Renewing your driver's license

You've gotten your driver's license renewal notice in the mail (it's in Japanese - make sure you don't just toss those Japanese language postcards in the rubbish bin!) so you now know it is time to go renew your license.

If you don't read Japanese have a friend, secretary, lover, etc. help you figure out what it says & which license renewal center you can go to. 

If you live in one of the 23 Tokyo wards, and if this is your first renewal, you'll most likely wind up going down to the driver's license center in Samezu.  If you don't know where that is have someone tell you how to get there either by train, bus, taxi, or car.  If you drive yourself the parking is free - good thing it is, 'cause you're gonna be there a while.

Here's the basic step-through for those who haven't been there before.

Step 1:  Make sure you take that postcard you got in the mail, along with your current driver's license, your gaijin card, and ¥3,800 (at least - more if you want to buy a drink, food, train ticket, etc.).  It's also a good idea to have some reading material with you since you may face a bit of a wait at times.

Step 2:  Show your postcard to the person at the desk that is just on the right side of the entrance.  They'll make a copy of your current license & print it out on a form that you carry around with you.

Step 3:  Eye exam time - they'll direct you to the machine.  It's a simple test - look at the little circle & tell the tester if the opening is up, left, right, down.  If you wear contact lenses you're supposed to tell them that.

Step 4:  Get your eye exam hanko (rubber stamp) on your form from the guy just past the eye test machine then proceed to the next window where they'll check your form, tell you to have a seat, and then call you back to the window to hand you back your form - not sure what they check here, but it's one of the necessary steps.

Step 5:  Go pay your fee.  They'll tear off part of your form - properly "hanko'ed" of course - and hand it back to you.  Do NOT lose this - you'll need it to get your license at the end.

Step 6:  Photo time - just what it says.  Just go in, hand over your form, sit down & get your picture taken - smile!

Step 7:  Now the fun begins.  For you first timers - that is, those who have the green license (licenses have green, blue or gold colored strips on them depending on how long you've had the license & whether or not you have any violations), you'll get to sit through a 2 hour class.  The first 1 hour & 15 minutes or so is a lecture by one of the Samezu staff - in Japanese.  Then a 10 minute break & finally about a 40 minute video of those who have violated the laws & their story from their prison cell.  You will go upstairs (2nd floor) for this class & you have to wait until the next class starts so your wait may be anything from a couple of minutes to - like mine was - 50 minutes before the next class.  Remember that reading material I told you to bring - aren't you glad you did!  It good to have something to read (iPhone! email!) while you wait & no, you can't get a cup of coffee in the summer time unless you like presweetened iced coffee (to get this, go back downstairs to the cafeteria, buy a prepaid ticket from the food / drink ticket vending machine, and give it to the lady behind the counter for your coffee). Or, take you own thermos of your preferred drink with you.

Step 8:  Okay - you've made it through the class, duly informed of the rules & regulations as well as the evils of drinking & driving in Japan (hey, if you do that you don't deserve to have a license anyhow!), and now you get to go up to the 3rd floor & turn in that remaining part of your form for your license.  It's up to you to check your license - make sure it's yours (do you really look like that picture?!) and make sure the info on the license is correct.  Of course, it is written in Japanese, but of course, so is everything else there at the Samezu center.

That's is - anything from 2 1/2 to 4 hours or so later & you're on your way with your new license in your pocket & 3 books of Japan's driving rules & regulations (in Japanese) in hand.  Have fun - safe driving - and don't you dare drink & drive (you do know the penalties for that here - right? - talk about severe!).

You've gotten your driver's license renewal notice in the mail (it's in Japanese - make sure you don't just toss those Japanese language postcards in the rubbish bin!) so you now know it is time to go renew your license.

If you don't read Japanese have a friend, secretary, lover, etc. help you figure out what it says & which license renewal center you can go to. 

