18 minutes ago, pres.yota41 said:

I might be a bit late to the party, but I wanted to share my experience getting a 5-year driver's license on a DTV visa.

Excellent report. Thankyou.

Without being negative your success in the 5yr with DTV may have been fortuitous. 

After all they initially indicated only 2yr would be issued.

In any event you got the 5 so good news.

Some folk posting only 2 so seems hit and miss.

BTW some of your cost were little high side.

505b should have been for TDL.

The medical from clinic ~100b.

Not important. 

My experience at Phuket DLT is not similar. And I only got two years.

 

No need to use the DLT Smart Queue App.

Bring the papers, queue to get the papers checked, then I  got an appointment for later that day.

Went back, got the papers checked again and got an appointment for one month later.

Went again one month later (this Monday), queued to get the papers checked again.

Anther queue for another form, a queue for paying, and then a queue for the test.

After the test and yet a queue I got my license.

 

At the first desk they marked my papers with 2 years license. I tried at every desk to point out that the DTV is a five year visa, but to no avail; I only got two years.

 

2 minutes ago, farang51 said:

At the first desk they marked my papers with 2 years license. I tried at every desk to point out that the DTV is a five year visa, but to no avail; I only got two years.

Sadly thinking your experience will be the norm for folk with DTV. 

Quote

505b should have been for TDL.

You’re probably right. The fee was 505 baht, but I remember paying for something else as well, which brought the total to around 700 baht.

 

 

Quote

The medical from clinic ~100b.

Maybe there are cheaper clinics, but we picked the one that was just 1 km away from us. 🙂

You can use any office to renew your license so it might be worth checking which offices will give you a 5 year license with a DTV visa.

 

Bangkok does this absurd peripheral color blind test I could not pass.  Chiang Mai just wanted me to recognize red, green and yellow circles.  No problem.  That is where I go now even though I live in Bangkok.  I have an old style work permit with my address on it and they used my Bangkok address.  No residency certificate required.

29 minutes ago, ricklev said:

  I have an old style work permit with my address on it and they used my Bangkok address.  No residency certificate required.

So if I follow. You obtained your TDL in CM with a work permit address in Bangkok.

No certificate of residence. 

10 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

So if I follow. You obtained your TDL in CM with a work permit address in Bangkok.

No certificate of residence. 

Yes, actually I upgraded my 2 year license issued in Bangkok to a 5 year license in Chiang Mai and then renewed that in Bangkok, as during covid they were not using the peripheral vision color blind test machine.

1 hour ago, ricklev said:

...,as during covid they were not using the peripheral vision color blind test machine.

What is a "peripheral vision color blind test machine" 

There is a peripheral eye test 

Color test is separate. 

1 hour ago, DrJack54 said:

What is a "peripheral vision color blind test machine" 

There is a peripheral eye test 

Color test is separate. 

 

I was wondering the same. With the peripheral vision test, a WHITE light is flashing up on the right side or the left side, and you have to indicate on which side you saw it flashing up. Nothing to do with distinguishing colors.

13 minutes ago, Caldera said:

I was wondering the same.

I about a year ago renewed 5 yr TDL.

The first test was color.

Then others such as foot break test etc....

Then peripheral test. 

I was not good on that. Did it couple of times (I'm old fella) 

Then she said "good enough" 

Gotta love Thailand 

2 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

What is a "peripheral vision color blind test machine" 

There is a peripheral eye test 

Color test is separate. 

There are two colour tests.

 

The first is to identify colour blindness.

 

The second is to identify if you are able to identify colours using only peripheral vision.

 

There are also two other tests, reaction and depth perception, which are usually no longer used.

6 hours ago, Briggsy said:

The second is to identify if you are able to identify colours using only peripheral visio

I'm not so sure. Bit off topic. 

I just recall a light coming on in peripheral and you indicate.

Not colors. In any event......

 

Discussed here.

https://aseannow.com/topic/1190035-renew-5-years-license-no-peripheral-vision-color-test-where/

 

At Bang Chak in Bangkok, the peripheral color test involved putting your chin in a machine and identifying red or green dots randomly projected peripherally.   If I remember correctly I had to call out the colors.  It may also have included yellow.    

Update here:

I have held a 2 year then 5 yr then another 5 yr Thai license previously on non-imm visas. 

Now in Phuket there is a choice of Phuket office which is backed up a few months or 2 phang nga offices which are only a couple of weeks of queue (you can see the queue in smart queue app).

I asked at phang nga office and the manger says policy there is to renew even a 5 year license as a 2 year on a DTV. 

Then as Phuket is less user friendly and backed up I asked 2 agents I know down here who can sometimes work around such issues. Both said nope. The 5 year will be renewed for 2 year and there is nothing that can be done about it.

