How can i get a thai driving license ?

[bluebanana]

hi guys , 

 

has anyone here tried getting a thai driving license yet ? 

 

is it hard to get ? 

 

regards 

[Jai Dee]

How to get a driving licence in Thailand

[CharlieH]

Many many people do and have suceeded no problem

There havd been office closures etc due to Covid.

Moving this to apropriate forum.

[koratkarlos]

It is not so hard.  You must first get a certificate of residency, either at Thai immigration or your embassy.  Immigration is cheaper.  Then you must go to the office of Land Transport in your area and fill out all of the forms.  It is easier if you have another license, in my case I had a German driving license.  There are a few tests to take which are easy but there is some paperwork.  You first get a 2 year license then afterwards you can apply for a 5 year license.  There are many specific websites that tell you exactly how to get this done.  I think it is a good thing to have, along with car insurance as the driving here is quite challenging.

[WhiteBuffaloATM]

Just Go to your Local DLT Office and find out what they want ?

[Moonlover]

35 minutes ago, bluebanana said:

hi guys , 

 

has anyone here tried getting a thai driving license yet ? 

 

is it hard to get ? 

 

regards 

Do you have a valid license from your home country?

[LarrySR]

Hire a VISA agent that also offers other expat services. 
They walk you thru the procedure and drive you out to the Transportation office. Easy. 

[tomazbodner]

If you have a valid license from your home country + international license for Thailand (which only accepts 1 year validity - this is basically a translation of the original license that includes Thai), then all it takes is making an appointment with the DLT office (some do it in the app, others go to DLT office to get appointment card, both usually months in advance). If you make appointment at DLT office, they'll tell you all documents you need to bring on appointment day.

 

Before appointment, you need a medical certificate. You could get it from clinic or hospital and is valid for 30 days. On the day of appointment, you bring required documents and get queue number. You'll need to fill out some forms, and do a handful of tests: reflex test (basically there are 2 pedals, you push one to the floor, while the light is green, and when it changes to red, you need to push down the other pedal like if you stepped on brake - you need to do that in fraction of second), the next one is distance sensing (there are 2 sticks about 5m away from you, and you have a joystick to move one of them until they are aligned), the colour blindness test - there are several "traffic" lights, that show different colours and you need to shout out the colour as it shows up... If you pass all, you go get a photo taken and your 2 year temporary driver's license printed out.

 

When it expires you can extend it for 5 years, but need to watch some crash videos and answer exam questions correctly on top of the same tests as for 2 year temporary license.

 

If you do not have license in home country, I would guess you need to do whole theoretical and practical examination first. Then you should contact a driving school.

 

[malt25]

"has anyone here tried getting a thai driving license yet ? "   Yep ! Last week, easy peasy.

[actonion]

The hardest part is gathering  the necessary documents that you will need 

[garni]

It is possible, for 15000 baht to get the license, without test and papers. 

[giddyup]

1 minute ago, garni said:

It is possible, for 15000 baht to get the license, without test and papers. 

Who and where?

[tonray]

8 minutes ago, giddyup said:

Who and where?

and why ?

[skatewash]

Good general guide for getting a Thai Driver's License:

https://motogirlthailand.com/riding-thailand/

Note that many Land Transport Offices will accept a yellow house registration book in lieu of a Certificate of Residence from immigration to prove your address.

[LarrySR]

1 hour ago, tonray said:

and why ?

Why not? Who wants to trudge out there and go thru the rigmarole if you can pay someone else to do it. Unfortunately there was a corruption crackdown and the service is temporarily not available. 
 

[LarrySR]

1 hour ago, giddyup said:

Who and where?

The VISA agent that did my paperwork, drove me out to the Transport Office and loaned me their car for the test says that simply paying under the table for the permit is not possible any longer. I asked. 

[Dirk Z]

I would go to the appropriate Land Office and ask for the requirements. When I did this I also found out that they only work by appointment and the next one was in six weeks. The medical certificate has a validity of 4 weeks, so this helps for planning. You also have the latest version of requirements, things have a tendency of changing here sometimes.

[brianthainess]

The best way IMO if you don't already have an overseas licence is to use a driving school, about 20 hrs tuition was 5,500 baht automatic, 6,000 manual pickup truck, 1k M/C the one in Chanthaburi has dual control cars and also take you on a real road, after you have passed the test computer and circuit you can do all of the test over and over again till you pass, they even have a roundabout ! it is spread over 3 days given books to swat up. I have never been so impressed with a company in Thailand. all included they take you for the med cert. 115b, and to the govt office to get the licence. They even took us to see a nice cheap motel near by. My wife had never driven a car before and passed no problem. 

