Getting a Driver's License in Kumamoto

Recently I had the pleasure of transferring my International Driving Permit to a Japanese driver's license. To any other foreigner who has had to do this, you know how much of a pain it can be!

 

I went with Rob and his tantosha (supervisor) on Monday. We did a written test of 10 questions, which consisted of the easiest driving questions ever. For example, true or false, when a light is working and indicates green, but an officer directing traffic says stop, you should continue following the traffic signal. A 7/10 is required to pass this test.

 

There was also a bunch of paperwork, all in Japanese, that you have to fill out. I am so grateful to have had the help of Rob's tantosha.

 

We paid a few fees, and BAM we were set to take the driving test. The test was at 1 pm, so we had a couple hours of waiting time where we snacked on conbini food. In addition, at 12 pm you are allowed to walk the course. There are 2 courses.  You should probably memorize the course before the actual test to help you when driving.

 

 

 

The kanjis on the left side say gaimen, AKA gaikokujin course.

It will have a number indicating the course of that day.

 

 Panorama of the driving course.

 

 Course 2

 

Course 1

 

 

However, even after walking the course and studying the map we still failed. We were not close enough to the curb and didn't check our blind spots appropriately. We had to rewrite some of our documents for the next time we would try.

 

On the first day you have to be at the Menkyo center quite early and have an appointment, but for future attempts no appointment is necessary, just show up at 11:30 and check in.

 

 

I failed on Tuesday. *Sigh* So I decided to go to driving school! It was 5,900 Yen for a 1 hour lesson, but well worth the money. When I went back on Thursday to try again I passed! I couldn't believe it, but it totally happened.

 

Rob went to driving school on Friday, then took the test and passed.

 



 

 

 Rob driving at the Toyofuku Driving School

 

 

The internet is filled with horror stories of ALTs and other foreigners not passing, even after 5 times. However, I now see that there is a little bit of logic to the madness. The test does not seem to necessarily test your driving skills in life, instead it tests how well you can drive the course. The easiest way to do this is to go to driving school. I know two people personally who passed on their first try, it IS possible. The driving test and overall experience will go much better if you don't fight it, but instead accept that it is a necessary evil of driving in Japan if you choose to stay long term.

 

My first two attempts I said "hai" every time I looked in a new direction. My third try I said migi-check and hidari check. I think that this was more helpful than saying "hai" 50 times. Also, I didn't always remember the course, but the police officer was more than happy to tell me were to go, usually in Japanese. Masugo - straight, migi- right, hidari- left, tomete - stop. It is also extremely important to drive in the correct area of the lane. When turning right you should be very close to the right line, when turning left be very close to the left line. When you go straight, you should be about 50 cm from the left line.  

 

If there was only one piece of advice I could give to someone taking this test, I'd say go to driving school and  while you are there, buy one of their 800 Yen maps which tells you exactly when to turn, turn on turn signals, check blind spots, and merge lanes.

 

 

Links:

http://www.toyofuku-jikyou.jp/ - Toyofuku Driving School website

 

http://kumamotojet.com/Driving--and--Cars.php#IDP - Kumamoto Jet Driving and Cars section has a lot of useful information regarding procedure and specific paperwork you will need.