Yes—you can ask Texas DPS to renew using your pending I-485 receipt without waiting for your EAD, but DPS must verify your application through SAVE before issuing the license.
“I live in Texas and need to renew my driver's license, which expires in a few weeks. I have a pending I-485 receipt notice (I-797C), but my EAD and AP are also still pending. DPS officers refused to accept the receipt notice and tried using my I-94 in SAVE, which just returns my current expiry date. What are my options to get my license renewed while my adjustment of status is processing?”
Summary
The I-94 result does not erase the separate pending-I-485 route that Texas DPS lists. The hard part is timing: DPS still needs a usable SAVE response, and its process may run past your license’s expiry.
Your pending I-485 receipt is the route to pursue now; an issued EAD is a later fallback, not a prerequisite.
Ask DPS to process your showing the pending I-485 under its “Applicants for adjustment of status” category, with immigration documentation bearing your A-number or I-94 number. The REAL ID definition includes a pending permanent-residence application, and USCIS allows DPS to escalate an incomplete initial result rather than rely solely on the I-94 expiry. [Texas DPS DL-53](https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-53.pdf); [6 CFR 37.3](https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-6/chapter-I/part-37/subpart-A/section-37.3); [USCIS SAVE guide](https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/guides/SAVE-Guide%20to%20Understanding%20SAVE%20Verification%20Responses.pdf).
If your is issued before the receipt-based verification succeeds, present the actual Form I-766 at an in-person renewal appointment. DPS lists an EAD as an acceptable document; your pending EAD or advance-parole application is not a substitute for that issued card. [Texas DPS DL-53](https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-53.pdf); [Texas DPS temporary-visitor renewal rules](https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/driver-licenses-and-id-cards-temporary-visitors).
This will not cover a verification delay after your license expires: DPS says you must wait for verification through before it can issue a temporary driving permit. An I-94 response showing only its current expiry is not an extension of that date. [Texas DPS DL-62](https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-62.pdf); [Texas DPS temporary-visitor renewal rules](https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/driver-licenses-and-id-cards-temporary-visitors).
Both routes still require DPS to verify the document and decide the renewal; neither promises a card before your current license expires.
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Watch out for
Next steps
These steps put your pending-I-485 evidence before DPS and give an incomplete I-94-only SAVE result a chance to be reviewed.
Now—before the license expires
Book an in-person DPS renewal appointment
Use https://www.txdpsscheduler.com to schedule a driver license office visit; DPS requires appointments for its services and says limited-term renewals must be done in person. Limited same-day appointments may appear online. [DPS appointments](https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/driver-license-services-appointments); [DPS temporary-visitor renewal](https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/driver-licenses-and-id-cards-temporary-visitors).
Requirements
Before the appointment
Bring your pending-I-485 evidence
Bring the receipt and the DPS document list at https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-53.pdf; show the officer the “Applicants for adjustment of status” row. DPS specifies immigration documentation with an alien or I-94 number, including an I-797 indicating a pending I-485, and requires matching name and birth-date information. [DPS DL-53](https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-53.pdf); [DPS DL-62](https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-62.pdf).
Requirements
At the driver license office
Apply and request verification of the I-485
Complete Texas driver license application DL-14A, available at https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-14A.pdf or at the office, and pay the posted $33 limited-term-license fee. If the first SAVE check shows only your I-94 expiry, ask the specialist to scan the I-485 receipt and request additional verification of the *pending adjustment*, rather than treating that first result as the whole record. USCIS permits an agency to escalate an incomplete initial response; DPS says its specialist submits the documents. Ask for your SAVE case number. [DPS renewal steps](https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/renew-your-texas-dl-cdl-motorcycle-license-or-id); [DPS fees](https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/driver-license/driver-license-fees); [USCIS SAVE guide](https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/guides/SAVE-Guide%20to%20Understanding%20SAVE%20Verification%20Responses.pdf); [DPS DL-62](https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-62.pdf).
Requirements
After DPS accepts the application
Track the case and press a refusal promptly
Enter your birth date and the identifier used for your case at https://save.uscis.gov/casecheck/ to see whether SAVE is still processing or has replied to DPS; CaseCheck does not itself renew a license. If an officer still refuses the receipt or will not submit it, request supervisory review using the DL-53 adjustment row and contact DPS Driver License Customer Service at 512-424-2600. Respond promptly to DPS document requests: it says requirements must be finished within 90 days of the application or it may require reapplication and another fee. If the license expires before verification, do not drive or count on a temporary permit. [USCIS CaseCheck](https://www.uscis.gov/save/benefit-and-license-applicants/save-casecheck); [DPS contact](https://www.dps.texas.gov/section/media-and-communications-office/contact-us); [DPS DL-62](https://www.dps.texas.gov/internetforms/Forms/DL-62.pdf).
Requirements
Legal sources
This answer draws on Texas DPS license forms and renewal instructions, USCIS SAVE guidance, and the federal REAL ID regulation.
