The N.C. Division of Motor Vehicles is changing the way driver's licenses are issued, and it's coming soon.

The DMV will begin issuing licenses and identification cards from one, central location rather than at the local level.

DMV officials in Raleigh will notify the regional offices a week before they undergo the switch, said Marge Howell, a spokeswoman for the agency. The offices will be closed for part of a day to prepare for the change.

Under the new method, people renewing their licenses or applying for a North Carolina license for the first time will continue to visit local DMV offices to be tested and photographed.

Rather than getting their licenses immediately over the counter at a local office, residents will get a temporary driving permit, good for 20 days, while their personal information is verified. Their license or ID card will be processed in Raleigh and mailed to them.

The DMV plans to have the program in place in its 114 offices by mid-September.

"We are going little by little until we get the whole state covered," Howell said.

DMV Commissioner Mike Robertson said that processing the licenses at a central location will protect the state against identity theft and fraud.

"It also means that North Carolina will become one of the top states in the nation for producing secure and trusted driving and identification credentials," Robertson said.
Drivers will be able to keep their current licenses to use for photo identification until they get their new licenses. Most residents will get their licenses within seven to 10 days, the DMV said.

Drivers can renew licenses up to six months before birthday renewal dates.

"It is important to do it early in case a snafu happens," Howell said.

Sixteen DMV offices in Eastern North Carolina will close for a half day this week to prepare for the central-issuance procedures, then reopen the next day. Two weeks ago, 15 DMV offices in Western North Carolina, including ones in Boone and Jefferson, started converting to the new process.

Last year, the DMV ran pilot programs for the new process in its two offices in Harnett County.

In 2006, the General Assembly passed a law mandating the new procedure and moving production materials and equipment used in making driver's licenses to a central location to protect against theft and fraud.