DLT Bangkok New Absurd Bureaucracy for Renewal of Driving Licence

[Morakot]

Preface:
Five years ago I renewed my driving licence at the Department of Land Transportation in Bangkok on Phaholyothin Road. I simply turned up with my old licence, passport, and Work Permit. Last week, I tried to renew my licence that was just about to expire, finding myself in a Thai version of a Kafkaesque nightmare.

 

Current Problem:
First stumbling block, the new WP does not have an address any more. Flicking through the pages, the officer told me the new WP cannot be used as a proof of address. Showing  my pink "ID card for non-Thai people" that clearly states my address, I was told that this document can only be used in conjunction with the "Yellow Book" for house registration.

Returning with my ID card, "Yellow Book", and  passport, I managed to proceed beyond the first gate keeper, to merely be grounded to a hold by the next officer. There I was told that my Yellow Book doesn't work together with my passport, because in the Yellow Book my name is written in Thai, whereas my passport my name is not in Thai. The fact that the pink ID card is a photographic ID didn't matter to the officer who told me politely that they cannot establish that the person in the Yellow Book is the same as in the passport.

The recommended solution was to obtain a copy of the original registration document from the Ket (the local government office) that issued the Yellow Book. This document supposedly would reconcile my disjointed identity.

Having obtained the very document as requested just now, I can already see that my name is only written in Thai and my initial ID number is a string of 13 zeros rather the number of my passport at the time of my initial house registration as the DLT was hoping for.

 

Possible solutions?
I have no idea, whether this will be rejected, or whether they come to their senses their, when I try again. Has anyone experienced this absurd increase in bureaucracy at the DLT on Phaholyothin Road recently? Has anyone successfully used the Yellow Book to renew their driving licence? Where else could I renew my licence?

 

Edited April 1, 2019 by Morakot

[namatjira]

I know in Chiangmai one needs a certificate of residence issued by immigration......costs 500 baht to get one immediately or no cost but a wait of one month...

[johng]

Get a "certificate of residence" from either immigration or your home country embassy.

[Swiss1960]

Last year, Banglamung DLT, same problem with same reasoning, yellow book & pink ID in Thai but DL in English...

Only solution was to go to immigration and get a residence certificate

Sent from my SM-A730F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Morakot]

Just now, Swiss1960 said:

Last year, Banglamung DLT, same problem with same reasoning, yellow book & pink ID in Thai but DL in English...
 

 

Thanks @Swiss1960! So the yellow book & pink ID is totally useless by the looks of it.

[canthai55]

12 minutes ago, namatjira said:

I know in Chiangmai one needs a certificate of residence issued by immigration......costs 500 baht to get one immediately or no cost but a wait of one month...

Or a Yellow Book

[Morakot]

Just now, canthai55 said:

Or a Yellow Book

Did you successfully use the YB?

[farang1979]

What's the process for getting a Thai driving licence if you've already got a licence from your home country?

[canthai55]

13 hours ago, Morakot said:

Did you successfully use the YB?

25 Feb 2019

[Bert got kinky]

Hi Morakat,

Have you checked every single page on your work permit.

I thought that my latest work permit book did not have my address but after rechecking I found it near the back (2 pages in).

On the old work permit it was near the front.

[Bert got kinky]

9 hours ago, farang1979 said:

What's the process for getting a Thai driving licence if you've already got a licence from your home country?

 

Pinned thread in the Motor forum:

 

[transam]

If they made it simple just imagine the redundancies...????

[sandrabbit]

recently a friend went to renew his licence at Rayong DLT and they refused to accept his yellow book so he had to go to immigration to get a certificate of residence and of course he had to pay 500baht if he wanted it immediately and there's a big poster of big joke on one of the counter windows telling people not to pay bribes. is there any point to the yellow book now?.

[KhunBENQ]

4 hours ago, transam said:

If they made it simple just imagine the redundancies...????