I imagine the success stories here are either before changes in policy took place or due to different offices interpreting it differently. The phang nga office did also say "the policy of our office is... " so I imagine in the backwaters of a place like Nan or similar you might have a better chance.

Dissapointing anyway.

1 hour ago, sikishrory said:

I imagine the success stories here are either before changes in policy took place or due to different offices interpreting it differently. The phang nga office did also say "the policy of our office is... " so I imagine in the backwaters of a place like Nan or similar you might have a better chance.

 

I guess some offices just jumped the gun on this, when they didn't understand the DTV yet. They've probably received a clarification from Bangkok in the meantime, so the days of getting 5-year DLs on a DTV should be over all across Thailand nowadays.

On 2/12/2025 at 5:12 PM, pres.yota41 said:

Hey folks! 👋

 

I might be a bit late to the party, but I wanted to share my experience getting a 5-year driver's license on a DTV visa. I went through the process a few months ago (back in November), so I'm not entirely sure how relevant it is now, I hope it is. Everything went extremely smoothly, me and my wife managed to upgrade my 2-year license to a 5-year one almost effortlessly. I hope my experience can help others.

Required Documents

1. Residence Certificate
   Original plus 2 copies
   Obtained in the Immigration Office (input docs are the application form and update TM.30 which must be updated after your current visa arrival date).
   Costs 500 baht.
2. Medical Certificate
   Obtained at the nearest hospital.
   Costs 300 baht
3. Queue registration in DLT Smart Queue App
   A printed ticket with the QR code.
   We chose the DLT Office in Phang Nga as it had the most available time slots back then.
4. Passport Scans
   3 copies of the passport’s face page and current visa page.
5. Cash
   700 baht in cash for fees.

Initial Conditions

• We reside in Phuket and each of us had a 2-year driver license.
• I had a DLT visa, and my driver license was expiring in about 1.5 months.
• My wife held a NON-O 90-day visa (without a 1-year extension yet), and her license had expired 3.5 months prior to the day of our visit to the DLT office.

At DLT Office

When we arrived, the QR-code machine that was supposed to print our queue ticket wasn’t working. (Note: Foreigners must use the DLT Smart Queue App; walk-ins are only accepted for Thais). The receptionist directed us to a counter, where they scanned our QR code and checked our documents.

 

Initially, they informed us that only one person is allowed per QR code. I explained our situation—highlighting my wife’s pregnancy—and they made an exception for both of us. They then asked us to make two extra copies of our passport pages (so having 3 copies of every document is a good idea).

 

After about an hour of waiting, a staff member invited us to take a brief test covering:

• Recognizing red, yellow, and green signals
• Using the brake pedal on a red light
• Estimating distances between objects

After the test, we waited again. My wife was called first; she paid the fee (~700 baht). When I was called, they initially said I was only eligible for a 2-year license because of my visa. However, I explained that a DLT-visa is valid for 5 years and quickly referenced a website confirming this. After a brief discussion with another staff member, they agreed to issue a 5-year license for me. I then paid the fee (~700 baht).

 

We were then photographed, and within 15–20 minutes, we received our new 5-year driver’s licenses. Interestingly, the expiration date isn’t exactly 5 years from the application date—it’s 5 years from the next birthday. For example, my partner’s license is actually valid for about 5.5 years.

 

Including the trip from Phuket and back, the entire process took about half a day.

 

Good info, thank you.

Was this the takua pa dlt office or the one further south (muang). Phang nga has 2.

On 9/13/2024 at 8:24 PM, Pattaya57 said:

Don't you think maybe the fact you already had a 5 year licence, a pink ID card and a yellow book were the main reasons you got a 5 year re-newal?

 

I don't think we'll know if you can get a 5 year licence on DTV until someone gets it for the first time without a current 5 year licence,  pink ID card and yellow book gained from previous visa's. Just my opinion

 

I agree and furthermore to this:

There are 3 DLT offices in Nan. Pua, Wiang Sa and Muang / City branch. Moana doesn't mention which.

Irregardless, on the QR appointment site the City branch is not available listed as "suspension of service".

The Wiang Sa branch with decent reviews only allows (specifically QR website) new drivers licences. Renew drivers licence option is ghosted out.

The Pua branch which has dismal reviews and seems to be the worst of the 3 conversely allows renewing but not new licensing appointments. Appointments for this branch are available basically right away. The next is 2 days from now.

So I think it's safe to say that after flying accross the country then driving 3 or 4 hrs to Nan to do a bloody license you might find yourself miserably dissapointed and out of pocket 8 or 9000 baht in travel expenses.

It's also not mentioned whether this was a lucky walk-in or QR appointment.

