I’ve been here for about a year now, and I’ve been using my IDP for that time. But now it will be expiring soon and so I arranged an appointment to get my Japanese license after collecting all the necessary documents. The next available time is in 3 months when my IDP expires in one month. I live way out in the inaka so a car is totally necessary for many aspects of my life here. I also don’t need to take the practical test because of where I’m from. I just need to do the interview and have my license issued to me. What should I do? Is there anyways I can have a temporary license issues to me? It will be very challenging to commute to work and get groceries for two months with no car.
9 comments
>I also don’t need to take the practical test because of where I’m from
Hindsight is a bitch… but I’m curious, why didn’t you start getting the process sorted from literally the day after arrival? Even if they are busy and having waiting times, you likely would have got it sorted by now if you acted sooner.
>can I have a temporary license issued to me?
Nope, I am quite certain that is not possible.
Go talk to them and explain your predicament, they may be able to speed up your process. Do lots of apologising for not doing it sooner
>Is there anyways I can have a temporary license issues to me?
You’ve had a temporary licence for almost a year.
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call the DL center daily to grab a slot from キャンセル待ち
>It will be very challenging to commute to work and get groceries for two months with no car.
Yup. But you’ve had your Temp license already. Idk why you waited until the last minute esp. living in the country.
I suppose you’ll start getting a workout on your bike. Get a little basket for your groceries or seeing what bulkier non-perishables can be delivered.
I’ve never heard of anyone getting a temp license outside of the IDP. If that were possible everyone would be doing it before dealing with the hassle of conversion. Keep calling to see if they can move you up.
Step 1: Build a time machine…
Whatever you do, do **not** drive without a license. The penalties for that are extreme.
You can get a 50cc scooter license pretty easily and buy a scooter. Or start walking…
In OP’s defense, nobody, and especially someone new to Japan would expect a simple interview to require 3 months to arrange for something as vital as this. It’s excessive and unreasonable.
In any other place, one month would have been more than enough.
I think as long as your driver license in your country is valid you can convert it to japanese license without an issue.
I think IDP expiry has nothing to do with the actual driving license conversation.
Note: please take this with a grain of salt and confirm with driving license center