New driver’s license law creates backlog for Mass. community group helping undocumented immigrants apply

For over six months now, undocumented immigrants in Massachusetts have been able to get driver’s licenses, under the Work and Family Mobility Act that took effect last July.

The controversial measure took nearly two-decades to pass and allows people to obtain a learner’s permit or driver’s license regardless of their immigration status. One of them is Karla Jonelyn, 25, who drives a 1998 Toyota Camry now to run errands and care for her 5-year old son. Late last year, she got her driver’s license following the Work and Family Mobility Act which went into effect in July 2023. 

“Before, I had to bother a friend or my sister-in-law who took me to that place for my appointments,” she said. “Now it’s a big difference because I don’t bother anyone.” 

Thousands of people across the state were granted licenses across the Commonwealth. In New Bedford and Fall River, the number of licenses granted has increased nearly five times since the law took effect in July compared to the same time last year, according to data received from the Massachusetts RMV. The figures don’t specify how many licenses were granted to undocumented immigrants.  

Jonelyn came from Honduras to New Bedford in 2021 and lives with her husband and son. When it was time to get her documents ready to apply for a driver’s license, Jonelyn looked to the Community Economic Development Center in New Bedford for help. The CEDC is a non-profit group that works with immigrants in the area. 

Director Corinn Williams said she wanted to help residents get their licenses. The CEDC sees up to a dozen people a day who need help with everything from scheduling an appointment to getting their documents in order. They’re backed up with work. 

“It’s not like the RMV or the state provided an extra grant to community-based organizations to be able to facilitate this process,” she said. “There is an awful lot that’s going on the ground to just be able to get your driver’s license.”

In an emailed response, the RMV encouraged community groups to contact them with issues and wouldn’t provide specifics about any potential future changes stating, “organizations might get false expectations of what resources are or aren’t available.”

In order to get a license you need to provide proof of your identity and date of birth using two forms of identification. Applicants will likely first provide their passport which they often have on-hand from their home country. Individuals can then choose from a list of documents to meet the second form of identification, which must be translated. Williams said it’s here where problems arise, especially with one of the acceptable forms of identification: birth certificates. 

“They have to contact a relative back home to get it sent over to be able to translate.“If you go to our office, we have a big filing box that’s full of birth certificates that we’ve been working on the translations,” she said. 

Obtaining a birth certificate varies widely from country to country. If you’re from Guatemala, birth certificates expire every 60 days. If you’re from Ecuador, birth certificates are written longhand in cursive. If you’re from Brazil, getting a license varies depending on the province you live in. 

Williams said it’s a lot of extra work without additional resources.

It took Jonelyn $125 and nearly three weeks to get her birth certificate processed and delivered followed by another two weeks to get it translated. The process was a hassle, she said, but getting a driver’s license was worth the effort.

“Out of necessity, you leave your country, your parents, your family. Everyone here comes out of necessity and suffers to get there,” she said. “You need opportunities for things like this.”

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