[chilly07]

A driving school is a better bet than a visa agent or concierge service especially one that is close to the DLT office

[Liverpool Lou]

20 hours ago, LarrySR said:

Hire a VISA agent that also offers other expat services. 
They walk you thru the procedure and drive you out to the Transportation office. Easy. 

You mean Fatboy's, yes?   They're good for those in Bangkok.

[rwill]

22 hours ago, koratkarlos said:

It is not so hard.  You must first get a certificate of residency, either at Thai immigration or your embassy.  Immigration is cheaper.  Then you must go to the office of Land Transport in your area and fill out all of the forms.  It is easier if you have another license, in my case I had a German driving license.  There are a few tests to take which are easy but there is some paperwork.  You first get a 2 year license then afterwards you can apply for a 5 year license.  There are many specific websites that tell you exactly how to get this done.  I think it is a good thing to have, along with car insurance as the driving here is quite challenging.

Did they drop the medical certificate requirement.

 

Anyway if you have a valid foreign license you will not be required to do the course test.  For foreigners there is no written test just watch a 45 minute video.

[Tropposurfer]

4 hours ago, giddyup said:

Who and where?

What a great idea. Instead of doing a few simple, reasonable things, and paying a small fee to DLT you go and support graft and bribery in LOS and part with 15,000 baht! 

[Liverpool Lou]

20 hours ago, tomazbodner said:

If you have a valid license from your home country + international license for Thailand ... 

...the next one is distance sensing (there are 2 sticks about 5m away from you, and you have a joystick to move one of them until they are aligned)

"If you have a valid license from your home country + international license..."

Posters need to stop saying this, an International Driving Permit is not required to use an English-language foreign licence to get a Thai licence.

 

"...the next one is distance sensing...about 5m away"

The test you refer to is not a "distance test", it is a depth perception test and the markers are not 5 metres away!  The equipment is probably no more than a metre from the  person being tested.

 

"...you can extend it for 5 years, but need to ... answer exam questions correctly"

No that is not a requirement!  Converting a temporary 2-year licence into a full 5-year licence does not require sitting any examination if you have an accepted foreign licence.

 

 

 

 

[giddyup]

22 minutes ago, Tropposurfer said:

What a great idea. Instead of doing a few simple, reasonable things, and paying a small fee to DLT you go and support graft and bribery in LOS and part with 15,000 baht! 

Didn't say I was going to do it, I already have a 5 year licence (2nd one), just curious if he could actually back up his claim.

[Liverpool Lou]

5 hours ago, garni said:

It is possible, for 15000 baht to get the license, without test and papers. 

It's not just possible but it's guaranteed that you can get the licence for B105 (?) without doing the driving test if you have an acceptable foreign licence!      What "papers"?   Do you mean the easily obtained residence evidence and even easier to get medical certificate?

 

You may need to back up that B15k assertion with evidence.   Where?  Through whom?  It's pointless otherwise.

[Liverpool Lou]

50 minutes ago, rwill said:

Did they drop the medical certificate requirement.

 

Anyway if you have a valid foreign license you will not be required to do the course test.  For foreigners there is no written test just watch a 45 minute video.

Holders of foreign licences are not exempt from the medical certificate requirement.

 

For foreign-licence holders watching the video is not the only requirement!   There are reaction, depth perception and colour vision tests that have to be passed,

[Liverpool Lou]

25 minutes ago, giddyup said:

Didn't say I was going to do it, I already have a 5 year licence (2nd one), just curious if he could actually back up his claim.

He won't!

[magicroundabout]

I just got my driving licence this morning. I took the following documents. Passport, International driving licence (which I got in the UK), Certificate of Residence ( from immigration), Medical Certificate ( local doctors), Certificate from the online test/video.  When I got there I also had to a eye colour test and reaction test. I'm up in Kalasin so just turned up the DLT centre. All done in 30mins.  Costs were 205baht for licence and 50 baht for the medical Certificate. Ps also needed signed copies of the documents.

[HappyExpat57]

I've been here 15 years and am on my 2nd 5-year license. The first few I did on my own, the last 5-year I hired an agent. I HIGHLY recommend an agent. I did NOTHING regarding gathering all the forms. I paid her money and she picked me up at my condo. We went to the transportation office to make the appointment and had head-of-the-line privileges. She returned me to my condo, and when the day came for the actual tests, she picked me up again with all the forms already filled out and complete. Did the vision and reflex tests, watched the video, got my licenses then she returned me to my condo. If you can afford the extra cost it is WELL worth it.

[Thingamabob]

7 hours ago, actonion said:

The hardest part is gathering  the necessary documents that you will need 

But not very hard....