The Application of Provisional Driving Permit

english.beijing.gov.cn

Foreign vehicle drivers who stay in China for a short period of time, with this period of stay of no more than three months in the territory of the People's Republic of China, can apply for provisional driving permit valid for 3 months. If they stay for more than 3 months, the validity period of the provisional driving permit shall be consistent with the permitted period of stay, but shall not exceed 1 year.


1. The entry and exit identification of applicants;

A. The entry and exit identification for the residents from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan refers to the Mainland Residence Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents and the Mainland Travel Permit for Taiwan Residents, or the Travel Permit of the People's Republic of China issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs;

B. The entry and exit identification for overseas Chinese refers to the Passport of the People's Republic of China;

C. The entry and exit identification for foreigners refers to their passport or other valid entry-exit documents, valid visa, stay permit or residence permit they hold upon their entry into China. For those foreigners exempt from visa, their entry and exit identification refers to their passport or other valid entry and exit documents that they hold upon their entry into China.

"Permitted period of stay" refers to the period of stay endorsed on the entry and exit POI of temporary inbound personnel.  

D. Residents of Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan who hold the Mainland Residence Permit for Hong Kong and Macao Residents or Mainland Residence Permit for Taiwan Residents and apply for provisional driving permit are exempt from submitting the entry and exit identification.

2. The foreign driving license applicants are currently holding (must be translated into Chinese);

3. The relevant physical condition certificate issued by a medical institution at or above the county level designated by the Beijing Municipal Health Commission or the medical institutions at or above the regiment level designated by the the Chinese People's Liberation Army and the Chinese People's Armed Police Force. Temporary inbound personnel applying for the provisional driving licenses for light motor vehicles and motorcycles are exempt from submitting the physical condition certificate;

4. Temporary inbound personnel who are participating in organized competitions and other social activities shall also submit the certificates issued by the relevant competent departments of China;

5. Applicants who operate overseas self-contained temporary inbound motor vehicles shall also submit the vehicle license plates and driving permit of their own temporary inbound motor vehicles;

6. If a travel agency organizes foreigners to travel in China with their own motor vehicles, the documents that meet the requirements of permission to drive in China shall be submitted;

7. Two 1-inch, bareheaded, half-length and front-facing photos against a white background. The photos have to be taken recently.


1. Steps:

A. Acceptance of applications and the review of application materials;

B. Collecting the application materials and including them into the system once they are verified as meeting relevant requirements;

C. Issuing provisional driving permit.  

2. Address:

A. The Office of Vehicle Management of Beijing Municipal Traffic Management Bureau or one of its branches;

B. The Vehicle Management Station on the 1st Floor Beijing Capital International Airport Terminal 3, and the Vehicle Management Station of Beijing Daxing International Airport.

3. Office Hours:

Weekdays: 08:30-18:00; Weekends: 09:00-16:00 (except for statutory holidays)

4. Time Limit:

Within 3 working days from the date of the application‘s acceptance

5. Fees:

10 CNY per provisional driving permit.

6. Service Hotline:

+86-10-12122

1. Drivers operating their self-contained temporary inbound motor vehicles on the roads in China shall apply for provisional driving permit in the traffic management department of the public security organ in the municipalities, or the cities with different districts where the places of entry or departure are located;

2. Temporary inbound drivers operating vehicles leased in China shall apply for provisional driving permit in the traffic management department of the public security organ in the municipalities or in the cities with different districts where the motor vehicle leasing units are located;

3. The physical condition and age of applicants shall meet the following requirements when applying for Chinese driving permit:

Requirements for physical conditions:

A. Height: The applicants who apply for the operation of large buses, tractor-trailers, city buses, large trucks, and trolleybuses shall be over 155 cm tall. The height of those who apply for the operation of medium-sized buses shall be at least 150 cm tall;

