Not sure if there’s a post already about this but is it possible to get a japanese driver’s license if i present a translated copy of my california driver’s license? Or do i have to take classes? Have 15 years of driving experience with cars, motorcycles, and a bus zero accidents or incidents. People are all giving me different answers and haven’t been able to find the website with a clear answer.
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If you have the translated copy of it to your local embassy they can issue it to you. [Also](https://jp.usembassy.gov/services/driving-in-japan/) in my own personal experience they do sometimes ask you to take an exam it’s like a learners permit/ mini driving test.
California doesn’t have reciprocity. You’ll skip the long written test but frankly that’s the easiest part. Technically, you can take the road test and hope to pass but the road test is less practical knowledge than doing specific actions that only pertain to the test like checking certain mirrors. Also appointments are hard to come by and if you fail you may have to wait months to take it again. I think you still might have to take a shorter written test but not sure. There’s a lot of posts so hopefully searching drivers license conversion should point you in the right direction.
[list of all the stuff you need.](https://www.pref.shiga.lg.jp/police/menkyo/kokugai/301012.html)
Yes, as long as your California license is valid and you can show that you lived in California for a minimum of three months since the license was issued. You’ll need to get the license translated by JAF. Then you can take it to the driving license center along with your passport, a juminhyo, and a few other things and begin the process of converting it. You’ll have to take a short paper exam (that’s available in English) and a practical test on their track (also fairly short). It can take a few months from start to finish depending on how busy your local driving license center is and if you fail the test on your first time or not.
California DL unfortunately doesn’t have reciprocity and you will have to take the behind the wheel test to get the license. There are some places where you can pay to take a “practice test” before the actual one at the licensing center, but I never used them before. The actual licensing test can get tedious depending on the instructor. Sometimes not doing something as simple as looking over your shoulder when making a left turn for cyclists is enough to fail you on the spot. It took me 4 times to pass the test. Since I was a student, I could skip class to go to the license center but if you are working, you probably need a day off each time. I took it in Chiba prefecture. I heard a rumor that rural areas tend to be easier than urban areas, but no confirmation on that.
Im not sure on other prefecture but in kanagawa, you just need to present your translated docs, take a 10 question item exam and a drive test then your good. The translated part is tricky, my friend’s from the Philippines, he had to go back to the Philippines to have his motorcycle license remove from the card since he’s only applying for a regular car license here in Japan. So if you have lots of classification/class on your license, better to consult.
Only specific states have it so that you can just exchange your license. I think Hawaii is one. You’ll have to take a driving test most likely.
Study for the rest because it doesn’t test driving ability, it tests your ability to remember specific things they want you to do. You can do the course perfectly and fail because you didn’t look over your shoulder at a specific point.
I got a Japanese drivers license with my California license. You’ll have to take the written test, which you can do in English, and a driving test on what amounts to a glorified go-kart track. Grading can be very strict on the driving test, depending on the test examiner. There are freelance driving instructors lurking around the license centers in the daytime. You can hire one to meet you at the test center on a Sunday where you can rent a test car and drive the course for a couple of hours with the instructor coaching you on what you need to do to past the test. That’s what I did after I failed the driving test the first two times I took it. You’ll need to be able to communicate effectively in Japanese or bring a Japanese friend to ride along as your interpreter unless you can find an instructor who speaks English.
The reason you’re not certain if it’s been asked before is you didn’t search. This is a common common question. In the future use the search function, even Reddit’s crappy one will find something this common.