Applying For 1 & 5 Year Thai Driving Licences

[baggies666]

I guess if you can get a drivers license with a tourist visa I should be alright but I am asking to double check.

I have a one year license that expires August, as does my present extension of stay. As I need a new passport and also to be in and out of Thailand several times this year I was planning on starting the whole visa process over again as it gives me a multiple entry and I don't need to keep a bunch of money in a Thai bank until a year later when I get a new extension.

But I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to get a 5 year license with a new visa in a new passport. It would seem I should be able to. Any differing opinions?

You can only get a one year temporary dl on a tourist visa after which you must be on a long stay extension (marriage or retirement} or a B or O multi with or without a wp to get your 5 year dl.

This I never knew so thanks, a friend went to Phuket today I told him he would get 5 year licence after having the year temporary he told me that he can only get another year on ed visa so I came here to check, I thought you just automatically got 5 years after the year, is this another change? he did have a month to go for renewal if this made a difference.

Edited February 2, 2015 by baggies666

[stevenl]

I guess if you can get a drivers license with a tourist visa I should be alright but I am asking to double check.

I have a one year license that expires August, as does my present extension of stay. As I need a new passport and also to be in and out of Thailand several times this year I was planning on starting the whole visa process over again as it gives me a multiple entry and I don't need to keep a bunch of money in a Thai bank until a year later when I get a new extension.

But I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to get a 5 year license with a new visa in a new passport. It would seem I should be able to. Any differing opinions?

You can only get a one year temporary dl on a tourist visa after which you must be on a long stay extension (marriage or retirement} or a B or O multi with or without a wp to get your 5 year dl.

This I never knew so thanks, a friend went to Phuket today I told him he would get 5 year licence after having the year temporary he told me that he can only get another year on ed visa so I came here to check, I thought you just automatically got 5 years after the year, is this another change? he did have a month to go for renewal if this made a difference.

Officially to get 5 years an extension of stay is required in stead of visa. And the Phuket DLT sticks to that, I remember reading an interview with the head honcho there about this, probably on TVF.

[noikrit]

Is it possible to download the application form for a 5 year renewal of licence and fill it out before going to the office to save time ??? If so , anyone got a link on the down load ?? Thanks in advance

[sometimewoodworker]

Just FWIW Kumphawapi just refused an IDP because there is no Thai translation. And asked for am embassy stamped translation.

My wife is going to call Udon license office the hope they will accept the IDP.

[sometimewoodworker]

Just FWIW Kumphawapi just refused an IDP because there is no Thai translation. And asked for am embassy stamped translation.

My wife is going to call Udon license office the hope they will accept the IDP.

Udon Thani DLT office

IDP + copy

Copy of passport ID page

Copy of passport Visa page including arrival stamp (copy of TM 6 not wanted)

Original Proof of address from Udon immigration (฿500 each no receipt available)

Doctors letter

Sign every copy, write my full name on a form twice and sign it. The passport ID page needed my phone number as well.

All x 2 (except the 2nd doctors letter was a copy) as I got both the car and motorcycle licences

Red/Green/Yellow (they don't understand Amber) eye test

฿360 and total time under an hour may be 30 mins.

[Canuck50]

I have a question on proof of address for drivers license renewal:

I live in BKK near the DLT head office on Phaholyothin Road. My 1 year license expires on 10 March and I want to renew for the five year. I renewed my extension of stay for retirement on 24 December and did my 90 day report on 12 January. However, I moved to a new apartment on 1 February so my current address is different from both what I last reported to Immigration and what shows on my old 1 year driver's license. I would rather avoid the cost and waste of time to go to my embassy to get the address letter from them. From other posts on the TV forums I gather they do not accept the TM28 (change of address notification) form. I have a lease agreement as proof but I also gather that the DLT will not accept that.

What are my options for showing acceptable proof to them when I go in to apply? Is it possible for me to go to Immigration first and get a proof of address letter from them?

Also, do I understand correctly that I could go in anytime up to 60 days before 10 March and also up to 1 year after expiry without any additional hoops to jump through?

[Jip99]

I have a question on proof of address for drivers license renewal:

I live in BKK near the DLT head office on Phaholyothin Road. My 1 year license expires on 10 March and I want to renew for the five year. I renewed my extension of stay for retirement on 24 December and did my 90 day report on 12 January. However, I moved to a new apartment on 1 February so my current address is different from both what I last reported to Immigration and what shows on my old 1 year driver's license. I would rather avoid the cost and waste of time to go to my embassy to get the address letter from them. From other posts on the TV forums I gather they do not accept the TM28 (change of address notification) form. I have a lease agreement as proof but I also gather that the DLT will not accept that.

What are my options for showing acceptable proof to them when I go in to apply? Is it possible for me to go to Immigration first and get a proof of address letter from them?

