goldenskyhook

No, I had to provide two pieces of mail to demonstrate my Wisconsin address and residency. I was applying for the "REAL" ID, though.

I have a somewhat pertinent question.

I plan to use an address here in my home State of Wisconsin as my domicile, but I want everything else to go through the Escapees Mail Service TX address. The mail service application is talking about a form 1583. Does this form automatically start the USPS forwarding my mail, or is it just permission for them to handle my mail?

Yes, if I hadn't wanted the REAL ID, I could have renewed online. They did check my vision when I went in, probably because of my age.

1 hour ago, Blues said:

The email they sent you mentioned proof of residency if you wanted your renewal to be a REAL ID, and you took two pieces of mail.  What I don't understand is someone in Wisconsin needs proof of residency to get a REAL ID when renewing his driver's license, while a person in Texas doesn't.  It's a federal law, so I would think complying with it would be the same in all states.

Yeah, I dunno either. I just went in yesterday and the 2 pieces of mail worked just fine. Of course I also had my address on my old DL.

Yeah, my passport was expired, so I wasn't sure they'd honor it.

2 hours ago, Blues said:

I know what it does.  What I don't understand is why the Wisconsin DMV person was telling goldenskyhook about "appropriate residency proofs" in order to get a REAL ID when he renews his Wisconsin driver's license, while in Texas all that was required to end up with a REAL ID upon renewal was a birth certificate, which doesn't even have a picture proving identity, and has nothing showing current residence.

They didn't say anything to me about proof of residence. The two pieces of mail I brought were fine for that. I had mislaid my birth certificate and it took a few days to order and receive a copy.

1 hour ago, hemsteadc said:

If you need your supplemental insurance, do you have to have to go back to WI?  That would kinda suck.

No, just need to have a Wisconsin Domicile.

Thanks for the tips. This forum is AWESOME!

Yes, I renew my license this week, and will get the REAL deal. That's a great idea to start the address change now. That way she would only need to handle things like correspondence from the DMV, voter reg, etc.

I've been to Seattle in the summertime, but haven't lived there. I did live in Portland, OR for about 10 years, and loved it a lot.

2 minutes ago, sandsys said:

So you wold need to be there for kind of late int he the fall, hope there is a decent January thaw, and be  prepared to return earlier in the spring than you would otherwise? Could you fly home in January?

Linda

Yeah, we won't make it out of here until November this year, just because of moving our stuff into storage or getting rid of it. Typically we will leave Wisconsin by September. I cannot tolerate the cold anymore, and my wife can work from anywhere there's internet/mobile coverage.

OK, I figured it out. At first, I will do a change of address to my daughter's house. Then I will notify any potential senders of my change of address, except motor vehicle, voting, insurance, etc. Obviously, 99% of all that stuff can be done paperless, anyway. That means she will have to forward stuff maybe once or twice until the mail stops coming to her house. Not bad.

QUESTION:

If I use the escapees mail service, will I need to file a change of address with USPS? That could make things difficult.

The doctor can write most prescriptions to be filled anywhere, but with the two controlled substances, he cannot write more than three refills, it must be in Wisconsin, and they can't be stocked up ahead of time. Special thanks to the good old DEA! What a pain!

No room for the rig at her place, but I can definitely leave a few things there. If we did stay with them IRL, she'd double up the kids and give us one of the bedrooms anyway. I don't think we have to physically act that situation out if everyone is on the same page about our "story." I'm close with daughter, so it will be easy to do that.

Good news! I just heard back from the Wisconsin DMV.

"Thank you for contacting the Wisconsin Division of Motor Vehicles.

We do need a physical address to put on file for you, but it is ok to use a family member’s address (with their permission) if that is your address of record within the state. Our active-duty service members do exactly this as an example. If you wish to obtain the federally-compliant REAL ID when you renew in the next few months, you may wish to set up appropriate residency proofs ahead of your visit. I’ve attached a link to information on REAL ID below."

Yes, my daughter would handle a few forwards responsibly. That's my girl!

Even if the DMV person sheds doubts, I might do it anyway. As you said, it could easily be some office drone who doesn't actually know. As long as me and my daughter are on the same page, I don't see how they could cause trouble, and yes, one main reason for this is to not have to find a new Medicare Supplemental insurance provider. I paid deductibles for several years to reach the point where I don't have to any more, and I think I would lose that if I switch to a different provider.

