California Resident Blocked by an Illinois License Hold? We Clear It Remotely

If you live in California and the California Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) has refused to issue or renew your driver's license because of an Illinois revocation on your record, you are facing a problem that requires action in Illinois — not California. The California DMV cannot clear the hold for you. Only the Illinois Secretary of State can remove it, and that requires going through a formal reinstatement process that most people cannot navigate without experienced legal help.

Attorney Jack L. Zaremba is a former Will County prosecutor who has built his practice around clearing Illinois license holds for out-of-state residents. He has helped clients throughout California — from Los Angeles and San Francisco to San Diego, Sacramento, and the Bay Area — resolve their Illinois revocations entirely by video. You will never need to travel to Illinois.

Why the California DMV Won't Issue Your License

Before issuing a driver's license to any applicant, the California DMV checks the National Driver Register (NDR) and the Problem Driver Pointer System (PDPS) — a federal database maintained by the U.S. Department of Transportation that tracks drivers with revocations, suspensions, or serious traffic violations in any state. If Illinois has reported a revocation on your record, the California DMV will see it and refuse to process your application.

California has one of the most aggressive transfer timelines in the country. State law requires new residents to apply for a California driver's license within 10 days of establishing residency — and unlike most states, California also requires you to pass a written knowledge test even when transferring from another state. If you cannot get past the NDR check because of an Illinois hold, you cannot even get to the testing stage. You are effectively locked out of legal driving in California until the Illinois issue is resolved.

This is a situation that affects thousands of former Illinois residents now living in California. You may have moved to California years ago for work, family, retirement, or school. Your Illinois court case may have been resolved long ago. But under Illinois law, completing your court requirements and paying your fines does not automatically restore your driving privileges. The license revocation is a separate administrative action that stays on your record — and in the national database — indefinitely, until you go through the Illinois Secretary of State's formal reinstatement process.

Many California residents discover the hold only when they try to renew their license or when the DMV runs a background check during a routine transaction. By that point, the hold may have been sitting in the database for a decade or more, quietly blocking your ability to drive legally.

How Attorney Zaremba Helps California Residents Clear Illinois Holds

Because Attorney Zaremba's practice is focused on out-of-state reinstatement cases, his process is designed from the ground up for people who live far from Illinois. Every step — from your first phone call to the day your hold is removed from the national database — is handled remotely.

Why You Need an Illinois Attorney — Not a California One

An important point that many California residents do not realize: a California attorney cannot help you with an Illinois Secretary of State hearing. The reinstatement process is governed entirely by Illinois law and administered by the Illinois Secretary of State. You need an attorney who practices in Illinois, who understands the Secretary of State's specific requirements, and who has extensive experience appearing before the administrative hearing officers who decide your case.

Attorney Zaremba is not just an Illinois attorney — he is a former prosecutor who has spent his entire career in Illinois hearing rooms and courtrooms. He understands what the Secretary of State expects because he has been on the other side of the hearing table. That prosecutorial experience gives his clients a distinct advantage: he knows how to anticipate the questions, how to prepare testimony that addresses every element the hearing officer is evaluating, and how to present a case that leaves no gaps.

That preparation is reflected in a 95% first-hearing success rate — meaning the vast majority of his clients get their hold cleared on the first attempt, without the delays and expense of having to go through the process again after a denial.

Common Questions from California Residents

We Help Clients Across the Country

Attorney Zaremba has cleared Illinois license holds for clients nationwide. Click your state below for details on how Illinois holds affect your state's licensing process.

Learn more about our out-of-state practice:

• Out-of-State Hearing Process
• Out-of-State Resident FAQ
• Successful Case Results