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Question: Regarding the driver’s license renewal by mail for certain drivers 72 and older (808ne.ws/211kline), thanks for the link to the driver’s license application (808ne.ws/dlapp), but where can I get the form for the vision certificate?
Answer: Eye doctors on Oahu have the template for the certificate of eye examination, commonly known as the vision certificate, for patients who request it for their driver’s license application, said Harold Nedd, a spokesman for Honolulu County’s Department of Customer Services. Your eye doctor would complete the form and give you the original to submit with your application, according to the city’s instructions.
The vision certificate includes the following information, Nedd said:
>> Patient’s name
>> Patient’s date of birth (optional)
>> Date of examination (the document is valid for six months)
>> Visual acuity for the right eye, left eye and both eyes
>> Whether corrective lens (glasses or contact) are required to drive
>> Peripheral vision check
>> Signature of doctor
You are one of many readers asking about this, so CSD has updated its instructions online to include more information, including that the vision certificate you submit with your driver’s license application must be an original certificate from your physician or optometrist dated within the previous six months. A prescription for your glasses or contacts is not a vision certificate and won’t be accepted, CSD said.
You should make a copy of the vision certificate for your records before submitting the original with your application.
People with computer access can read the department’s full instructions at 808ne.ws/72licrev or find them at honolulu.gov/csd. Click on the link for service updates under the “Caring for Customers” banner and then scroll down to the “Mail-In Options,” where you should find a link to instructions for “Driver License renewals by mail for two-year licenses for ages 72 or older only.”
In related news, the expiration dates for Hawaii driver licenses, instruction permits and state identification cards have been extended again, under Gov. David Ige’s 18th supplementary COVID-19 emergency proclamation. Such credentials with stated expiration dates “between March 16, 2020, through April 13, 2021, are considered valid in Hawaii through April 13, 2021,” according to the CSD website.
The extension also applies to a commercial driver license, but the holder must meet requirements for a valid medical examiner’s certificate.
About 30,000 Oahu residents have driver licenses, learner’s permits, commercial driver licenses or state IDs with stated expiration dates within that period, according to CSD. Those credentials are automatically extended through April 13.
Although readers appreciate the extensions, what they really want is to renew their credentials, and they are increasingly frustrated by their inability to get an appointment through the AlohaQ system, which is perennially booked up. The scarcity of appointments seems to be exacerbated by the department’s recent decision to reduce service by mail. Readers point out that while the governor’s proclamation will save them a ticket for driving with an expired license if they are pulled over in Hawaii, it’s not widely recognized elsewhere, including while trying to complete transactions online that require the user to input a valid ID.
Q: What if I already got my extended benefits (EB20)? It ran out. Can I get PEUC2?
A: Yes, assuming that you are otherwise eligible. Anyone who exhausts EB20 before March 13 should receive a PEUC2 monetary determination in the mail from the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations’ Unemployment Insurance Division, according to the department. After you receive it, you can file claim certifications going back to the week you exhausted EB20, it said.
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Honolulu 96813; call 529-4773; fax 529-4750; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
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