I will be in Wisconsin most every summer, and I visit regularly with my daughters kids and family. That way I won't be completely absent from that address. Thanks for the heads up about maybe needing to upgrade my insurance to full time.

This is WAY more complicated than it needs to be!

Well, we're just a common, garden-variety married couple - as far as our legal status, anyway. Otherwise, we're fairly uncommon in that it's been 35 years and we still feel like we're on our honeymoon!

I think that's going to be the solution - use my daughter's address for residency and the Escapees mail service for my mail. I've gotten her permission to do that, and I"m awaiting an answer from Wisconsin DMV regarding the legality of that. They can't really expect to be able to force us to rent or buy a home, can they?

1 hour ago, Kirk W said:

Why not contact the office to get an answer directly? 

Good idea. Might as well get it straight from them.

So how is this different from the Escapees domicile service? Isn't that the exact same thing, unless I want to park my rig in Livingston permanently?

This may be irrelevant, but I know that when people are trying to be pensionistas in Central American countries, they maintain their US citizenship and residency as long as they get back once every 6 months, and stay for at least a week. It would surprise me to learn that things between states are more rigid than that.

One of the big hurdles is that my doctor is here, and he prescribes me certain medications that cannot be ordered across state lines. It's also a bit controversial among docs, so it might be hard to find another one that would handle it properly. I also have a health insurance agent that I love and she handles a lot of headaches for me. I would lose her services as well if I move to another state.

I have nothing against Texas.

5 hours ago, Kirk W said:

Welcome to the Escapee forums! And thank you for choosing to join us. Please do not hesitate to join any of our conversations here or to start new ones. 

You can use a mail service located anywhere, without changing your present legal residency or domicile, as the two are not necessarily tied together, although they often are. Domicile is actually a legal term of our courts and is derived from a combination of many factors. I suspect that your health insurance is going to be looking for several things, starting with a physical address in WI and to include things like your driver's license and other state documents. Most insurance companies look for things to prove residency, similar to the state's requirements for a driver's license and for voting. The problem for you is that like most states, WI does require that you maintain a physical residential address in the state in order to qualify as a resident for driving, voting, and most other state legal requirements. The following comes from the website of Wisconsin DOT.

If you visit the link above, you will find more details to spell out exactly what they require, but in short they want proof that you have a residency address in the state and no business address or mail service is acceptable. That is a very common requirement and is one of the key reasons that so many of us change domicile when going to a fulltime lifestyle. If you have a family member who is willing to allow you to claim that as your residence, that could get around the address issue for your driver's license, voter registration, and other state documents, but it might also put your insurance at risk, in the event that they should ever discover that you do not actually live there. I suggest that for something as critical as your health insurance coverage, you should first talk with the insurance representative and then possibly an attorney. 

I see your point, though I'm not sure how they'd ever know unless the address says "post office box" or some such. As for using a relative's address, I don't believe they can ding me for being a full time traveler, as long as I get back there every few months for a while. It would be my daughter's address (and I actually lived there for a few months, a while ago.) They can't say it's not my "residence" just because I travel a lot.

13 hours ago, sandsys said:

I Googled "Wisconsin mail forwarding service" and got a few hits. You might check into them.

Linda Sand

Thanks. I spent several hours chasing those down, and almost all of them are the same half-dozen or so providers who only have addresses in other states. There are some "virtual office" situations, but they are more expensive and the services aren't as good as Escapees.

This is helpful, except that I will no longer have a physical address in Wisconsin, as I will live full time in my RV. I just found out that if I get a "business mailbox" at a UPS store, I can use that as my physical address for domicile purposes. That would be true anywhere in the country.

Greetings!

My wife and I are planning on becoming fulltimers within the next two months. We currently live in Fitchburg, WI, near Madison, WI.

Although the Escapees mail and domicile services appear to be affordable and worthwhile, it would be disastrous for my health insurance and healthcare for me to take a domicile outside the State of Wisconsin. My Medicare Supplemental plans are based on Wisconsin Residency, and I don't want to disturb them.

Does anyone know of a service that will grant me a Wisconsin domicile address?