If Mr. was such a genius, he would look at other countries like South Korea where an Alien Registration Card contains all the details needed. Not this absurd yellow book/pink card with name transcribed to Thai (disjoint as the OP writes).

Making it simple is against the nature of a blown up bureaucracy.

[KhunBENQ]

13 minutes ago, sandrabbit said:

is there any point to the yellow book now?

Only at offices that are pragmatic enough to accept it (like in our area).

[canthai55]

1 hour ago, sandrabbit said:

 is there any point to the yellow book now?.

In CNX it is very useful. Entrance to Nat'l parks at Thai citizen price using Pink ID card, No residency certificate required.

But different DLT have different rules

Edited April 2, 2019 by canthai55

[Hotrats]

46 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

Only at offices that are pragmatic enough to accept it (like in our area).

I recently renewed my 5 year driving license at Nonthaburi DLT on Tiwanon. They accepted my yellow book and pink ID card as proof of address, no problem. So this seems to be an issue that varies from location to location (as usual).

[Vacuum]

22 hours ago, namatjira said:

I know in Chiangmai one needs a certificate of residence issued by immigration

Only if you don't have the 'yellow book'.

[Morakot]

8 hours ago, Bert got kinky said:

Hi Morakat,

Have you checked every single page on your work permit.

I thought that my latest work permit book did not have my address but after rechecking I found it near the back (2 pages in).

On the old work permit it was near the front.

 

Yes, the version prior to June 2018 had the address at the back. (Address in the front must be very old style). The new one I got has no address so ever.

[sometimewoodworker]

22 hours ago, Morakot said:

Possible solutions?

Use a different DLT office. You can renew your licence at any office anywhere in Thailand.

[Morakot]

14 minutes ago, Hotrats said:

I recently renewed my 5 year driving license at Nonthaburi DLT on Tiwanon. They accepted my yellow book and pink ID card as proof of address, no problem. So this seems to be an issue that varies from location to location (as usual).

 

Thanks for confirming this. How recent was that? I might it try there.

[Jeffrey346]

23 hours ago, Morakot said:

 

Thanks @Swiss1960! So the yellow book & pink ID is totally useless by the looks of it.

My name in my YB is in Thai. It's not the fault of the YB or PID it's the person who issued the documents.

[Morakot]

2 minutes ago, Jeffrey346 said:

My name in my YB is in Thai. It's not the fault of the YB or PID it's the person who issued the documents.

The pink ID-card should really be in Thai and English, like the current Thai ID-card is!

[Jeffrey346]

9 minutes ago, Morakot said:

The pink ID-card should really be in Thai and English, like the current Thai ID-card is!

It should have a chip as well.  I use it every 3 months for my hospital check up. The info needs to be put in manually.

[natway09]

If you have an Embassy just get it all stat dec'ed or whatever they call it now.

Got a licence last month with no hassle at all

[Nuddy]

I think they just need some incentive. Maybe do exactly what big Joke says not to!

Always seems such an easy solution even if it goes against ones points of view or dare I say princples.

Good luck.

[emptypockets]

4 hours ago, Jeffrey346 said:

It should have a chip as well.  I use it every 3 months for my hospital check up. The info needs to be put in manually.

---

 

iPhone 7 +. 13.3" Macbook Pro . 13.3"  Macbook Air . Nvidia Shield TV.   SkyStream Two 

All that junk and you want a chip as well? Why?

[Morakot]

On 4/2/2019 at 5:30 PM, natway09 said:

If you have an Embassy just get it all stat dec'ed or whatever they call it now.

Got a licence last month with no hassle at all

 

I'll do this, if everything fails. Unfortunately the British Embassy is not really known as "helpful" and tends to charge an arm and a leg for the most basic things.

[Morakot]

On 4/2/2019 at 5:58 PM, Nuddy said:

I think they just need some incentive. Maybe do exactly what big Joke says not to!

Always seems such an easy solution even if it goes against ones points of view or dare I say princples.

Good luck.

Ha! A Thai friend of mine already said something along those lines: "Could it be that they are trying for illicit payments?"