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Home » Reader question » Thailand question: Exchange Thai driving license in a country recognized by the EU?
Thailand question: Exchange Thai driving license in a country recognized by the EU?
Dear readers,
Is there a reader of Thailand blog who has experience in exchanging a Thai driving license in a country recognized by the EU? So that afterwards that driving license can be exchanged for an EU driving license.
Regards,
Frank
Editors: Do you have a question for the readers of Thailandblog? Use it contact form..
Dear Frank
Issuing a driver's license is a competence that independent states decide for themselves in all sovereignty.
The modalities of delivery (or refusal thereof) can at most be framed by international treaty agreements.
The regulations are therefore very complex and you must comply with the issuing conditions of the country for which you want to acquire the right to drive vehicles.
I would like to spare you an illusion: these procedures bear no resemblance to the customs of a swap meet, where you simply exchange one object for another.
Color
In Belgium, every Thai national who comes to Belgium for the first time with a residence permit, family reunification, has 6 months to exchange his driving license for a European driving licence.
…at least after taking the theoretical test, because that is the international rule when there is a trade-off
Dear Jan
That is not an exchange, as the Thai driver's license is retained.
What you actually mean is that the person in question can invoke international treaties that allow the holder of the Thai driving license to effectively grant the (European) government of the country where he intends to drive by providing a European driving licence.
However, this never concerns an exchange or exchange, but the delivery of a new document.
Color
Tried in UK.
I didn't succeed.
The fact that it didn't work out in the Netherlands doesn't surprise me in the slightest since obtaining a driver's license is very easy to get. Surely you cannot recognize that in several countries there is not much proposal, that is or was the reason that some countries it is possible to keep a list that does have that option.
That is separate from your driving behavior but is more a matter of the traffic rules being up to date in the Netherlands.
After I heard you can exchange it in Poland Hungary Italy and a few more countries that have a treaty about this with Thailand. So not the Netherlands!
Driving license issued outside the EU, EEA or Switzerland
Was the driving license issued by a country other than an EU or EEA country or Switzerland? Then you can drive it, if you come here for work or for vacation.
If you are going to live in the Netherlands, you may continue to drive with your driving license for another 185 days. After that you need a Dutch driver's license. You apply for a Dutch driving license at your municipality. For this you need to be registered in the Population Register of Persons (BRP).
https://www.rdw.nl/particulier/voertuigen/auto/het-rijbewijs/buitenlands-rijbewijs/buitenlands-rijbewijs-omwisselen
That was not possible years ago now.
My Thai wife also had to take an exam here in the Netherlands. Passed after 50 hours of lessons and a year of hard studying for the theoretical part.
The biggest problem was to unlearn the Thai driving style.
Frank, above are the answers to your question. If you asked the question because you want to drive in Europe with your Thai driver's license, I can reassure you. As far as I know, your Thai driver's license allows you to drive in Europe for a limited time.
I experienced this a few months ago when I forgot my Dutch driver's license when renting a car in France. They dug into the regulations and accepted my Thai driver's license. On the various websites I can only find situations that indicate that if you settle in the Netherlands, you can drive around with a foreign driving license for 185 days. The municipality of Hellendoorn says it more broadly in its website:
A foreign driving license is only valid temporarily in the Netherlands. How long you are allowed to drive in the Netherlands depends on the country where you obtained your driving licence. After that you need a Dutch driver's license. You can exchange your foreign driving license for a Dutch driving licence. Or you take the driving test again.
Do you have a driving license from outside the EU? You may use the driving license in the Netherlands for 185 days. You then exchange the driving license for a Dutch driving licence.
In my experience, as a driving instructor with a Thai woman, I can tell you that the Thai driver's license can only be used here for the first 6 months after settling in the municipality where she registers. When you come to the Netherlands for a first holiday with a Schengen visa, you can drive with it. If you have been registered here for more than 6 months, you will go through the usual procedure for a shorter period of time. Ie, take the theory exam and the practical exam. I can imagine that this also applies in other European countries.
Thai to Belgian driving license : https://mobilit.belgium.be/nl/wegverkeer/rijbewijzen/buitenlandse_rijbewijzen
“Non-European national driving licence
A non-European national driving license is a driving license that does not appear on the list of European national driving licenses drawn up by the European Commission.
You may drive on public roads in Belgium during a period of 185 days if you hold a valid, recognized non-European national driving licence.
Exchange non-European national driving licence
A non-European national driving license can be exchanged in the municipality for a Belgian national driving license if the following conditions are met:
– recognized
- valid
– acquired during a period when the holder was not registered in Belgium
– the nationality of the holder of the driving license and the driving license is the same
- authentic
List of countries issuing recognized non-European driving licences
See link above” … and Thailand is included.
Small, but certainly relevant caveat to this explanation:
This method is NOT an option for people with Thai nationality (the holder of and the issuing country of the “temporary” driving license must be identical (in this case Belgian).
I can also inform you that someone who was previously disqualified from driving following a court decision in Belgium, will also first have to meet the conditions imposed by that decision.
This procedure may only be applicable in a few exceptional cases. Eg someone born with dual Belgian/Thai nationality who in the past
lived in Thailand and obtained a driving license there and after moving to Belgium wants to convert it into a full European driving license, issued by Belgium.
Otherwise, I would advise all parents of Belgian youths who want to get their driver's license to just come and buy it here during a holiday (albeit applying for an O visa with a view to a Residence certification from Immigration).
Much cheaper, easier and even faster than in Belgium.
And immediately you immediately gave the apple of your eye an unforgettable holiday because of his / her finishing secondary school.
Color
Quote:
'Otherwise I would advise all parents of Belgian young people who want to get their driver's license to just come and buy it here during a holiday (albeit applying for an O visa with a view to a Residence certification from Immigration).
Much cheaper, easier and even faster than in Belgium.
And immediately you immediately gave the apple of your eye an unforgettable holiday because of his / her finishing secondary school.
Cor'
Such advice is totally useless because it is not that simple. That son or daughter must in the first place already be deregistered in Belgium, which is during a .holiday. is not done. You talk about “buying a driver's license”: therefore illegal.
Will Cor, with his back gate advice, also take responsibility if his son or daughter, if they succeed in obtaining a Belgian or European driving license without any knowledge of the road code or driving experience, causes a serious accident in Belgium afterwards? No, then Cor will know nothing.
No one really benefits from such advice.