Drivers license/ motorcycle licenses

Yo! I’m moving back to Japan in august but I want to get my motorcycle license. Should I do a course in California then hopefully convert it when I arrive or should I just do a course in japan. I understand the process for converting a US license is a pain so any recommendations help!

4 comments
  1. This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.

    **Drivers license/ motorcycle licenses**

    Yo! I’m moving back to Japan in august but I want to get my motorcycle license. Should I do a course in California then hopefully convert it when I arrive or should I just do a course in japan. I understand the process for converting a US license is a pain so any recommendations help!

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  2. Definitely go for the conversion path if you want to have an stress free experience but please learn the rules and how the traffic flows before driving here as you know it’s the opposite side

  3. Keep in mind that you’d need your license to be valid for 3 months before you enter Japan in order for you to be able to go through the conversion process. So depending on your timeline you may find yourself having to go through the process from scratch here in Japan anyway.

  4. Just a FYI, while you can “convert” your California license (provided you had it for 90 days prior to entering Japan), you will still have to take the written and driving tests. The conversion (for California) just gets you out of taking the full driving course.

    For a motorcycle license, you will also be restricted from carrying passengers for 1 year (I believe 3 for highways — or at least it used to be that way).

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