Can I Drive in Thailand With Us License
Thailand is ranked 2d in the globe for traffic fatalities. Statistics show a massive 44 deaths per 100,000 people, which is 5.1 pct of Thailand's overall death count.
It'southward no surprise that drunk-driving is to blame for 26% of road deaths. Simply information technology could well exist more, as rescue services written report that booze is involved in as much as lxxx% of road accidents.
(Stats according to the Earth Wellness System and The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute in the United States)
But what well-nigh the residue of the traffic accidents? Why so many?
If you've ever driven in Thailand, you'll know why. But what begs belief is that the root of the problem hasn't been addressed yet.
Learning to Drive in Thailand
Terminal calendar week I went to picket my married woman acquire to drive. Now, had we been in the UK, this would accept involved me watching her get picked up in a new, dual-control Golf game, Mini or other auto, and returning after an hour on the roads with a fully qualified instructor.
But this was learning to drive Thai manner. Something I was nonetheless to experience.
From the outset, I was pretty shocked that she'd only paid 3,600 Baht for 20 lessons (seventy odd quid). That would go you simply two lessons back home. I was even more than shocked when nosotros pulled upwardly to what resembled more of an assault course than a learning eye.
Looks like doomsday. Clearly the Gods knew my GF was learning to drive!
Okay, I'd seen these places earlier from afar, just getting to grips with the fact that people in Thailand don't learn to drive on real roads, and are instead let loose in these places, takes a off-white fleck of getting used to.
There is no getting stuck backside a learner driver in Thailand. Instead, learners are confined to wasteland areas, instructed by non-qualified (and then information technology seems) instructors to weave in and out of cone courses, navigate corners marked out by tyres and endeavour opposite parking in makeshift spaces.
No expense spared on creating the class
I made sure I was fully kitted out with amulets before leaving the house (sarcasm), and I did warn the staff that they should probably close off near by roads, since my wife is blow prone. I also suggested that my wife change her pink-bowed sandals for more appropriate driving shoes.
The Lesson…
4 new female person drivers, including Mrs TTL, were bundled into a Toyota Vios and shown the ropes by a fairly uninterested instructor with Red Balderdash in 1 hand and fag in the other. After what seemed like less that 20 minutes, each lady was given a car of her own to commencement driving – solitary!
My girlfriend was given a black Nissan with a sticker slapped on the side that made it look a tad rally way.
I told everyone to stand back…They didn't go the joke.
She did brilliantly though. I was super-impressed. She kept a steady stride and managed to go around the corners without stacking the car into the on-site office or running over any of the resident soi dogs.
I was baffled: How had she managed to change gears by herself afterward such a brusque lesson?
"He put a rock on the clutch. All I had to do was steer".
Huh?
Seriously. That's what they do. Forget dual controls, or even an instructor in the motorcar. They place the car in 2nd gear with a rock on the clutch to keep it from stalling.
A makeshift automatic. Only in Thailand!
She went for some other lesson two days later, and upon her render told me that she was left in the car alone for an hour to "effigy it out past herself". She was frustrated as the old taxi she was given didn't piece of work too equally the Nissan.
She added that she had pissed off the instructor by having a become at him for non doing his job properly.Bloody right!
Cypher Educational activity – Cypher Real Road Experience
"This is how you practise it, at present go in and drive!"
Information technology's madness. This wasteland introduction to driving gives you admittedly cypher real road experience and in no way prepares you for the numerous difficulties you lot might face on a solar day-to-day basis.
I had causeless that after lesson 3 they'd accept her out on a real road. But the office lady told me this wasn't the case. Yous learn on site and then put in for your exam, which is also conducted on a grade (not on a existent road), as seen in the video below.
The New Theory Test + Real Questions
One improvement that has been fabricated is the introduction of a harder theory test. In an effort to meliorate road safety, a new exam (constructive since June 1st, 2014) requires that students have to respond l questions instead of the sometime 30.
Yous'll demand to score 45 questions correctly to pass, which means a passing grade of xc% instead of the quondam 75%. That'southward pretty hard, and needless to say a lot of people are declining.
You can download and print out existent exam questions at the following links:
>> Thai driving theory test part 1
>> Thai driving theory test function ii
>> Thai driving theory exam part iii
Just does a harder theory test improve people'south ability to drive? Mayhap they volition sympathise more road signs, just at the time of passing their test, their ability to command a car on the road will exist limited to the feel of an obstacle course in a motorcar park with no other cars on the route.
Surely the reply to decreasing road deaths and traffic accidents in Thailand is to start offering lessons on roads, and to create a more realistic exam that takes users out in existent-earth situations. Or would that be even more dangerous?
Hell, how many people actually have a real license in Thailand anyway?
If y'all want to know how drivers should be driving in Thailand, have a expect at the official Thai traffic laws here.
How to Apply for a Thai Driving License
What virtually people don't know is that y'all are required to take a Thai driving license if y'all have stayed in the state for 60 or more days. Bear in mind though that you lot can't become a license on a Tourist Visa.
If y'all already have an international driving license, yous won't need to accept the practical examination, but will need to take the following:
- A short eyesight examination (color perception, peripheral vision, depth perception)
- A reflex examination
- A reckoner based test (in Thai & English linguistic communication merely) on the rules of driving
Documents Required
i. Medical Certificate
Get this from a local doctor or infirmary. It must not be older than thirty days. Cost is between 100-500 Baht.
ii. Residency Certificate
This is proof of address and is provided by the Clearing Bureau or foreign diplomatic mission. Yous tin download the form here. When you get to get this, have 2 color Photo's 1.5 in x 2.36 in (4 cm x 6 cm). Proof of residence in the form of a rental contract or yellow residency book or a letter from your landlord.
iii. Copy & Original of Passport & Not-Immigrant/Other Relevant Visa
But copy the front end folio of your passport, the visa page, latest stamp page and your TM6 carte. Take your original passport with you too.
iv. Valid License / International License
Yous volition demand your current motorbike or auto license, be information technology an international ane or one issued by your country. If you don't have one you will take to complete the practical and theory exams. If you license is non in English language, y'all will have to go information technology officially translated and authorised by your diplomatic mission.
5. Identification Card / Other Card Substituted for ID Card
half-dozen. Awarding Forms
>> Download the license application grade
>> Download the English translation
If you are renewing a license or extending from i-year to a 5-year, click here for the official requirements.
To find your local transportation office, run into this directory here.
And lastly, a nice man chosen Vladimir, who took the driving test in Thailand, has put together a mock Thai driving test that you lot can have online. It basically combines those PDF questions I gave y'all earlier into a exam format. Yous can find that hither.
Whether you need lessons or simply to apply for a Thai driving license, I promise you've found this information useful. If something has changed in the law or procedure that you know nearly, please practise leave it in the comments department and I'll update the mail.
Stay condom on the roads!
More Tips for a Improve Life in Thailand
Transport Money to Thailand:
Use Transferwise. It is fast, cheap, and gives you the market exchange rate. Me and the bulk of my readers are using it.
Become Good Health Insurance:
Outset with a quick quote from Cigna. Then compare my other recommendations here.
Improve Your Thai Skills:
Learning Thai makes life here easier and more fun. I employ Thaipod101. It is gratis to go started & like shooting fish in a barrel to use.
Protect Your Online Privacy:
A VPN protects you against hackers and authorities snooping. I always employ one. You should too. Read why hither.
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Source: https://www.thethailandlife.com/learning-to-drive-in-thailand
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