Driving With International License In America

[benlee53]

Hello,

I'm retired and living in thailand with a international license and my america license has expired can i drive in america with no problems?

[Kruang]

Hello,

I'm retired and living in thailand with a international license and my america license has expired can i drive in america with no problems?

I have an American DL and an international DL, and as I understand the rules, you can neither drive legally in the USA or anywhere else because your American DL has expired. The international DL requires that you also have a legal license from your home country, it's not a standalone license to drive.

I think what you need to do is either (a) renew your American license or ( get a Thai DL and an international DL from Thailand.

[bmore99]

hmmm, rather weird language topic.

[Kruang]

hmmm, rather weird language topic.

Indeed. But once the original poster sets off to get his Thai DL it will become a genuine language topic.

[Thaiquila]

I assume you mean a THAI DL, not one of those rather useless "international" driver's licenses that are meant for tourists in some countries.

I have heard that a US passport holder cannot rent a car in the US if they hold a foreign DL and not a US DL. I do not know if this is always true, or not. Perhaps, someone with experience can post.

It is kind of a catch 22 because many states require you to surrender your DL (or let it expire) to be officially considered a non resident of their state for tax purposes.

Edited April 14, 2006 by Thaiquila

[Kruang]

I assume you mean a THAI DL, not one of those rather useless "international" driver's licenses that are meant for tourists in some countries.

I have heard that a US passport holder cannot rent a car in the US if they hold a foreign DL and not a US DL. I do not know if this is always true, or not. Perhaps, someone with experience can post.

It is kind of a catch 22 because many states require you to surrender your DL (or let it expire) to be officially considered a non resident of their state for tax purposes.

You are probably right that the OP meant a "foreign" license, not an "international" one.

Every US state has different rules, but to take one example, California "does recognize a valid driver license that is issued by a foreign jurisdiction (country, state, territory) of which the license holder is a resident" (from the CA DMV website). It might be a good idea to have a letter from the US Embassy in Bangkok certifying residence in Thailand. Car rental companies may be a different story, so it's probably a good idea to check with them first.

[corkscrew]

Hello,

I'm retired and living in thailand with a international license and my america license has expired can i drive in america with no problems?

If you hold a valid Thai driver's license (1 or 5 year one) AND you have an International Driving Permit issued by the treaty designated Thai agency you can drive in America as a visitor. If you intend to spend a lot of time there you will also need a license from one of the American states.

[Kruang]

Hello,

I'm retired and living in thailand with a international license and my america license has expired can i drive in america with no problems?

If you hold a valid Thai driver's license (1 or 5 year one) AND you have an International Driving Permit issued by the treaty designated Thai agency you can drive in America as a visitor. If you intend to spend a lot of time there you will also need a license from one of the American states.

Some (perhap many) American states could care less about the International Driving Permit. California is one example. The California DMV recognizes the IDP for what it is when they state "The IDP is only a translation of information contained on a person's foreign driver license and is not required to operate a motor vehicle in California." Good for them.

By the way, if you have an IDP from the US, you'll notice there is no Thai translation. The Thai police who've stopped me for a 'donation' couldn't even tell if my IDP was valid.

[Crossy]

Some (perhap many) American states could care less about the International Driving Permit. California is one example. The California DMV recognizes the IDP for what it is when they state "The IDP is only a translation of information contained on a person's foreign driver license and is not required to operate a motor vehicle in California." Good for them.

Whilst this is most certainly true, IMHO the nominal cost of an IDP is still money wiell spent.

How do you think a US cop is going to react to a Thai licence. A bit of inkjet printed paper, hand laminated and trimmed with scissors (a 5 year old with a PC could do a better job), nothing in a language he can read and even the dates are just a bit odd.

The IDP just provides that warm fuzzy feeling, some nice English writing on a document that he ought to be able to recognise.

Edited April 16, 2006 by Crossy

[Crossy]

Meanwhile, it seems nobody has noticed that our OP has a SERIOUS problem.

His national licence has expired, this means his IDP is INVALID. The nett result is that he has NO valid licence to drive in Thailand.

Whilst this is unlikely to be a problem if he is stopped for 'speeding', it WILL most certainly be a problem if he has an accident, particularly if he kills someone. You can guarantee that the insurance company will use the lack of a licence to avoid making any form of payment. This could do serious injury to his bank balance and his freedom.

My advice, get a Thai licence, he'll have to do the (pointless) test, but at least he will be legal and able to get a Thai IDP with which he can drive in the US.

[lopburi3]

If you are an American citizen I believe you will find in rental fine print that you must have a US licence (foreign licence or IDP not accepted). But those using the system normally have no problem with a foreign licence in practise. What would happen in a court I would not want to speculate on.

[corkscrew]

Hello,

I'm retired and living in thailand with a international license and my america license has expired can i drive in america with no problems?

I believe that when AAA issued your IDP it noted the expiration date on your 'normal' license. It would not have allowed your IDP expiration date to run past the expiration date on the 'normal' license.

Crossy's posts are right on.

[konkeror]

For info on the IDP from the California Department of Motor Vehicles:

Driver License and ID Card Information

Scroll down to the very bottom of the page.