How to Get A Drivers License in Japan

Japan is well known for their efficient and affordable public transportation but if you want to explore off the beaten path, you’ll need a car or motorcycle. There are two common ways people obtain a drivers license in Japan. First, you can attend a drivers school but it’s pretty expensive – about $3,000. Or if you have an existing license from an approved country, you can convert it to a Japanese one. Conversion is cheaper but it has it’s own set of challenges. In this article, I’ll detail my experience of converting my United States drivers license in Japan. Buckle in, it’s a long ride.

1. Collect all your documents

You will need several documents in order to convert your drivers license in Japan. These documents will vary depending on where your license is from but in my case, these are the documents I needed.

1. Existing, non-expired drivers license (bring your old licenses too if you have any)
2. A translation of the drivers license to Japanese (this can be done online with JAF here.)
3. A jyuminhyo (you can print one at your local ward office or at a conbini)
4. Your residence card (zairyu card)
5. Passport (bring your old passports too if you have any)
6. A photo taken within the last 6 months
7. Documents to prove you lived in the issuing country for at least 3 months after your license was issued
8. A complete driving history record

2. Schedule an appointment or show up early

Some prefectures require you set an appointment ahead of time and others allow you to show up and wait in line. You’ll likely need to schedule an appointment over the phone so you’ll need to be able to speak Japanese or have someone help you. Also there are usually set days and times they accept appointment reservations. It’s not unusual to not be able to make an appointment by phone because there are so many people calling at the same time so I decided to show up early.

If you decide to show up and wait in line, then you will need to get to the drivers license center very early because they only accept 5-10 people per day. I showed up at 6am and there were 8 people already in line ahead of me. Keep in mind they don’t open until 9am. The people before me said they have been waiting since 8pm the previous day. My recommendation is to show up as early as possible. In my case, I took the first train in the morning and got lucky.

3. Document check and review

At 9:30am, I was next in line and I handed over all my documents. They asked me to explain what each document was and confirm the corresponding dates. This took 20 minutes or so and then I was asked to step aside and wait.

At 11:00am, I was called back up to the counter because they had a question regarding my middle name. You see – my middle name is on all of my government documents but I don’t use it in day to day life. So when they saw my documents with my first and last name, they wanted to confirm it was actually me. Thankfully, my college transcripts had my middle name so they accepted it and moved on.

Middle names aren’t common in Japan so if you have one, be prepared with a document that includes your first, middle, and last names.

4. Fill out paperwork and interview

At 12:30am, it was time to fill out a questionnaire detailing my driving experience and history. The form included questions like when did I get my first ever drivers license, how many hours did I practice theory and practical, how exactly did I practice, did I go to driving school, who taught me how to drive, what was the testing process like to get a drivers license, and how many drivers licenses have I had in total? 

There doesn’t seem to be any right or wrong answers to these questions so just answer them honestly. You cannot use your phone during this time so before hand, I recommend checking your driving history records to confirm your past.

After filling out the paperwork, they will ask you each question one by one for more information. Again, I don’t think there are any right or wrong answers so just be honest. The interview lasted about 30 minutes.

If you are converting a car and a motorcycle license, you will need to fill out two forms and be interviewed twice.

5. Document Review Results

It’s about 3pm and my name is once again called. This time they tell me that they need more information before making a decision. They had some questions regarding my answers to the interview. In my case, I moved out of state and I have a motorcycle endorsement. They wanted me to provide documentation confirming that I didn’t need to take a test to get a new license when I moved out of state, that I didn’t need to take a road test when getting a motorcycle license – the only skills test was on a closed course, and that my license is valid for 8 years. They said screenshots will suffice so it will be easy to satisfy them but I still needed to come back another day. Luckily, my documents were approved so no problem there.

6. Paperwork Round Two

This time around was a lot easier. I didn’t have to show up super early and wait in a long line. Instead I showed up at 12:30pm and walked right up to the counter and handled them my documents. They looked at them briefly and accepted them without question. 

The next step was getting my eyes checked. It was pretty simple. You look into a device and tell the employee which direction the opening of C is. Then you see blue, red, or orange and say which color it is.

After the eye exam, I took a 10 question written test. The questions were true or false and I had 10 minutes to finish. The questions are fairly common sense and you don’t need to have specific knowledge about Japanese driving laws or signs. You need to get at least 7 out of 10 questions correct to pass.

After successfully passing the written test, I paid about 5000 yen and scheduled my practical tests. It’s about 6 weeks from now.

7. Study Time

There are tons of resources online that detail how to pass the driving test like blog posts and YouTube videos. I spent hours watching videos and learning tips on how to pass the first time.

You will most likely need to memorize the course ahead of time so if you’re allowed to do so, I recommend walking the course with the map in hand to get an understanding of the layout. This proved invaluable to me because I was able to cement the course into my brain. I highly recommend doing this if you can.

Here are some of my best tips from what I learned.

