. Walz’s other executive orders, check out this COVID-19 Response and Preparation page. And be sure to follow DPS-DVS on Facebook and Twitter – they’ll be updating those and their website with additional information.
