Submitted by quintonb5 t3_1174pp8 in Washington

Hey folks, I'm moving to Washington at the end of the month. I'm staying in Airbnb for the first 3 months I'm there, and I'm getting a UPS mailbox with a street address. Does anyone know if I can use that address for proof of residency? Thanks in advance!

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BeneficialSpring5385 t1_j9a3a6h wrote

Depends. If you are trying to register to vote or get an id they need a physical address not a PO box.

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NoneOfYoBusinezz t1_j9a5iuv wrote

Is there a mailbox for the airbnb? I'm staying at one for 4 months while I'm looking for a house and the owner gave me permission to use it for receiving mail.

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Spokenfortruth t1_j9ahvjx wrote

You'll need a bill in your name. Not a POBox or UPS box

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Straight-Doubt-1399 t1_j9akafq wrote

I have no clue how I got away with it, but I was able to get my WA license without any proof of residency. I had a bill ready to prove it, but they never asked for it. Obviously, I wouldn’t go this route; I’m just sharing my experience. They seemed very lax.

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Plumbing6 t1_j9av3qr wrote

There are two tiers of WA licenses, regular and enhanced. The enhanced meets US Real ID requirements and can be used to get into Canada.

To get the enhanced 4 years ago, we had to show proof of who we were (think passport or birth certificate) as well as residency. Because the utility bill was in one of our names and not both, we also had to show a marriage certificate.

I don't remember the requirements for the non-enhanced version but it cost less.

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timesinksdotnet t1_j9bq0p1 wrote

If you're living in the Airbnb for 3 months, that very well could be your residence. Update your address with a bank and your employer, and you'll have evidence for an enhanced license too. Yeah, changing your address twice sucks, but there's no minimum stay requirement. It's about intent -- and intent not to return to where you came from.

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duuuh t1_j9c9hly wrote

I did this last year and it was a real pita. Some things would not take a PO box and some things would not take an Airbnb address. (Somehow they knew.) I can't remember how it worked right now, but I believe the DMV still sent something to the PO Box a year after we moved out of the airbnb and long after we'd updated our address in the DMV website.

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Upstairs-Ad8823 t1_j9egzzq wrote

The real important question is for what purpose are you seeking residency? You haven’t answered but it could affect the answer. WA state attorney here. Why?

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time4listenermail t1_j9fdmsx wrote

To get a standard license (not REAL ID, not commercial class, just regular personal license) in WA you merely self-attest to your address. No paperwork/ proof required.

PO Boxes are generally known, if they don’t stand out by being address number, STE number, PMB number, etc or PO BOX number etc and if the licensing agent doesn’t catch it or doesn’t care, it is still fraud - the problem being if you get caught by the licensing fraud dept, whose job it is to catch it and care even more, then you need to extra prove your physical residence (and potentially have legal issues, but unsure if those get pursued).

Like others have said if the Air B and B doesn’t mind, use their address. The license comes in the mail in 2 weeks generally. And you can change address later (online, by phone or in office with WA licensing) once you’re more established. Best!

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stem_ho t1_j9g9ib9 wrote

I was actually on the same situation, AirBnB and all, and what I did to get my driver's license and car registered was to use the airBnB address as my residence address, but have the PO Box set up as my mailing address. Then when I moved into an apartment, I updated all my addresses.

Never had a problem with anything

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Independent-Act2810 t1_j9msk0i wrote

I'm happy here in Washington State and I went Down to California and I wasn't very happy... but when i was back home by i-84 i was happy to be home. I hope you'll enjoy the frigid temperatures(like -10°F and below for the low) we have here in the winter.

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