Also, do I understand correctly that I could go in anytime up to 60 days before 10 March and also up to 1 year after expiry without any additional hoops to jump through?

I was told 3 months before renewal by my local Land Transport Office today.

I went to immigration and obtained a Certificate of Residence. If you have a wife take them, their tabien ban and ID - signed copies of these are all immigration need. If you are not married then I guess you take your rental agreement.

You will need your passport and photo + 500 Baht.

[Canuck50]

I have a question on proof of address for drivers license renewal:

I live in BKK near the DLT head office on Phaholyothin Road. My 1 year license expires on 10 March and I want to renew for the five year. I renewed my extension of stay for retirement on 24 December and did my 90 day report on 12 January. However, I moved to a new apartment on 1 February so my current address is different from both what I last reported to Immigration and what shows on my old 1 year driver's license. I would rather avoid the cost and waste of time to go to my embassy to get the address letter from them. From other posts on the TV forums I gather they do not accept the TM28 (change of address notification) form. I have a lease agreement as proof but I also gather that the DLT will not accept that.

What are my options for showing acceptable proof to them when I go in to apply? Is it possible for me to go to Immigration first and get a proof of address letter from them?

Also, do I understand correctly that I could go in anytime up to 60 days before 10 March and also up to 1 year after expiry without any additional hoops to jump through?

I was told 3 months before renewal by my local Land Transport Office today.

I went to immigration and obtained a Certificate of Residence. If you have a wife take them, their tabien ban and ID - signed copies of these are all immigration need. If you are not married then I guess you take your rental agreement.

You will need your passport and photo + 500 Baht.

Not married but do have a rental agreement. OK, thanks, that is what I will do then. Being in Bangkok, I would probably choose Immigration at Chaeng Wattana. Is there any reason not to go there or a preference for another office in the interest of speed?

[MTH]

I have a question on proof of address for drivers license renewal:

I live in BKK near the DLT head office on Phaholyothin Road. My 1 year license expires on 10 March and I want to renew for the five year. I renewed my extension of stay for retirement on 24 December and did my 90 day report on 12 January. However, I moved to a new apartment on 1 February so my current address is different from both what I last reported to Immigration and what shows on my old 1 year driver's license. I would rather avoid the cost and waste of time to go to my embassy to get the address letter from them. From other posts on the TV forums I gather they do not accept the TM28 (change of address notification) form. I have a lease agreement as proof but I also gather that the DLT will not accept that.

What are my options for showing acceptable proof to them when I go in to apply? Is it possible for me to go to Immigration first and get a proof of address letter from them?

Also, do I understand correctly that I could go in anytime up to 60 days before 10 March and also up to 1 year after expiry without any additional hoops to jump through?

I was told 3 months before renewal by my local Land Transport Office today.

I went to immigration and obtained a Certificate of Residence. If you have a wife take them, their tabien ban and ID - signed copies of these are all immigration need. If you are not married then I guess you take your rental agreement.

You will need your passport and photo + 500 Baht.

Maybe they were talking about renewal of a 5-year license at your LTO?

Renewal can be done 60 days early if holding the 1-year temporary license and 3 months early if holding the 5-year license.

Both are good for renewal up to a year late without any penalties.

However as often mentioned here, not all LTOs abide by the official rules.

[Silurian]

Just renewed my Thai driver’s license for another 5 years at the Department of Land Transportation in Bangkok near the BTS MoChit station. It is a fair hike from the station but walkable. If you don't feel up to the walk, there are plenty of motorcycle taxis around. I renewed it one day after it expired to get that "bonus" year so I pretty much got 6 years until the next renewal.

I went to building #4 up to the 2nd floor. Waited at the Information counter and handed them the following:

- Passport with photocopy of the picture page, current visa extension page, last arrival stamp page and TM7 (departure card)

- Yellow house book with photocopies of the first two pages

- Expired driver’s license

I also had my work permit with photocopies but she handed that back to me saying the yellow house book is enough. She gave me a queue number in the 3XXX range and handed all my documents back to me and told me to sign all the photocopy pages.

It seems like they have a special queue for foreigners which need to go to booth 17 or 18. I went into booth 18 after my number was called. I handed the lady all my documents she filled out a change of address since I had used my work permit last time and the address listed was my work address. She printed out some sort of change of address verification form and had me sign it. She then kept the photocopies and handed me my passport, yellow book and a checklist form (written in Thai). She told me to go up to the 3rd floor to perform the physical tests and watch a training video.

I went to the third floor and walked up to the information booth there. They took a look at my documents, gave me a queue number and told me to wait and watch the physical instruction video. The video plays twice in Thai language and once in English. It was a little hard to hear but you can get an understanding by just watching of what they will test. They then called a set of numbers in about a set of about 30 to go into the next room for the physical tests which include the following.