B. Visual acuity: For those who apply for the operation of city buses, large trucks, trolleybuses or trams, the naked or corrected vision of both eyes shall be at Grade 5.0 or above on the standard logarithmic visual acuity chart. For those who apply for other permitted vehicle types, the naked or corrected visual acuity of both eyes shall be at Grade 4.9 or above on the standard logarithmic visual acuity chart. For drivers with monocular visual impairment, if the naked vision or corrected vision of the eyes without visual impairment is at Grade 5.0 or above on the standard logarithmic visual acuity chart, and the horizontal field of view reaches 150 degrees, they can apply for driving permit for the operation of small cars, small automatic cars, low-speed trucks, three-wheeled cars, and small automatic cars for the disabled;

C. Chromatic discrimination: No red-green blindness;

D. Hearing: Both ears of applicants can distinguish the direction of the sound source when applicants are 50 cm away from the tuning fork. Those who are hearing impaired but can meet the aforementioned requirement by wearing hearing aids can apply for driving licenses for the operation of small cars and small automatic cars;

E. Upper limbs: The thumbs of both hands shall have no functional impairment. Among the other fingers of each hand, three fingers shall be have no functional impairment. Additionally, limbs and fingers shall have a normal range of motion. However, those with incomplete distal segments of fingers or three sound fingers on their left hands, and have complete palms on both hands can apply for the driving licenses for the operation of small cars, small automatic cars, low-speed trucks, and three-wheeled cars;

F. Lower limbs: Both lower limbs shall be have no functional impairment and have a normal range of motion, and their length difference shall be no greater than 5 cm. However, drivers whose left lower limbs are missing or unable to move can apply for the driving licenses for the operation of small automatic cars;

G. Trunk and neck: no impairment in movement;

H. Drivers whose right lower limbs or both lower limbs are lost or unable to move but can still allow them to sit and stand on their own, and whose upper limbs meet the requirements stipulated in the 5th requirement on upper limbs, can apply for the driving licenses for the operation of small automatic cars for the disabled. Drivers who have lost one of their palms but still have normal functioning thumbs on the other hand as well as two normally functioning fingers among the other fingers, whose upper limbs and fingers have a normal range of motion, and whose lower limbs meet the 6th requirement on lower limbs, can apply for driving licenses for the operation of small automatic cars for the disabled.

Requirements for age:

A. Those who apply for the operation of small cars, small automatic cars, and mopeds shall be above 18 years old and under 70 years old;

B. Those who apply for the operation of low-speed trucks, three-wheeled cars, ordinary three-wheeled motorcycles, ordinary two-wheeled motorcycles or wheeled self-propelled mechanical vehicles shall be above 18 years old and under 60 years old;

C. Those who apply for the operation of city buses, medium-sized buses, large trucks, trolleybuses or trams, shall be above 21 years old and under 50 years old;

D. Those who apply for the operation of tractor-trailers shall be above 24 years old and under 50 years old;

E. Those who apply for the operation of large buses shall be above 26 years old and under 50 years old.

The situations where applications for provisional driving permit will not be accepted:

A. Those who suffer from diseases that hinder road driving safety such as organic heart disease, epilepsy, Meniere's syndrome, vertigo, hysteria, tremor paralysis, mental disorders, dementia, and neurological diseases that affect the movement of limbs;

B. Those who have been addicted to taking or injecting drugs, or have a long history of using dependent psychotropic drugs and have not abandoned such addictions;

C. The certificates and proofs submitted by the applicants are invalid;

D. The applicants fail to meet the application requirements prescribed by Chinese laws and regulations;

E. There are unresolved road traffic violations or traffic accidents on the applicants' previous entry records;

F. The applicants have a hit-and-run record in China;

G. Other situations stipulated by laws and administrative regulations.

4. Permitted vehicle types to apply:

Applicants can apply for the vehicle types that match the permitted vehicle types stated on the driving licenses issued in their home countries, and at the same time shall comply with the following regulations:

A. For those who drive their own temporary inbound motor vehicles, the permitted vehicle types of the provisional driving permits they apply for shall also be consistent with the types of their own motor vehicles;

B. For those who drive vehicles leased in China, the permitted types of provisional driving permit they apply for shall be small cars (C1) and small automatic cars (C2).

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