If you come to the Philippines for a vacation, did you know that you can drive without need of obtaining a Philippine Driver’s License? It’s true. As long as you have a license from your home country, you may drive here using that license. That, however, is only good for 90 days from the time you enter the country. If you intend to stay longer than 90 days, and intend to drive after that 90 day “grace period” then you will need to obtain a Philippine Driver’s License.
So, if you have decided that you need to (or want to) get a Philippine Driver’s License, what steps should you follow? Let’s have a look:
- You need to first go to the LTO (Land Transportation Office) in the City where you will be applying for your license. By the way, like when you visit the Bureau of Immigration, you should wear long pants (not shorts) when you go to the LTO.
- When you go to the LTO, you should bring the following items:
- Your original driver’s license from your home country.
- Your original passport.
- A good photocopy of your driver’s license.
- A good photocopy of the photo page of your passport.
- A good photocopy of the Philippine entry stamp for your latest entry to the Philippines in your passport.
- A good photocopy of your latest visa extension stamp in your passport (if applicable).
- A report from your LTO approved medical exam (the medical exam will cost you around P100).
- A report from your LTO approved drug test (the drug test will cost you around P150).
When you go to the LTO with these items, you will have to wait, generally between 1 hour and 8 hours. All of your original documents will be compared against the photocopies to ensure the accuracy of the photocopies. Once that is checked out, the originals will be returned to you.
Next, you will have a photo taken for the driver’s license.
You will pay a fee of just over P300, and then you will be given your license. If you are applying in a small town, they will give you a paper receipt for the license, and the actual laminated license will be sent from Manila. This can take anywhere from 3 months to a year for you to receive it. The paper receipt will serve as your temporary driver’s license while you are waiting for the actual license to arrive.
For the medical exam and the drug test, as you see listed above, these services are generally available at small booths located just outside the LTO office. They are quick, easy, and painless! For the medical exam, they will generally take your blood pressure, ask you a few questions, and give you the results form. For the drug test, you will be required to urinate in a cup, it will be analyzed, and you will be on your way in only a few minutes. In my experience, the medical and drug tests are accomplished at the same office.
Now, your next challenge is to learn how to drive in the Philippines. It’s not quite the same as back home!
Very Informative Bob, and you already told us about how to drive "Dont have a collision and give way to larger vehicles" and if anything comes in your direction, move to the right, does that cover it Bob ?
Thanks for the information on the Philippine driver's license. I have printed this out and stored it in my "things to know" file that I will be taking with me when I head over in August.
Yes, driving in the Philippines is "Walang ganyan sa States". I have driven in Samar and that was not too bad, other than terrible roads. I have also driven the NLE (Northern Luzon Expressway) and that was fine. However, there is no way I am ready to try driving in Manila or in Angeles City. It is nuts. The only traffic rules are that there are no rules.
Bob you did not mention however that you need to carry your passport while driving on the 90 day exemption. The passport verifys your length of time in the Philippines for that particular trip. Ron
Hi Bob,
Useful information about the license, here in the UK there are other considerations.
1. Cars needs to be insured, minimum third party cover but can be comprehensive.
2.Also we pay road tax each year as well, a disk being attached to the windscreen.
3. The cars are checked to see if they are roadworthy [ MOT test ] each year for cars more than 3 years old
What is the situation in the Philippines for insurance etc. ?
Thanks,
Scott
Hi Gary – Ha ha… there indeed IS one traffic rule that you should always observe. He who is bigger has the right of way! Do that, and you'll always come out OK!
Hi Ron – technically, you are correct. If you don't live here on a permanent visa you are always supposed to have your passport with you.
Hi Scott – Yes, you must have insurance on your car. When you get your license plate renewal every year, there is a minimal insurance which is included with that. It is a bare minimum, though! You will want to get more.
I don't plan on driving, but the bit about wearing long pants into Immigration and LTO kinda caught me off guard. Since Immigration will probably be one of my first stops after I arrive, that is good to know.
Hi Elisa – any kind of government office will require that you wear long pants. Also, if you go anywhere that is even semi-nice I advise against wearing shorts. If you happen to go to any Muslim areas, shorts should not be worn too.
Hi Pete – as far as I can remember, that's about it! But, I will post anything new that comes to mind!
Bob,
Is the Philippine Drivers license good for driving a motorcycle and mo-peds or just for a car?