1. Read the booklet you get from the drivers center. It details exactly what is required of you to pass.
2. Before getting into the car, walk around the car and physically bend down to look under the front and the rear of the vehicle.
3. Before entering the car, look right and left and pretend to look out for oncoming traffic. Then quickly open the door, get in, and shut the door quietly.
4. Adjust your seat, adjust the rearview mirror, and put on your seatbelt. Double check to make sure the officer and the passenger in the rear seat also put their seatbelts on.
5. Start the car, shift into drive, and release the parking brake.
6. Turn the right turn signal on, look right and left (check your blindspots and mirrors), and pull out.
7. Turn your left turn signal on, look right and left, and turn when it’s clear to do so.
8. Pump your brakes before entering a curve to light up your brake light to indicate your about to brake. Then brake before the curve and coast through without touching the brake or gas pedal. Look into your rear view mirror before braking.
9. Slow down when you approach intersections and crosswalks. Look left and right.
10. If the light turns yellow at an intersection, stop the car and do not go through the light. If you go past the line and block the pedestrian crosswalk, look behind you and if it’s safe to do so, reverse behind the line. If there is a car behind you, preventing you from reversing behind the line, stay put but make sure you check to see if you can reverse behind the line or not.
11. When you approach the S curve, there will be a number sign on the side of the road. When the sign lines up with your body as you pass it, turn the wheel all the way to turn into the S curve. This technique usually ensures you will enter the curve without hitting the curb.
12. When you approach the crank, you do the same thing as you did when turning into the S curve. There will be a number sign on the side of the road. When the sign lines up with your body as you pass it, turn the wheel all the way to turn into the crank. When you approach the first turn in the crank and the road disappears, turn the wheel all the way. Then when you approach the second turn and the road disappears, you turn the wheel all the way again. Make sure you go slow but do not stop.
13. Stop for a full 3 seconds at every stop sign and stop behind the line. Look left and right before going again.
14. If you have to turn at an area that has an obstructed view of oncoming traffic, make sure to stop completely at the line. Look left and right and if it’s clear, move forward and stop again. Look left and right again and turn when it’s clear to do so.
15. Try to position the car on the left side of the lane. A good rule of thumb is to center your body in the middle of the lane. And when you are about to turn right, hug the right side of the lane. Otherwise, drive on the left side of the lane.
16. Always use your turn signals and always check your blind spots, bike lane, and mirrors.
17. When you finish the course and are returning to the starting point, use your left turn signal to indicate your about to park the vehicle. There will be a sign on the side of the road and you need to line the front of the front bumper with the sign. When you come to a complete stop, apply the parking brake, shift into park, and turn off the vehicle. Thank the officer. Unbuckle your seatbelt, adjust your seat backwards, look in front of you and behind you to make sure it’s safe to exit the vehicle. If it’s safe, open the car door and quickly exit and shut the door quietly.

7. Practical Test

The day to take the practical test has finally arrived and to get my Japanese drivers license (hopefully)! I arrived to the drivers license center around 7:30am but didn’t need to be there until 8:30. I’m feeling a little anxious but pretty confident because I studied and memorized the course.

There were maybe 25 of us and we all sat in a classroom and watched a video explaining the course. Then an officer explained all the rules and we paid the fee to use the vehicle. Then we all had our eyes checked. After that, we were separated into groups of 4. I was the first person to test in my group.

Unfortunately I failed because as I exited the crank and approached the intersection, the light turned yellow. It was a pretty short distance from the crank to the intersection so I didn’t have enough time to stop the vehicle behind the crosswalk and entered the intersection. I stayed there until the light turned green. At this time, the officer told me the test was over and asked me to head back to the starting point.

He explained to me that I needed to check behind to see if it was clear to reverse the car behind the line and if it was clear, to reverse behind the line. But since I didn’t do this and stayed put, I failed.

So I had to schedule another day to take the test again. Luckily I was able to take the test again in 10 days. I had to pay another 2500 yen or so to schedule the test again. So I went home and studied more.

8. Practical Test Round 2

10 days pass and I’m back at the driving center to take the practical test for a second time. We go through the same steps we did the first time. Watch the video, listen to the officer explain the rules, pay the fee, get our eyes checked, and are separated into groups.

This time around, we were grouped together with 6 people and I was 5th in line. So I was able to observe other people take the test and learn from their mistakes. During this time, I became pretty nervous because everyone was failing for different reasons.

Eventually it was my turn to take the test again. I go through all the steps and thankfully I passed this time. The officer literally said I didn’t make any mistakes and asked which driving school I went to. He was surprised when I told him I didn’t go to school and just studied on my own.

It was about 10:30am when I passed and he asked me to go to window 7 at 12:45pm. I ate lunch and waited a couple hours to finalize the process. When it was time, I went to the window and they handed me a couple forms to fill out with my name and address. Then I had to pay the license issuance fee which was about 2500 yen. I went back to window 7 and then was told to go upstairs to take my photo. I went upstairs and got my photo taken. Shortly after that, my drivers license was ready! The officer handed my license and told me to go to window 7 again. They then told me that I needed to go downstairs to get a copy of the front and back. I did that and returned to the window and was told that we are done for the day.

9. All done

So there you have it. That was my experience of converting a US drivers license to a Japanese drivers license. There are a lot of steps and rules to follow but it can be done. You don’t need to go to driving school if you don’t want to. Just follow the rules and don’t give up.

Please keep in mind that your experience may differ than mine. In fact, there is talk about Japan making it harder to convert foreign licenses in the future. I just wanted to detail my experience in hopes of helping someone.

がんばて！

10. Helpful Resources

Here are some helpful resources I found that might help you too.

https://www.mieguidebook.org/wiki/Driving_Test

http://www.supermelf.com/japan/ajetdrivingbook/DrivinginJapanandPassingtheDriversTest.pdf