On 10/17/2024 at 7:25 PM, erodygin said:

Congrats! I just got my 5-year (almost 6) license yesterday too. I'm on a DTV. I had to sit the test and pass driving exam again since my old temporary 2-year license had been expired over 2 years ago. I didn’t expect to get a full license at all, was a big surprise!

which office was this please?

27 minutes ago, sikishrory said:

which office was this please?

I am not sure it makes any difference today. We had a few report of 5 years licences when the DTV was brand new but since then I think every transport office agrees to only give a 2 years licence. I haven't seen any reports of a 5 years licence from a DTV this year.

2 hours ago, farang51 said:

I am not sure it makes any difference today. We had a few report of 5 years licences when the DTV was brand new but since then I think every transport office agrees to only give a 2 years licence. I haven't seen any reports of a 5 years licence from a DTV this year.

I don't know as far as DTV reports go the main internet source is the fb group which I don't use and reports here and on Reddit are few and far between from what I can see. You may be right. I know a few connected lawyers and agents in Phuket who have all said you get demoted to 2 years from 5 years. I have 1 more to try tomorrow in Chiang Mai where there were some success reports although maybe outdated also. Then I guess I give up.

On 2/13/2025 at 9:26 PM, Briggsy said:

There are two colour tests.

 

The first is to identify colour blindness.

 

The second is to identify if you are able to identify colours using only peripheral vision.

 

There are also two other tests, reaction and depth perception, which are usually no longer used.

phuket has 2 tests
red, yellow, green
brake test

Only

I ended up flying to issan and getting 5 (almost 6) years on dtv. Super friendly. Done in an hour. Thought about doing a thread but cbf. Ppl can dm me if they have questions 

It's kind of funny because I got my Philippines driver license without any tests or med check, good for 10 years, without any special payments or anything, just a normal applicant procedure.

Interesting to see how much harder Thailand makes it. And 2 years license is kind of stupid and pointless.

Why would they even waste time and resources and clog up queues for a 2 year license? They are just making life harder for the DLT employees.

10 minutes ago, kawipan said:

Interesting to see how much harder Thailand makes it. And 2 years license is kind of stupid and pointless.

TDL is ridiculously easy to obtain. 

Does not even require an actual driving test. 

Somewhat irrelevant to compare Thai requirements to those in Philippines. 

Tourist class visa is entitled to 2 year TDL. 

DTV is tourist class visa. 

 

40 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

TDL is ridiculously easy to obtain. 

Does not even require an actual driving test. 

Somewhat irrelevant to compare Thai requirements to those in Philippines. 

Tourist class visa is entitled to 2 year TDL. 

DTV is tourist class visa. 

 

 

"DTV is tourist class visa."  - Yes we know that.

"Tourist class visa is entitled to 2 year TDL."  - Yes, like I said, stupid and pointless. Waste of employee resources. 

"Somewhat irrelevant to compare Thai requirements to those in Philippines." - And yet almost everyone seems to do it?

6 minutes ago, kawipan said:

"Somewhat irrelevant to compare Thai requirements to those in Philippines." - And yet almost everyone seems to do it?

I don't as it's irrelevant. 

I may as well outline what's required to obtain a DL in my joint Oz. 

Completely irrelevant. 

For myself TDL required I watch a short video. 

Do colour and reaction test and peripheral vision test. pay 500b . Easy peasy 

 

1 minute ago, DrJack54 said:

I don't as it's irrelevant. 

I may as well outline what's required to obtain a DL in my joint Oz. 

Completely irrelevant. 

For myself TDL required I watch a short video. 

Do colour and reaction test and pay 500b . Easy peasy 

 

 

Wouldn't it be great if everyone had a consistent experience? I'm happy for you.
Unfortunately, from this thread, it seems like many people are/were having a lot of trouble getting a 5 driver license.

Just now, kawipan said:

it seems like many people are/were having a lot of trouble getting a 5 driver license.

A 5 year TDL should not be issued to holders of DTV. 

Granted reports of success in various transport offices. 

Not the norm. 

9 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

A 5 year TDL should not be issued to holders of DTV. 

Granted reports of success in various transport offices. 

Not the norm. 

 

"A 5 year TDL should not be issued to holders of DTV. " - Uh oh, you used the word "should". Should is a subjective value judgment. I'm sure we could find people who think the opposite of you and believe it should be issued to DTV holders. You will think you are right and they will think they are right. But no one is right. Because, like I said, should is a subjective value judgment and what you think should or should not be is totally irrelevant.

21 minutes ago, kawipan said:

Should is a subjective value judgment. I'm sure we could find people who think the opposite of you and believe it should be issued to DTV holders.

No. This has been discussed often with first hand reports. 

In the main DTV is a "special tourist visa class" 

As such transport offices should only issue 2 yr TDL for holders of this visa. 

 

Here is typical thread. Do some research. 

https://aseannow.com/topic/1343103-dtv-or-retirement-visa/