Hi Kevin – When you apply for the Philippine Driver's License, you will need to indicate that you plan to use it for motorcycle use, and then you will be given an endorsement for motorcycle use. If you don't get the motorcycle endorsement, you will only be able to drive cars.
Hi bob. I don't have a car as the restrictions are very difficult in British Columbia, Canada. I would like to be able to ride a motor cycle or moped when i arrive in Cebu in January 08. Is there a certain size limit i can drive with out needing a license….and if i don't have a license back home…can i get one in the philippines?
ps. love the blog. it's been very helpful.
I don’t have a car
err.
I don’t have a "license"
Hi J0rd – If you don't have a driver's license at all, you will need to get a Philippine license if you are going to drive a motorcycle of any size on the streets here. Any size of bike will require a license. You can get a license here, as long as you can pass the test.
Good luck!
😀 I have teased my wife by suggesting that a vehicle safety inspection in the Philippines is to check to see if the horn is working! She laughed at my suprise for being honked at when I was at a stop sign looking for an opening in traffic. Hmm she says I am the impatient one!
Hi Tom Ramberg – 😆
So they care if you wear long pants, are drug free, and in good health but they don't care if you know the traffic rules or can actually drive?
Bob: I was shopping for a car a couple of weeks ago and most of the dealers lumped an insurance package in with the car financing. (3 years comprehensive). More for their own protection, I think, but it certainly was a "hassle free" way to buy car insurance.
Hi Dan Mihaliak – At least they have their priorities right! 😆
Hi John Miele – When I purchased a car, my experience was exactly the same!
Good piece Bob, corresponds exactly with my experience getting my Philippine license last year.
I asked for a motorcycle endorsement and was told sine there is not a motorcycle endorsement on your US license you don't get one on your Philippine license. YMMV
BTW, do not waste money on those International Driver's Licenses. They are not needed in the Philippines.
Hi Dave Starr – Thanks Dave. Yes, I totally agree on the International Driver's License… it's nothing but a piece of paper! Total waste. Just a way to separate you from some of your money!
When I had my medical check I thought I was going for a blood test and as I knew it could be a long queue I made sure I had emptied my bladder before I left home.
So on arrival at the LTO imagine my horror when I was asked to produce an urine sample and I was rushed to the front of he queue too. So there I was in a broken toilet with human waste on the floor and the terrible stench and a broken toilet door with people outside queuing to get in. AND I COULD NOT WHIZZ.
No matter how I tried nothing happened, so after five minutes of straining and people banging the door I left he cubicle and drank about a litre of water to help nature. NOTHING!! ONE HOUR LATER NOTHING!!!
I apologised and said I would come back in the PM and went home and had a whizz in a plastic bottle, went back to LTO and swapped the bottles and produced the bottle with pride to the lady at the PAYMENT counter.
Within 5 MINS my sample had been cleared for drugs and my licence was being printed!!
Some sceptics would think this was just a money maker and I hear LTO is considering changing its rules soon. SO WATCH THIS SPACE.
Hi john – Great story, John! Ha ha… Did they know that you had done it at home? It would surprise me if they would accept that if they know. 😆
Hi Bob
All this talk of urine samples reminded me of a story. I hope you don't mind if share it.
An 85-year-old man was requested by his doctor to give a urine sample as part of his physical exam. The doctor gave the man a jar and said, "Take this jar home and bring back a urine sample tomorrow."
The next day the 85-year-old man reappeared at the doctor's office and gave him the jar, which was as clean and empty as it was on the previous day.
The doctor asked what happened and the man explained, "Well, doc, it's like this – first I tried by holding it in my right hand, but nothing. Then I tried with my left hand, but still nothing. Then I asked my wife for help. She tried by holding it in her right hand, then with her left, still nothing. We even called up Arlene, the lady next door and she tried too, first by holding it with both hands, then she put it under her armpit, and she even tried squeezing' it between her knees , but still nothing.
The doctor was shocked! "You asked your neighbor?"
The old man replied, "Yep, none of us could get that darn jar open
Hi Jack – I was starting to wonder about that neighbor! Getting the jar open can indeed be a problem! 😆
Doesn't the foreign license need to be an international license for you to be allowed to use that for a 90 days period.
