The Korea Herald

지나쌤

Virginia State exempts Korean license holders from driving test

By 김경호

Published : April 6, 2011 - 20:10

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WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― South Korean Ambassador Han Duck-soo on Tuesday exchanged a memorandum of understanding with Gov. Bob McDonnell of Virginia that will exempt holders of a South Korean drivers license from taking tests.

The “Driver’s License Reciprocity Arrangement” will allow holders of a South Korean drivers license to get a Virginia license without taking a written and driving test.

Under the arrangement, South Koreans holding a drivers license from their home country are only required to submit certificates of residence in Virginia.

South Korea maintains a similar MOU with Maryland, which, unlike Virginia, obliges holders of South Korean licenses to attend classes on preventing driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

The metropolitan Washington, D.C., area, including Virginia and Maryland, has more than 100,000 Koreans and Korean-Americans, the fourth biggest Korean community in the U.S. after Los Angeles, New York and Atlanta.

South Korea currently maintains similar MOUs with 126 countries.

State governments, not the federal government of the U.S., have the authority to issue drivers licenses.