If you live in one of the 23 Tokyo wards, and if this is your first renewal, you'll most likely wind up going down to the driver's license center in Samezu.  If you don't know where that is have someone tell you how to get there either by train, bus, taxi, or car.  If you drive yourself the parking is free - good thing it is, 'cause you're gonna be there a while.

Here's the basic step-through for those who haven't been there before.

Step 1:  Make sure you take that postcard you got in the mail, along with your current driver's license, your gaijin card, and ¥3,800 (at least - more if you want to buy a drink, food, train ticket, etc.).  It's also a good idea to have some reading material with you since you may face a bit of a wait at times.

Step 2:  Show your postcard to the person at the desk that is just on the right side of the entrance.  They'll make a copy of your current license & print it out on a form that you carry around with you.

Step 3:  Eye exam time - they'll direct you to the machine.  It's a simple test - look at the little circle & tell the tester if the opening is up, left, right, down.  If you wear contact lenses you're supposed to tell them that.

Step 4:  Get your eye exam hanko (rubber stamp) on your form from the guy just past the eye test machine then proceed to the next window where they'll check your form, tell you to have a seat, and then call you back to the window to hand you back your form - not sure what they check here, but it's one of the necessary steps.

Step 5:  Go pay your fee.  They'll tear off part of your form - properly "hanko'ed" of course - and hand it back to you.  Do NOT lose this - you'll need it to get your license at the end.

Step 6:  Photo time - just what it says.  Just go in, hand over your form, sit down & get your picture taken - smile!

Step 7:  Now the fun begins.  For you first timers - that is, those who have the green license (licenses have green, blue or gold colored strips on them depending on how long you've had the license & whether or not you have any violations), you'll get to sit through a 2 hour class.  The first 1 hour & 15 minutes or so is a lecture by one of the Samezu staff - in Japanese.  Then a 10 minute break & finally about a 40 minute video of those who have violated the laws & their story from their prison cell.  You will go upstairs (2nd floor) for this class & you have to wait until the next class starts so your wait may be anything from a couple of minutes to - like mine was - 50 minutes before the next class.  Remember that reading material I told you to bring - aren't you glad you did!  It good to have something to read (iPhone! email!) while you wait & no, you can't get a cup of coffee in the summer time unless you like presweetened iced coffee (to get this, go back downstairs to the cafeteria, buy a prepaid ticket from the food / drink ticket vending machine, and give it to the lady behind the counter for your coffee). Or, take you own thermos of your preferred drink with you.

Step 8:  Okay - you've made it through the class, duly informed of the rules & regulations as well as the evils of drinking & driving in Japan (hey, if you do that you don't deserve to have a license anyhow!), and now you get to go up to the 3rd floor & turn in that remaining part of your form for your license.  It's up to you to check your license - make sure it's yours (do you really look like that picture?!) and make sure the info on the license is correct.  Of course, it is written in Japanese, but of course, so is everything else there at the Samezu center.

That's is - anything from 2 1/2 to 4 hours or so later & you're on your way with your new license in your pocket & 3 books of Japan's driving rules & regulations (in Japanese) in hand.  Have fun - safe driving - and don't you dare drink & drive (you do know the penalties for that here - right? - talk about severe!).

Comments

[LP]

I don't know if the fines are the same for the driver as the passenger, but yes, the officer at my course did talk about how passengers can be held accountable for knowingly allowing their driver to operate the vehicle after consuming alcohol. I'd just guess that there is a separate fine structure for that offense, though. Car owners are also apparently liable for allowing drunk individuals to operate their cars.

[Joe Peters]

Thanks - very useful information from your blog too. One question - my understanding is that the fine applies to each person in the car, not only the driver. Have you hear of that?

Regards,

Joe Peters

[LP]

Thanks for the nice article. It was helpful when I was getting ready for my own renewal earlier this year. My course ended up talking extensively about drunk driving laws. I took some notes and put them up in English: http://www.accessj.com/2013/04/drunk-driving-in-japan-alcohol-levels.html