Ubon Driving Licence Office

[ubonrthai]

Today I renewed a 5 year motorcycle and 5 year car license for another 5 years. 1 copy of the following were required for each license.

- Medical certificate

- Passport main page

- Passport visa page

- Proof of residence (I used yellow tabien baan book)

- Copies of licenses were not requested but they take the original licenses when you turn in your above copies to the younger lady who hates her job at desk 1 on the 2nd floor.

- Then you wait. Then they take you to do the eye test and you sign the book that says you watched the hour video which foreigners are allowed to skip. Then you wait to pay, immediately go get your picture and license and done. Took 90 minutes.

Edited October 15, 2012 by ubonrthai

[DreamRider]

Today I renewed a 5 year motorcycle and 5 year car license for another 5 years. 1 copy of the following were required for each license.

- Medical certificate

- Passport main page

- Passport visa page

- Proof of residence (I used yellow tabien baan book)

- Copies of licenses were not requested but they take the original licenses when you turn in your above copies to the younger lady who hates her job at desk 1 on the 2nd floor.

- Then you wait. Then they take you to do the eye test and you sign the book that says you watched the hour video which foreigners are allowed to skip. Then you wait to pay, immediately go get your picture and license and done. Took 90 minutes.

Clear, concise; many thanks UT

[ubonrthai]

I helped a friend get his first 5 year car and motorcycle licenses this week. He's on a 90 day non O visa. (Visa is 90 days, not to be confused with 90 day entry stamp.) I hate not knowing what to expect at government offices so hopefully this detailed report helps.

Office opens at 8:30. We arrived at 8:00 and were already #75 of 156 people. Go to 3rd floor and find a counter with a checklist form in Thai. You need one for each license. Then get in line. They will check all your documents and then tell you your number. Each license requires 1 copy of the following and every page needs your signature at the bottom.

1. Passport main page

2. Passport visa page

3. Proof of Residence - Since Phibun wouldn't give him this doc, he went to embassy in Bangkok to get the equivalent document.

4. Translation of proof of residence doc (if using embassy doc in English)

5. Foreign drivers license. He had his foreign car license but not motorcycle. If you have foreign licenses for either one you can skip out on testing for that license. He only did motorcycle testing.

6. Translation of drivers license

7. Medical certificate (They want the original of this. If doing 2 licenses, 1 original and a copy is sufficient.

8. Separate these docs into 2 stacks (or 1 if doing 1 license) with the checklist you got from the counter on top.

After you get assigned your number they lined us up in military fashion lecturing anyone who moved slow. Crammed 70 people into a tiny room to test your vision and coordination. All organized but very cramped. Tests are easy. My friend screwed up instructions and the head guy waved him through. From there, all 156 of us were sent to a big, hot conference room to listen to videos and speakers talk about laws, insurance, etc. Its also review for the test. Find a seat under a fan! This was from 9:30 to 12:00. They actually take attendance at the end to find people skipping.

12:00 to 12:30 released for lunch

At 12:30 the speaking began again and ended at 14:00. That's 4 hours of class time It's brutal.

Next they split you into groups for testing driving skills or the computer test. There are some study questions in the waiting room. Nearly all of it is in Thai but it gives you an idea of what to expect in the pictures. The previous day 137 of 146 people passed they said. My friend got 24 of 30 correct and passed. He had repeat questions and double answer questions. Confusing but fairly easy. The testing goes quickly and then you can go down to 2nd floor to finish getting your license in aircon. We finished at 15:00. Only 7 hours.....

[onionluke]

I helped a friend get his first 5 year car and motorcycle licenses this week. He's on a 90 day non O visa. (Visa is 90 days, not to be confused with 90 day entry stamp.) I hate not knowing what to expect at government offices so hopefully this detailed report helps.

Office opens at 8:30. We arrived at 8:00 and were already #75 of 156 people. Go to 3rd floor and find a counter with a checklist form in Thai. You need one for each license. Then get in line. They will check all your documents and then tell you your number. Each license requires 1 copy of the following and every page needs your signature at the bottom.

1. Passport main page

2. Passport visa page

3. Proof of Residence - Since Phibun wouldn't give him this doc, he went to embassy in Bangkok to get the equivalent document.

4. Translation of proof of residence doc (if using embassy doc in English)

5. Foreign drivers license. He had his foreign car license but not motorcycle. If you have foreign licenses for either one you can skip out on testing for that license. He only did motorcycle testing.

6. Translation of drivers license

7. Medical certificate (They want the original of this. If doing 2 licenses, 1 original and a copy is sufficient.

8. Separate these docs into 2 stacks (or 1 if doing 1 license) with the checklist you got from the counter on top.

After you get assigned your number they lined us up in military fashion lecturing anyone who moved slow. Crammed 70 people into a tiny room to test your vision and coordination. All organized but very cramped. Tests are easy. My friend screwed up instructions and the head guy waved him through. From there, all 156 of us were sent to a big, hot conference room to listen to videos and speakers talk about laws, insurance, etc. Its also review for the test. Find a seat under a fan! This was from 9:30 to 12:00. They actually take attendance at the end to find people skipping.

12:00 to 12:30 released for lunch

At 12:30 the speaking began again and ended at 14:00. That's 4 hours of class time It's brutal.

Next they split you into groups for testing driving skills or the computer test. There are some study questions in the waiting room. Nearly all of it is in Thai but it gives you an idea of what to expect in the pictures. The previous day 137 of 146 people passed they said. My friend got 24 of 30 correct and passed. He had repeat questions and double answer questions. Confusing but fairly easy. The testing goes quickly and then you can go down to 2nd floor to finish getting your license in aircon. We finished at 15:00. Only 7 hours.....

(3) I also got knocked back at Phibun in July and didn't get far after that .

[DreamRider]

Don't know if this has been mentioned on this thread, but on renewing/revalidating the 5 year license make sure you take your ID/Passport + 2 Copies, that you originally used even if it has expired.

I took it on the off chance that they would be changing the ID number on the licenses to the current, valid passport ... not the case.

The whole procedure took two hours, the thin Horse-sounding lady there couldn't have been more helpful .... Ubon that is!!

[ubonrthai]

Just an update to the requirements I listed above. Foreigners no longer have to sit through the 4 hour lecture. After the eye and depth perception tests, they give you a manual in English to study for the test. You can leave and come back at 2 for written and driving tests. And when you get the question that asks what vehicle you can not drive on Thai highways, the correct answer is a car with no windshield. "Tank" is a choice and apparently you can legally drive one.