I plan a 4 month bike tour in the US/Canada from coast to coast this year. I'll travel under the flag of ms societies. Due to the neurological handicap I decided to buy a big Harley w/sidecar and reverse and low mileage in mint condition. I payed the bike, FL sales tax & insurance & storage, got the title. The bike is waiting for me in FL to pick and roll. The previous owner is very cooperative, registered the bike for me and takes care of the battery. The route is roughly Z-shaped from FL - Big Bend Ntl. Pk. - along Rocky Mtns. - Glacier Ntl. Pk - San Francisco. I could attend the sidecar rally in Idaho this summer. Depending on the wheather and friendly impulses, the final route might turn out differently. My travel motto is "variegated vagabondizing" (M. Twain, "Roughing It" - the best book ever I read as mental preparation for this tour). Back roads and byways, mostly camping, regularly B&B. The side car will offer ample space for travel stuff and even a foldable bike to explore campuses and towns without a motor.
So far so good.
Now this: it seems that as a non-resident alien the FL authorities do not give out a solid licence plate, but only a temporary tag worth 30 days (probably assuming driving to a port and shipping overseas). One month instead of three or four! This entirely changes the character of the travel, it will be a rush job. Hence, I still work and hope for a better solution. I did study many and complicated DMV pages & came to the conclusion: perhaps folks in this distinguished forum have a good idea or know the legal side better (DMV person, bike dealer or rental); maybe a certain State along my route, or any State, renders a regular tag or prolong the temporary tag even without residency? Would the assistance of a bike dealer or bike rental help? Thank you very much for your advice.
Just wondering, since you have the title in Switzerland could you register it there and bring plates with you? Most, if not all states, have insurance requirements too. I have seen many vehicles with out of country license plates driving around our country legally.
I looked up the rules for Michigan. There is a 60-day temporary permit, but it appears to be available to insured state residents only. It’s intended to target members of the military and such who spend most of their time out of state. I'm not finding much on services that are offered to non-residents or to foreign visitors. Do you intend to ship your rig home? Could you obtain permanent registration and insurance there?
Wow! Good luck finding the resolution that will let you spend the time you want to in your travels. And we certainly hope you can make the Rally By The Lake in July. That would be great!! Best wishes and safe travels!!
Thanks all of you for your tips& good wishes. The FL insurance was easy, the title registration also. Strange enough, but it seems to be orderly. I own a Florida title with my name & my current Swiss address. A p.o. box address in FL I could give them they won't accept. The original title is with the bike in FL, I have a copy. Without the bike here I neither can get a Swiss plate nor can I get an insurance. I plan to finally ship the rig, either this year or next year after my travel(s). Then I import & register the bike here. This alone takes a PhD. It appears to me that the bureaucracy all over the world raises obstacles for alien drivers using local vehicles, or local drivers using alien vehicles.
Here's a thought. It appears that the original owner is quite willing to work with you. What say you sell it back to him/her so that he/she can register/insure it as a FL bike. You can then "borrow" it (check for any insurance issues). then, when you are ready to ship the bike across the pond, you can buy it back. It would take a LOT of trust in the original owner, but it sounds like you have a great working relationship with him/her already.
There is a good probability that you could have the bike registered in a Florida residents name with yourself, a non resident, as the legal owner. That way correspondence from the DOL would go to your registered owner (who could forward it to you) but you would still have legal ownership and resposibility for the use of the rig. Perhaps a lawyer could be the registered owner if none other is available.
Lonnie
Hack'n - 1/11/2012 12:33 PM There is a good probability that you could have the bike registered in a Florida residents name with yourself, a non resident, as the legal owner. That way correspondence from the DOL would go to your registered owner (who could forward it to you) but you would still have legal ownership and resposibility for the use of the rig. Perhaps a lawyer could be the registered owner if none other is available. Lonnie
If not the owner, then a lien holder with a lien large enough to discourage the guy from trying to resell it.
Thanks for the responses. The past owner is very cooperative. He even invited me in his house while picking up the bike and learn the basics of secure sidecar driving, and doing even an oil change & check the liquids, brake pads and tires. I don't want to stretch his cooperation, though. I take your advice and ask him what the possibilities are. Anyways, I might have been overly pessimistic. It may finally turn out well when I explain the situation and my travel plans at the licence plate delivery desk. And if I do have to hit the road with a limited tag I'll see on the road what I can do. Possibly pay those tickets while driving with an outdated tag (insurance & registration & ownership being orderly). Hope to see you up in Idaho this summer.
Good Luck Lorenz.
Might see you in Coeur d'Alene.
Lonnie
