Driver Licenses and ID Cards in St. Lucie County

The St. Lucie County Tax Collector acts as the driver license office for the county, with license counters in Fort Pierce, on Walton Road and in Tradition.

The Tax Collector Contact Us page gives the three addresses and one phone line, 772-462-1650, for all of them, and it lists driver license service hours separately from general office hours. The site footer adds the time when knowledge and road testing stops for the day.

Saturday service runs only at the Tradition office, by appointment. The St. Lucie County pages give two different Saturday license windows: the Contact Us page and the Make an Appointment page list driver license services from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., while the footer printed on the Tax Collector's service pages lists 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. with testing ending at 4:30 p.m. Both are shown here as posted. The St. Lucie County Tax Collector guide covers the office's property tax and business tax work.

The St. Lucie County Tax Collector books appointments and also posts weekday walk-in hours, and it serves only St. Lucie County residents, counting people who are establishing residency there.

Walk-in windows run 2:30 to 5 p.m. at Fort Pierce and Walton Road (appointment blocks 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.) and 2 to 4 p.m. at Tradition (appointment blocks 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 6 p.m.), per the Contact Us page. The Make an Appointment page warns that appointments made by someone living in another county will not be honored, and it sends out of county residents to their own tax collector. Every person who needs a license transaction books a separate slot, although two slots can share the same date and time, so a household moving to Port St. Lucie or Fort Pierce together can be seen side by side. The office does not supply interpreters; anyone who needs one brings one to the appointment.

The appointment requirement dates from July 8, 2020, when the St. Lucie County office began requiring appointments for in person service at all three locations, according to its Motor Vehicle and Driver License Services page. Not every license task needs a counter visit: the Driver Licenses and Identification Cards page says that a renewal can be done by mail or through the state MyDMVPortal when none of the in person triggers apply.

A first Florida license, a first ID card or a first REAL ID in St. Lucie County takes original proof of identity, the Social Security card and two documents proving a St. Lucie County residential address.

The Tax Collector's Driver License and IDs page names the usual set as a birth certificate or passport, the Social Security card and two proofs of St. Lucie County residential address. Hospital birth certificates are not accepted, copies of the Social Security card are not accepted, and Puerto Rican customers need a birth certificate issued after July 1, 2010. Address proofs on the St. Lucie County sample list include a deed, mortgage statement or signed lease, a Florida voter registration card, a Florida vehicle or vessel registration or title, and utility bills; utility bills, pay stubs, bank statements and government mail must be dated within the last 60 days, and envelopes are never accepted.

The state rule behind the list comes from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. Its What to Bring page says Florida began issuing REAL ID compliant credentials on January 1, 2010, marked by a star in the upper right corner, and that after May 7, 2025 the Transportation Security Administration accepts only starred licenses and ID cards as identification at airports. FLHSMV adds that a U.S. passport may be used in place of a REAL ID compliant card, and that once the documents are on file they are needed again only when information such as the name or residential address changes. The St. Lucie County license page adds that a REAL ID cannot be obtained online and requires a visit to a Tax Collector office.

A newcomer to St. Lucie County exchanges an out of state license at a Tax Collector office with the same identity, Social Security and address documents a first time applicant brings.

The exchange checklist on the St. Lucie County Driver License and IDs page is the same birth certificate or passport, Social Security card and two county address proofs. State law sets a clock for some newcomers: section 322.031, Florida Statutes requires a nonresident who takes a job in Florida or enrolls children in Florida public schools to obtain a Florida driver license within 30 days if that person drives here, with exceptions for active duty military members and their families holding a valid out of state license and for commuters domiciled in another state.

Name changes in St. Lucie County start at the Social Security Administration. The Tax Collector asks customers to finish the federal change first and to allow 24 to 48 hours before visiting, and it accepts only an original or certified marriage certificate, divorce decree, naturalization certificate or court order; church issued marriage certificates are refused (Driver License and IDs page). Holders of a starred card bring only the name change documents. For an address change, the Driver Licenses and Identification Cards page asks for two proofs showing more than 30 days at the new St. Lucie County residence.

St. Lucie County teens take a driver education course, pass the 50 question knowledge exam for a learner's license at 15 or older, and later book a road test with the Tax Collector.

The Tax Collector's Teen Corner says applicants under 18 must complete the 6 hour Driver Education Traffic Safety course, which took effect on August 1, 2025, while drivers 18 and over take the 4 hour Traffic Law and Substance Abuse Education course. The knowledge exam has 50 multiple choice questions with one hour to finish. Under 18 applicants may test online through an authorized third party administrator and should finish 72 hours before the St. Lucie County appointment. A learner drives in daylight only for the first three months, then until 10 p.m., always with a licensed driver 21 or older, and must log 50 supervised hours, 10 of them at night.

For the road test, the Exams page requires age 16, a learner's license held for at least one year or until the 18th birthday with no traffic convictions, a vehicle with valid registration and proof of Florida PIP and PDL coverage, and, for minors, the completed Certification of Driving Experience of a Minor. Since Friday, Feb. 6, 2026, FLHSMV gives knowledge and driving exams only in English, the same page states. The St. Lucie County pages differ on where road tests happen: the Exams page and the Teen Corner say all three offices, while the Driver Licenses and Identification Cards page says driving tests are available at the Fort Pierce and Tradition offices.

The St. Lucie County Tax Collector's fee sheet, revised October 2, 2023, lists a Class E original or renewal at $48.00 and an ID card at $25.00, each plus a $6.25 tax collector service fee.

The St. Lucie County fee sheet says the $6.25 service fee is charged only once per day, that all honorably discharged veterans are exempt from it for every transaction, and that most transactions for 100% disabled veterans are free. The state amounts come from section 322.21, Florida Statutes, which sets an original Class E license at $48, an original, renewal or replacement identification card at $25, and a $15 delinquent fee on a renewal made within 12 months after expiration. The same statute exempts some applicants from the ID card fee, including a person who presents a valid Florida voter registration card and attests to financial hardship.

Non-citizens applying for a first St. Lucie County license leave with a 60 day temporary paper permit, and commercial drivers need a CDL once vehicle weight or passenger counts pass the state thresholds.

Per the Tax Collector's Driver License and IDs page, immigrants and nonimmigrants bring USCIS documents such as a green card, an employment authorization card or an I-94 with a passport, and F-1 and M-1 students add an I-20. A non-citizen applying for an original driver license gets a 60 day temporary paper permit without a photo, and after identity and legal status are verified the card is mailed within 60 days to the address on the driver record, valid for the period on the USCIS document up to four years. Documents must be valid for more than 30 days from the date of issuance.

The St. Lucie County Driver Licenses and Identification Cards page says a commercial driver license and its endorsements are needed for a vehicle with a weight rating, declared weight or actual weight of 26,001 pounds or more, for hazardous materials, or for carrying 16 or more passengers including the driver. Suspensions and violations, including parking and toll violations, can place a hold on a St. Lucie County resident's license and registration, the same page warns.