Thai Driving License renewal 2019 to 2025

[buksida]

Just been through the process of renewing a 5-year driving license for a car and it is more convoluted than before. (This is for Bangsaphan, so things may differ in Pranburi).

You cannot just rock up and now have to make an appointment. To do this you need to download the DLT app and start the fight with Thai technology. It took several attempts to register and input the necessary info to get an appointment - the waiting list was 2 months where we are so did this back in January. The app is in Thai with some English parts, I used the pink ID card to register.

Then you have to watch an hour-long video and answer a couple of questions within the app. The video is all in Thai but there are subtitles, which are too small to read on a standard phone. I left the thing running in the background without paying much attention to it and took a stab at the answers, which are all the common sense ones so got them right.

Showed up on the day and was asked for this:
Old license
Passport + copy of visa page and details page
Pink ID card + copy in colour
Yellow book or address letter from immigration
Medical certificate
Screenshot from the QR code you get after completing the video on the app

You're given a laminated card with a number and told to go upstairs where a very serious woman was giving a lecture and lining people up in military fashion. Those doing the full test went first and we were at the back of the queue. The first test is colour blindness which they now do with a set of traffic lights instead of the dot test. Then you do the reaction test with the braking pedals. Signing more forms then downs stairs to play musical chairs in the next military-style charade to get the photo done. New license issued at a cost of 515 baht, total time in the office 1 hour.

Now have to do the whole lot again for the Motocy license.

[joelle]

Just been through the process of renewing a 5-year driving license for a car and it is more convoluted than before. (This is for Bangsaphan, so things may differ in Pranburi).

You cannot just rock up and now have to make an appointment. To do this you need to download the DLT app and start the fight with Thai technology. It took several attempts to register and input the necessary info to get an appointment - the waiting list was 2 months where we are so did this back in January. The app is in Thai with some English parts, I used the pink ID card to register.

Then you have to watch an hour-long video and answer a couple of questions within the app. The video is all in Thai but there are subtitles, which are too small to read on a standard phone. I left the thing running in the background without paying much attention to it and took a stab at the answers, which are all the common sense ones so got them right.

Showed up on the day and was asked for this:
Old license
Passport + copy of visa page and details page
Pink ID card + copy in colour
Yellow book or address letter from immigration
Medical certificate
Screenshot from the QR code you get after completing the video on the app

You're given a laminated card with a number and told to go upstairs where a very serious woman was giving a lecture and lining people up in military fashion. Those doing the full test went first and we were at the back of the queue. The first test is colour blindness which they now do with a set of traffic lights instead of the dot test. Then you do the reaction test with the braking pedals. Signing more forms then downs stairs to play musical chairs in the next military-style charade to get the photo done. New license issued at a cost of 515 baht, total time in the office 1 hour.

Now have to do the whole lot again for the Motocy license.

Why didn't you do it at the same time?

[Jack_Batty]

Just been through the process of renewing a 5-year driving license for a car and it is more convoluted than before. (This is for Bangsaphan, so things may differ in Pranburi).

You cannot just rock up and now have to make an appointment. To do this you need to download the DLT app and start the fight with Thai technology. It took several attempts to register and input the necessary info to get an appointment - the waiting list was 2 months where we are so did this back in January. The app is in Thai with some English parts, I used the pink ID card to register.

Then you have to watch an hour-long video and answer a couple of questions within the app. The video is all in Thai but there are subtitles, which are too small to read on a standard phone. I left the thing running in the background without paying much attention to it and took a stab at the answers, which are all the common sense ones so got them right.

Showed up on the day and was asked for this:
Old license
Passport + copy of visa page and details page
Pink ID card + copy in colour
Yellow book or address letter from immigration
Medical certificate
Screenshot from the QR code you get after completing the video on the app

You're given a laminated card with a number and told to go upstairs where a very serious woman was giving a lecture and lining people up in military fashion. Those doing the full test went first and we were at the back of the queue. The first test is colour blindness which they now do with a set of traffic lights instead of the dot test. Then you do the reaction test with the braking pedals. Signing more forms then downs stairs to play musical chairs in the next military-style charade to get the photo done. New license issued at a cost of 515 baht, total time in the office 1 hour.

Now have to do the whole lot again for the Motocy license.

I did mine in Pranburi back in January. Got the motorcycle and car done on the same day. Your process sounded much more strict. The color blind test was still the dots, and I just walked in. I did download the app and watch the hour-long video, but I couldn’t enter an ID number in the app that allowed me to make an appointment, so I just walked in. There was no problem. Glad to not have to go through that again for another five and half years.

[Geko]

Anyone renewed a Thai Driving Licence in the past few month, if so what is the procedure mine is due soon, got the last one done in Pranburi office was valid for five years.

[PET]

If you read some recent postings there is plenty of info for you under Driving license renewal

[buksida]

Why didn't you do it at the same time?

Because they don't expire at the same time.

Also enquired about the new 'big bike' license but got blank looks so gave up on that.

[joelle]

Why didn't you do it at the same time?

Because they don't expire at the same time.

Also enquired about the new 'big bike' license but got blank looks so gave up on that.

Ok, thanks for the answer, btw I didn't mean to pry
Have an enjoyable day

[buksida]

No probs, it would be very handy to do them together but they're a year apart. Would also be handy to have all licenses on one - but Thailand loves to complicate things!

[HHTel]

Bringing those licences together:

A licence is renewed for 5 years from you next birthday. Therefore do one licence early and the other one late. That should bring them both together.

Or is that an oversimplification?

[buksida]

Can you do them six months after or before expiry date? Guess I should have asked that at the time!

[HHTel]

You can certainly do a renewal 6 months after expiry but not sure about renewing early.

You can renew your Thai license up to three months before the expiration of your current one. If your license has expired by more than one year, you must retake the written theory test and achieve a score of at least 90.Mar 20, 2565 BE

So you could be late 9 months on one and 3 months early on the other.

[lindosfan1]

You can certainly do a renewal 6 months after expiry but not sure about renewing early.

You can renew your Thai license up to three months before the expiration of your current one. If your license has expired by more than one year, you must retake the written theory test and achieve a score of at least 90.Mar 20, 2565 BE

So you could be late 9 months on one and 3 months early on the other.

That could confuse the Thais, you would probably have to do 2 tests on the same day

[hhinner]

Doesn't mean that you can legally drive with an expired licence though.

[HHTel]

Actually you're correct. Although you have a year to renew, it is illegal to drive with an expired licence. It was okay during the pandemic when expired licences were automatically valid until Dec 31st 2021.

There has been a proposal to increase the fines:

At present, driving without a licence carries a maximum penalty of 1,000 baht and/or one month in jail.

Motorists face a maximum fine of 2,000 baht if they drive when their licence has expired, been seized or withdrawn from use.

Not sure if the proposed increases were ever made law. It was proposed to increase the fine 50 fold!

So what I've said earlier is now 'out of the window'.

[buksida]

I might ask for a 4-year motorbike license so they match up - that'll confuse the shit out of them!