- Color test (red, green, yellow). You can speak either Thai or English they will understand.

- Depth perception test which is lining up the two poles. I was a little worried as I had a hard time with this the last time but the officer was fairly forgiving as far as I could tell and I had no problem.

- Time reaction test which is moving your foot from the gas to the break. I think I was a little overenthusiastic as I slammed the break a little too hard and made quite the bang.

- Peripheral test which is keeping your eyes straight ahead and stating red, green or yellow when it appears on either side. The last time I had a little bit of difficulty as the officer was very fast with the colors and for a very short time. But this time the officer was slower and only change the color three times total.

After the physical test, I went up to the fourth floor and walked up to the information booth. They took my passport and test form. They told me to go watch the one hour training video which is in Thai. While my Thai is good for conversations, I was never very good at understanding it while watching videos so I can't really tell you in detail what the videos were about. They showed about 4 different videos, They first two are about traffic patterns in Bangkok and what to watch for. The third video is a lady and a guy in a car driving around and giving driving advice to each other. The lady drives and the guy, who is a little condescending, explains how to drive. I found it a bit sexist but maybe I read into it a little bit. The fourth video is a montage of crash videos either lifted from YouTube or scripted movie clips. They show a variety of crashes and injuries while playing a sad English song.

After the movie ended, I went back to the information booth where they handed back my passport and a completion note. They told me to go back to the 2nd floor information booth and get another queue. So I went back down to the second floor and got another queue ticket in the 3xxx range and sat in the waiting area. About 25 minutes later, I got called into booth #17. The officer asked for 655 Baht and took my picture. A few minutes later he handed me my new Thai driver’s license. It took about 2 hours from start to finish to get my renewal completed.

I find it interesting that they don't really test for how well you see with a letter chart like they do in the USA. Maybe the perception test is supposed to be in place of that. Either that or they don't really care if you have 20/50 or better vision. They also seem more lenient with the physical testing at the DLT near Mo Chit than the Sukhumvit DLT that I went to last time. At the Sukhumvit DLT I saw several people fail and get retested time after time. This time I only saw a few people fail the reaction test but redid it right away.

Well, I am good for another 6 years of driving hell in Bangkok.

Edited February 25, 2015 by Silurian

[Namplik]

What is the most recommended DLT office in Bangkok?

Going soon myself, but I only have a 30 day visa exemption so I want to choose the most " farang friendly" one.....

I'm living in Sukhumvit soi 22 so I guess the one in Bang Chak is nearest.

[roger101]

Next week I will be going to the LTD (Pattaya) to renew both my 5 year licenses. What I need to know is do I need 2 Residence Certificates or just one and a photo copy..

I cant remember what I did 5 years ago.

[merijn]

I guess if you can get a drivers license with a tourist visa I should be alright but I am asking to double check.

I have a one year license that expires August, as does my present extension of stay. As I need a new passport and also to be in and out of Thailand several times this year I was planning on starting the whole visa process over again as it gives me a multiple entry and I don't need to keep a bunch of money in a Thai bank until a year later when I get a new extension.

But I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to get a 5 year license with a new visa in a new passport. It would seem I should be able to. Any differing opinions?

You can only get a one year temporary dl on a tourist visa after which you must be on a long stay extension (marriage or retirement} or a B or O multi with or without a wp to get your 5 year dl.

This I never knew so thanks, a friend went to Phuket today I told him he would get 5 year licence after having the year temporary he told me that he can only get another year on ed visa so I came here to check, I thought you just automatically got 5 years after the year, is this another change? he did have a month to go for renewal if this made a difference.

The reason that Phuket only issues a Temp 1 year DL on a ED extension is the fact that Phuket Immigration usually only issues a ED extension for 3 moths at a time and for the 5 Year DL a 1 year visa/extension is required.

[MTH]

Next week I will be going to the LTD (Pattaya) to renew both my 5 year licenses. What I need to know is do I need 2 Residence Certificates or just one and a photo copy..

I cant remember what I did 5 years ago.

Unless something has changed recently, one original and one copy should suffice.

[Namplik]

What is the most recommended DLT office in Bangkok?

Going soon myself, but I only have a 30 day visa exemption so I want to choose the most " farang friendly" one.....

I'm living in Sukhumvit soi 22 so I guess the one in Bang Chak is nearest.

I went to Bang Chak last week and got driving license for car and motorbike, and I did not really have any problems ;-)

[Canuck50]

My one year licenses just expired and I will go next week (in BKK) to renew for 5 year. I have read some posts that say I need a medical certificate to do so and others that claim I do NOT need for a 5 year license. Can someone please give me a definitive answer?

[Chupup]

You were very very lucky

I would say EXTREMELY lucky if not impossibly lucky

[MTH]

You were very very lucky

I would say EXTREMELY lucky if not impossibly lucky

Not sure if you realize you’ve responded to a 10 year old post.

