Drivers's license questions: MT license, and international permit

Well it's time for me to switch cars, as my current car's battery has gone kaput, and fixing 'er up, with the shaken a month away, would cost more than getting a different car.

The dealership has asked me what kind of transmission I want, and I told them that I have an AT license but that an MT would also be ok, so on the chance that the best car they have for me is a manual, I'm wondering how hard it is to switch a driver's license over to one that lets me drive one. I have an American driver's license which means I can drive manual in America (though it expired 2 months ago), and for my first 8 months in Japan I was in fact driving an MT car with my American license + International Driving Permit (IDP). But that was 2 years ago and I'm a bit rusty now.

So what I want to ask is: What is involved in switching a Japanese AT license to a Japanese MT license, and would having an American driver's license help at all?


The other question concerns getting an IDP in Japan. My American license expired last December so if I visit the states, I'll either have to renew my license (if they'll let me do it easily after letting it expire) or get an IDP to go with my Japanese license. So how does one typically get an IDP here? Are they provided by JAF?

Many thanks.

For the international license, go to the same place that issued your Japanese license.

How did it come about that you ended up with an AT license?

Batteries are only about 4 or 5 thousand yen, so I assume that your car needs other more costly repairs. Is that correct?

JimmySeal said:

My American license expired last December so if I visit the states, I'll either have to renew my license (if they'll let me do it easily after letting it expire)

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Jimmy: I would just get one back home. I am sure it depends on the state but you could easily get one here when you visit, the only catch is you would have to retake the written exam, possibly the driving exam. They make you do that when you don't renew in the given time, usually one month before and after the date of expiration. I would also check out the DOT website for your state to see exact rules. Hope this helps!

I'd say that to change the Japanese license from AT to MT you should contact the drivers license station or perhaps these guys first.
http://www.japandriverslicense.com/

Don't let that license expire. You are up a real creek, I think, because you have let your American license lapse, and you cannot drive on an IDP after the first 12 months here.

I read about one guy who let his J license lapse after he moved back to his home country, then when he came here, it was apparently a snap to renew it, but people have talked about a difference in drivers license station personnel and their attitudes, so don't go on that. Get the scoop from that link and/or the station itself.

Mike Cash said:

How did it come about that you ended up with an AT license?

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Those 8 months I spent driving a manual was the only time I'd ever driven one, and I took the Japanese driving test 4 months after I stopped driving that car, so I wasn't confident in being able to pass the MT driving test in their manual car. In hindsight I should have given it a try.

Batteries are only about 4 or 5 thousand yen, so I assume that your car needs other more costly repairs. Is that correct?

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The AC is shot, and it needs new tires. The window mechanism is stiff and it's almost painful to roll the window all the way down (and I know from experience that any repairs inside the door tend to be pricey). Also the front seatbelts have a habit of unexpectedly coming unlatched every now and then.
All that, plus the cost of renewing the shaken, would be well over the price of an equitable used car.


Thanks for the link, Glenski. I will have a look at it. I'm in no danger of my Japanese license expiring anytime soon, but thanks for the heads up.

I think it is about 3,500 yen to change your licence over to Japanese. You have to first get it translated at JAF(Well if I remember correctly it is JAF), then take that translation into the menkyo center aqnd just follow the proceedures. It takes about half a day, but you get a Japanese licence.

Edit: I didn't realize your licence was expired, but I still believe you can do the same with the international.

Dave,
He is not talking about changing his (expired) American license to Japanese. He has a Japanese one already, but it is only good for automatic transmission (AT), and he wants to convert it to one good for manual transmission (MT).

The international driver's permit can be renewed, but it is not valid in Japan after you have been here 12 months, so I recommend against spending the money. It won't be legal.

Oh, and if one DOES convert a foreign license to a Japanese one, it costs more than 3500 yen. Closer to about 10,000 if you factor in all the costs. You have to pay 3000 yen alone just to get it translated at JAF. (And, Americans cannot just convert; they have to take the written and driving tests, but the OP's situation is moot. He has the J license, and needs to keep renewing it because his expired American license won't let him just breeze into a drivers license station and take the tests again. He'd have to go through the very expensive drivers ed courses if not for his J license already in hand.)

While we're on the topic.. I thought that you're not really supposed to use the IDP at all in Japan, that if you are a "resident," and that you're expected to get a Japanese license... is this true?

Glenski said:

Dave,
He is not talking about changing his (expired) American license to Japanese. He has a Japanese one already, but it is only good for automatic transmission (AT), and he wants to convert it to one good for manual transmission (MT).
The international driver's permit can be renewed, but it is not valid in Japan after you have been here 12 months, so I recommend against spending the money. It won't be legal.
Oh, and if one DOES convert a foreign license to a Japanese one, it costs more than 3500 yen. Closer to about 10,000 if you factor in all the costs. You have to pay 3000 yen alone just to get it translated at JAF. (And, Americans cannot just convert; they have to take the written and driving tests, but the OP's situation is moot. He has the J license, and needs to keep renewing it because his expired American license won't let him just breeze into a drivers license station and take the tests again. He'd have to go through the very expensive drivers ed courses if not for his J license already in hand.)

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My mistake, I had a whole different picture in my head. As for the costs , I can't remember what I had to do b/c it was so long ago. I forgot about those extra cost and formalities I had to go through. I can just remember being charged 3,500 yen for the translation.

The only thing that I remember is the fact that when I got my gold licence you are supposed to breeze through the formalities in under an hour, but in my case it took 5 hours b/c on that particular day there were hundreds gold licence holders.

dblbstrd said:

While we're on the topic.. I thought that you're not really supposed to use the IDP at all in Japan, that if you are a "resident," and that you're expected to get a Japanese license... is this true?

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You can use an IDP for up to a year after your entry into Japan, regardless of your visa status. After that, you must either leave the country for more than 90 days and come back with another IDP, or acquire a Japanese license.