Texas DPS DL-53
Texas DPS expressly lists a notice showing a pending I-485 among documents for adjustment applicants.
Applicants for adjustment of status; Rev. 3/22
This can include but is not limited to a form I-797 indicating pending I-485 or pending application for adjustment of status.
Texas DPS DL-53
The DPS adjustment-applicant row specifies verifiable immigration-document numbers.
Applicants for adjustment of status
Immigration documentation with an alien number or I-94 number
6 CFR 37.3
The federal REAL ID definition expressly covers a pending permanent-residence application.
Definition of temporary lawful status
A person in temporary lawful status is a person who: Has a valid nonimmigrant status in the United States (other than a person admitted as a nonimmigrant under the Compacts of Free Association between the United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau); has a pending application for asylum in the United States; has a pending or approved application for temporary protected status (TPS) in the United States; has approved deferred action status; or has a pending application for LPR or conditional permanent resident status.
6 CFR 37.21(a)
DPS must verify documentary evidence before issuing a limited-term REAL ID.
(a)
States must require, before issuing a temporary or limited-term driver's license or identification card to a person, valid documentary evidence, verifiable through SAVE or other DHS-approved means, that the person has lawful status in the United States.
6 CFR 37.21(b)(1)
Federal law limits, rather than guarantees, the length of a temporary license.
(b)(1)
For a time period longer than the expiration of the applicant's authorized stay in the United States, or, if there is no expiration date, for a period longer than one year;
USCIS Guide to Understanding SAVE Verification Responses
DPS can seek a fuller SAVE check even after an initial response that omits the pending I-485.
Additional Verification
However, an agency may escalate a case for additional verification any time after receiving an initial response if they believe the initial response was incorrect or incomplete.
USCIS Guide to Understanding SAVE Verification Responses
USCIS directs the agency to submit relevant documents when undertaking additional verification.
Additional Verification
The agency must use the Scan and Upload function to electronically submit photocopies (front and back) of the applicant’s relevant immigration/citizenship documents when instituting additional verification to avoid the possibility of a “Resubmit Doc” response.
Texas DPS Driver Licenses and ID Cards for Temporary Visitors
A limited-term Texas license must be renewed at a driver license office with lawful-presence documents.
Renewal
When renewing a limited term driver license or ID card, individuals must renew in person at any driver license office and provide documents verifying their lawful presence status.
Texas DPS Driver License Services – Appointments
An in-person DPS visit requires an appointment.
All services are by scheduled appointment only.
Texas DPS Driver License Fees
DPS posts a $33 fee for a limited-term driver license.
Driver license fees
|**Limited term driver license** _For temporary visitors to the US_ |**$33** |Expires when period of lawful presence expires, or in one year if lawful presence period is “duration of status” |
Texas DPS DL-62
DPS sets a 90-day period to finish application requirements, including SAVE.
Rev. 3-2026; verification FAQ
Once you submit your driver license or identification card application, you have 90 days to complete all of the requirements, such as SAVE verification and any written or driving tests. After 90 days, we may require you to resubmit your application and pay an additional fee.
Texas DPS DL-62
DPS will not issue a temporary driving permit while an expired-license holder awaits SAVE verification.
Rev. 3-2026; temporary driving permit FAQ
No. You must wait until we receive verification through SAVE.
Texas DPS DL-62
DPS provides a case number once it creates a SAVE verification case.
Rev. 3-2026; case-number FAQ
You will receive a SAVE case number at the time of your transaction.
USCIS SAVE CaseCheck
USCIS provides a public way to track an agency-initiated SAVE case.
CaseCheck lets benefit applicants check the status of their SAVE verification case as part of an application for a public benefit or license.
Texas DPS DL-53
An issued I-766 is a separate document DPS lists for license applicants.
Applicant with Employment Authorization Document
Employment Authorization Document (EAD)( I-766)
USCIS Form I-797C guidance
USCIS distinguishes an I-797C receipt from an immigration approval.
USCIS reminds those agencies that Form I-797C is only a receipt proving an applicant has submitted a benefit request; USCIS has not determined whether that applicant is eligible for an immigration benefit.
USCIS Policy Manual Vol. 7 Pt. B Ch. 3
The REAL ID-specific definition does not turn a pending I-485 into approved immigration status.
Pending Adjustment Applications
A pending adjustment application does not put an applicant in a lawful immigration status.
Texas Transportation Code § 521.021
Texas requires a driver's license to drive on its highways.
§ 521.021
A person, other than a person expressly exempted under this chapter, may not operate a motor vehicle on a highway in this state unless the person holds a driver's license issued under this chapter.
Texas DPS Contact Us
This is DPS’s direct contact for a refusal to process a license-renewal document.
Driver License Customer Service
Driver License Customer Service |(512) 424-2600
These are the official federal and Texas rules as displayed or revised on the cited dates; rules and agency procedures can change.
This is general information about official processes, not legal advice, and SettleKit is not a law firm.
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