Either way, that was not lucky back then. And still today the official rules states that, if you’re in possession of a driving license that lists in English, what vehicles you’re eligible to drive, you can get the one year temporary license without any theoretical or driving tests.

Granted, recently there are some LTO’s that now require an IDP or an Embassy certification of your license, if you want to avoid those tests.

[brewsterbudgen]

My one year licenses just expired and I will go next week (in BKK) to renew for 5 year. I have read some posts that say I need a medical certificate to do so and others that claim I do NOT need for a 5 year license. Can someone please give me a definitive answer?

You need a medical certificate for updating a 1 year licence to a 5 year one. You don't need a medical certificate for renewing a 5 year licence.

[Canuck50]

My one year licenses just expired and I will go next week (in BKK) to renew for 5 year. I have read some posts that say I need a medical certificate to do so and others that claim I do NOT need for a 5 year license. Can someone please give me a definitive answer?

You need a medical certificate for updating a 1 year licence to a 5 year one. You don't need a medical certificate for renewing a 5 year licence.

OK, that is clear...Thank you!

[pj123]

I need to renew a 5 year DL that has been lost. It expires in April.

I have a WP that expires in July.

So I will bring a police report for the lost DL, a photocopy of the DL, copy of relevant pages in passport and work permit.

Question: do I need a Certificate of Residence if I have a work permit? I would like to avoid an unecessary trip to immigration.

Also: I live in Rangsit, Pathumthani. What would be the best place to apply for the new DL?

Thanks

[PiAnt]

No need for a certificate of residence, just present your work permit with your application.

[MTH]

I need to renew a 5 year DL that has been lost. It expires in April.

I have a WP that expires in July.

So I will bring a police report for the lost DL, a photocopy of the DL, copy of relevant pages in passport and work permit.

Question: do I need a Certificate of Residence if I have a work permit? I would like to avoid an unecessary trip to immigration.

Also: I live in Rangsit, Pathumthani. What would be the best place to apply for the new DL?

Thanks

No need for a residence certificate if you have a work permit.

Sorry can’t advice on the best LTO for you, someone else would have to pipe in on that.

[pj123]

Thank you.

[pj123]

My closest LTO is in Pathumthani but my wife's experience of that office is not good so I went to the LTO in Ayutthaya. Its just behind the Provincial Office. Arrived 10.45 last Tuesday and did the paperwork and tests in 30 minutes. Went back at 1.00 pm to view the film. Left with new licence at 2.40. I noticed that the office was less busy after lunch so that may be a better time to go. I speak no Thai but staff understanding and also helped by nice Thai lady with excellent English. Location here: http://goo.gl/maps/7FyQ5

Edited March 20, 2015 by pj123

[keemapoot]

I searched this subforum but didn't see the exact issue answered I have.

I have a 5 year (car) license and have had it for several renewals. It was last renewed last year. Now, I want to get a motorcycle license. I know I will have to take the motorcycle skills physical test ride, but my question is do I have to take any theory exam, reflex, color, depth and other tests, or sit through that video again if I already have a Thai car drivers license?

[johng]

but my question is do I have to take any theory exam, reflex, color, depth and other tests, or sit through that video again if I already have a Thai car drivers license?

If you don't have a driving licence with motorcycle endorsment from your home country then yes you'll have to do the whole kaboodle.

even with a licence from home country you still have to do the reflex,color,vision tests.

As always though it will vary depending on which DLT you go to and the alignment of the stars etc etc.....

[Asheron]

So to get a 1 year car licence in Pattaya i need:

Copy and original of passport and visa

Residence certificate from immigration

Medical certificate

Valid IDL licence

And as i understand it i do not have to do that written test as i have a valid IDL?

Did i miss something?

[louse1953]

Obtaining a 5 Year Licence

Documents needed:

4. A photocopy of and the original document, which is a letter or form (bottom of TM47 form) from Immigration confirming your address in Thailand. They will keep the photocopy and give you back the original document.

TIT - went to get my 5 year license (BKK Centre #3) with all the documents mentioned, and found that the woman at the desk would not accept a Thai Immigration letter confirming my address. Instead she insisted upon a letter from the British Embassy!

Went to get the letter from the Embassy, and discovered that the one time that the Thai system doesn't try to screw a farang for extra money, you find that you are shafted by your own Government....

5 Year Thai License = 500 Baht (very reasonable)

British Embassy Letter = 1,700 Baht....

Rags

Riches to Rags!!!

[riceyummm]

I know this has been answered at least once in this thread but it's a very long thread and I don't want to read 1385+ replies.

Can anyone confirm that there is a one year period from expiration of one year license to apply for five year license?

My one year expires June 6 and I wont be in Thailand until the middle of July.