Holders of a valid driving license (excluding learner's license, provisional driver's license and probationary driver's 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;
►The "Physical Condition Certificate for Motor Vehicle Driver" issued by a hospital at or above the secondary level, a township-level health center, a community health service center, a physical examination center or any other medical institution qualified for conducting physical examinations and designated by Beijing Municipal Health Commission, or by a specified medical institution of military or armed police forces at or above the regiment level. If you have already submitted the relevant information online, there is no need to provide a physical copy of the certificate;
►Your driver's license. If your driver's license is not in the Chinese language, you should also provide a Chinese version of the license, which must be certified by a translation agency or notary agency;
►Three 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.
Any foreign national, Hong Kong, Macao or Taiwan resident who has not obtained a "Residence Permit for Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan Residents", individual over the age of 70 who has applied for and obtained a "Residence Permit for Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan Residents", or a Macao permanent resident holding a valid and full Macao driver's license for light vehicles (must be a category B one or a category B one restricted to light vehicles with automatic transmissions) or larger vehicle types can apply for a Chinese Mainland driver's license for small cars (C1 or C2) without taking a test. In this case, the applicant should submit his/her application at the Office of Motor Vehicle Administration located at 18 South 4th Ring East Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing. Other individuals should apply at the following locations:
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 90 days in one year, 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.
- Qualification Criteria
- Timeline and Fees
- Points for Attention
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 you have resided in France continuously or cumulatively for one year and obtained a driver's license during your stay, with permitted driving types on your license being AM, A1, A2, A, B, BE, C1, C1E, C, CE, D1, D1E, D, DE, and your license uses the harmonized European Union (EU) license model for French drivers introduced by EU on September 16, 2013 (excluding probationary driver's license, learner's license, and military driver's license), and you meet the application conditions outlined in the Regulations on the Application and Use of a Driver's License for Motor Vehicles of the Ministry of Public Security of the People's Republic of China, you are exempt from taking an examination. You can directly apply for a Chinese driver's license corresponding to the permitted driving types: C1, C2, D, E, and F.
If you have been residing in China for more than one year and possess a driver's license that allows for 14 permitted driving types, such as Serbian AM, A1, and others (excluding learner's license, provisional driver's license, and international driving permit), and you meet the application conditions specified in the Regulations on the Application and Use of a Driver's License for Motor Vehicles of the Ministry of Public Security of the People's Republic of China, you are exempt from taking a test. You can directly obtain a Chinese driver's license corresponding to the permitted driving types: C1, C2, D, E, and F. For Chinese mainland residents and residents of Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan of China, who hold Serbian driver's licenses, Serbia should be their permanent residence country when their driver's licenses are issued.
If you are a permanent resident of Macao Special Administrative Region of China and possess a valid Macao driver's license for light vehicles (Class B) or larger vehicle types, and you meet the age, physical, and other conditions required for applying for a Chinese mainland driver's license for the first time, and have completed the study of road traffic safety laws and regulations, you can apply for a driver's license for small vehicles (C1) without the need for a test. Similarly, if you hold a valid and full Macao driver's license for light vehicles (Class B restricted to light vehicles with automatic transmissions) or larger vehicle types than light vehicles, and meet the age and physical conditions required for applying for a driver's license for the first time, and have studied the laws and regulations on road traffic safety, you can apply for a driver's license for small vehicles with automatic transmission (C2) without taking a test.
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.
Definition of proof of identity
For residents of Hong Kong and Macao Special Administrative Regions, their identity document is the "Residence Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents" or the "Mainland Travel Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents" or the "Travel Document of the People's Republic of China" issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, along with the accommodation registration certificate issued by public security organs; For a Macao permanent resident holding a valid and full Macao driver's license for light vehicles (must be a category B one or a category B one restricted to light vehicles with automatic transmissions) or larger vehicle types, who wants to apply for a Chinese Mainland driver's license for small cars (C1 or C2) without taking a test, he/she shall submit his/her Macau Resident Identity Card;
The identity documents for the residents of Taiwan include the Residence Permits for Taiwan Residents, the Mainland Travel Permits for Taiwan Residents valid for five years and issued by public security organs, the People's Republic of China Travel Documents issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the residence registration certificates issued by public security organs;
The identity documents for Chinese citizens residing overseas include their passports of the People's Republic of China and the residence registration certificates issued by public security organs;
The identity documents for foreigners are their passports, other travel documents, valid visas allowing them to stay for at least three months, stay/residence permits, the residence registration certificates issued by public security organs, and the Foreign Permanent Resident ID Cards;
The identity documents for the personnel of foreign embassies, consulates, and representative offices of international organizations in China are the valid identity documents issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.