Holders of a valid driving license for a foreign country are eligible to apply for a driving license in the PRC (corresponding to the type of motor vehicle you intend to drive). Applications using an "International Driving Permit" (IDP) will NOT be accepted.
►The original and a copy of your identification document;
►One Driver's Physical Condition Certificate issued by hospitals of county level or higher and recognized by the Beijing Municipal Health Commission;
►Your driver's license. If your driver's license is not in the Chinese language, you must also provide a translation;
►Five one-inch color photos, bareheaded and against a white background;
►For residents of China's mainland, it is still required to present your passport, or either the Exit-Entry Permit for Travelling to and from Hong Kong and Macau or the Mainland Residents Taiwan Pass.
Jingbei Branch of the Vehicles Management Office (VMO): near the North Vehicles Detection Field, Machikou Village, Machikou Town, Changping District, Beijing
General Office of the VMO: No.18, East Rd. of the South 4th Ring, Chaoyang District, Beijing
Foreign Affairs Department of the VMO: No.18, East Rd. of the South 4th Ring, Chaoyang District, Beijing
Jingchao Branch of the VMO: No.1, North St. of Beiluoying, Chaoyang District, Beijing
Jingnan Branch of the VMO: No.28, Luhua Rd. of Huangcun Town, Daxing District, Beijing
Jingfeng Branch of the VMO: Xingyuan Road, Fengtai District, Beijing
Jinghai Branch of the VMO: inside the Haidian Driving School, No.69, Bei'anhe Village, Haidian District, Beijing
Jingshun Branch of the VMO: Anfu Street, Houshayu, Shunyi District, Beijing (north-east of the Anfu St. and Huosi Rd. crossing, 700 meters west of Houshayu Station of Metro Line 15)
Time:
8:30 – 6:00, Monday through Friday;
9:00 – 4:00, weekends (except national holidays)
Telephone:
(8610)12122
As soon as the VMO accepts the application, the applicant may schedule an exam for Subject One. If the application is for operating large passenger buses, tractors, urban buses, mid-size passenger buses or trucks, a further exam of Subject Three is required.
The applicant has two chances (each) to pass the exams for Subject One and Subject Three. If failed twice, you will have to start over and submit a new application for examination. The Subject Three exam can only be retaken 20 days after a failure. Within the validity period of your Driving Exam Permit, any exam passed is viewed as effective.
If you are applying to drive large passenger buses (A1, A3, B1) and tractors (A2, B2), or mid-size passenger buses and trucks, you must take a Subject One exam for the highest-level vehicle type and respective Subject Three exams for each type of vehicle.
Residents of China's mainland who have a valid foreign driving license, but have only stayed in the country or region that issued said license for less than three months continuously, should take the exams for Subject One, Two, and Three.
Applicants who behave inappropriately or fraudulently during the exam(s) will have their qualifications for the exam nullified, and all previous results will be invalidated.
The applicant may apply for a driving license in China corresponding to the type of motor vehicle license that he or she originally possesses. If failing to meet the required conditions for such an application—such as age or height—the applicant may voluntarily downgrade the type of vehicle for their China driving license application; otherwise, it will be denied.
Beijing residents with driving licenses issued by foreign countries, Hong Kong, Macao, or Taiwan, or foreigners living in Beijing, must meet the following conditions to qualify for a driving license application.
I. Age Restrictions
(1) Small-size vehicles, small-size vehicles with auto transmission, light motorcycles: minimum age 18, maximum age 70.
(2) Low speed freight vehicles, three-wheeled vehicles, three-wheeled motorcycles, two-wheeled motorcycles and other utility vehicles: minimum age 18, maximum age 60.
(3) Buses, mid-size passenger vehicles, large freight vehicles, trolleys or tramcars: minimum age 21, maximum age 50.
(4) Tractors: minimum age 24, maximum age 50.
(5) Large-size passenger vehicles: minimum age 26, maximum age 50.
II. Health restrictions
(1) Minimum height
Large-size passenger vehicles, tractors, buses, large freight vehicles, trolleys: 155cm;
Mid-size passenger vehicles: 150cm.
(2) Vision restrictions
Large-size passenger vehicles, tractors, buses, mid-size passenger vehicles, large freight vehicles, trolleys or tramcars: natural or corrected vision minimum: 5.0 logarithm.
Other types of vehicles: natural or corrected vision minimum: 4.9 logarithm.
(3) No red/green color blindness.
(4) Hearing: Both ears must be able to determine the direction of sounds from 50 meters away
(5) Upper limbs: Two hands with thumbs and at least three other fingers. Upper limbs and hands can motion normally.
(6) Lower limbs: Normal range of motion. To apply to drive a manual transmission vehicle, lower limbs cannot be more than five centimeters different in length. To apply to drive an auto transmission vehicle, the right lower limb must be in good condition.
(7) Torso and neck: Normal range of motion must not be obstructed.
III. Those with the following conditions are not permitted to obtain a driving license:
(1) Heart disease, epilepsy, Meniere's disease, hysteria, vertigo, mental illness, mental retardation, as well as diseases associated with the nervous system and other illnesses or diseases that may hinder safe driving.
(2) Users of addictive drugs or addictive medicines that affect one's mental state.
(3) Those whose driving license has been revoked within three years of the date of application.
(4) Those whose driving license was revoked for fleeing the scene of a traffic accident.
(5) Those whose driving license was canceled by force of law within three years of the date of application.
(6) Other conditions relating to P.R.C. laws and regulations.
After exams have been passed, the applicant is required to receive for no less than half an hour being educated on proper driving practices, traffic safety, and traffic accident cases. Then the applicant will participate in an oath-taking ceremony. The VMO issues the license to successful applicants on the day of the ceremony.
Administrative charges for issuing the driving license: CNY ¥10 (per license);
Examination fee for Subject One: CNY ¥50 (per person, per instance);
Examination fee for Subject Three: CNY ¥60 (per person, per instance).
If the applicant has a driving license (C1 level) issued by Belgium or the United Arab Emirates, he or she may be exempt from exams. In this case, a PRC driving license would be issued directly.
If the applicant is a member of a foreign embassy or consulate in China, or a representative of an international organization stationed in China, he or she should be granted a Chinese driving license within five working days (of acceptance) by the relevant authorities, according to the principle of diplomatic reciprocity.
All exams must be finished within a three-year period of the VMO's acceptance of one's application.