I had a local Danish license which I easily converted to a Filipino license, it took me one hour – in short pants – at the LTO office in Quezon City 🙂
Maayong buntag Bob
I can imagine a driving test in the RP
1. Were is the horn
2. How do you honk the horn
Get these correct and you can drive in the RP
😉
bob,how long is the linense good for?
Hi Bob, Just curious. In #6 above Elisa asked about long pants. Does this rule about long pants in government offices apply to women as well as men, or is there a different requirement for women i.e. a dress?
Hi Ole – An "International License" is nothing but a piece of paper that people will sell you. It means nothing, so I recommend that you avoid it. Your driver's license from your home country is good for 90 days when you come to the Philippines.
Hi Larry – That's pretty close! 😆
Hi jerry smith – It is good for 4 years. Your first license, though, generally is good the same length of time left on your foreign license.
Hi John in Austria – The rules differ from office to office, and city to city. Generally, the dress code for ladies is a little looser than for men. However, they should wear something "respectable" if they expect to gain admittance.
Jerry no need to worry bout how long lic. good for….by the time you get it inthe mail it will already be expired !!!!!
Hi brian – Here in Davao, and in other larger Cities around the Philippines, they make your license while you wait. It only takes a few minutes after you complete the application until the license is printed out and in your wallet! When I first moved here it took months for the plastic license to arrive, now it is just a few minutes!
From what I have seen at the Bureau of Immigration (the only offices I have visited who make an issue about dress … in my experience) a normal top and skirt are fine for the ladies. I went to Angles with my SIL (An American citizen now, she never re-acquired) and her friend Geri, a "US only" lady. Geri needed an existention of her tourist visa and she was a little miffed to begin with, so hearing this long pants business she wore long slacks and closed-toe shoes. Angelica, the sister, as I recall was in slacks also, but much more feminine loking outfit overall and dressy sandals (not shower clogs). No one said a word to either of them. While our business was being done an older Filipino man came to the door of the office in a scrungy pair of shorts, sando (sleeveless t-shirt) and flip-flops. He was turned away by the guard (and had a few choice words for the guard as well) and Angie said she heard him moblwe something about coming back in one of his tribal skirt costumes, to which the guard replied, "Fine, go change".
During the recent State of the Nation (SONA) address (equivalent to the US State of the Union) which the president gave to the combined houses of Congress, one of the congressmen from The Mountain Province came in a headdress and loincloth … and a pretty damn skimpy loincloth at that. He was allowed to join the process to their seats with the other Congressmen and no one had much to say.
When I went to the main office of the LTO, (East Ave in Quezon City) there were no other foreigners there, about 20 or so Filipinos, some with long pants, some in shorts and some in skirts. I wore long pants but no one had much to say.
For an Foreigner, though, I think I'd stick with slacks. Look at it this way, man or woman. You're going to be on an airplane, often drafty and with uneven temperatures for hours, both ways, so it hardly seems a hardship to bring one pair of semi-dress slack by wearing them, here an back.
A little addition to the mix here. If the home country license is _not_ in English the LTO may send you to your embassy for an official translation. Many licenses are already multi-lingual (a Turkish freind on my street had no trouble getting his Philippine License, because it was in bot6 Turkish and English) but if you have one that is non-English only get a translation before you bother to go.
OK, one more PPS. Even if you do not inbtend to get a car or drive here, if you8 are her4e for more than a one-time casual visit I recommend you get a Philippine driver's license. It is a great for of identification when you want to do somehting like get a telephone in your house or something else which needs a local ID. It's a bit presumptuous to expec6t Philippine businesses to take your passport or your US driver's l;license as ID, becuase, … well .. they aren't local … and if someone reneges on a bill they can't very well try to extradite them from the US. The driver's license is good for 3 years, costs only about 302 pesos and could come in handy in mnay ways.
Hi Dave Starr – For me, any kind of long pants are OK. Blue jeans are readily accepted here as "OK" attire. Slacks are better, but even jeans are generally acceptable.
Hi Dave Starr – good idea on the translation.
Hi Dave Starr – I agree, getting a local id is important if you want to live here. If you don't need or want a driver's license, the Post Office offers a "postal id" that is universally accepted in the Philippines too.
Hmmm that just shows the differences between offices of the same organization. My local post office will not issue me a Postal ID until I have a permanent residency visa …when I get something at the post office I have to take "daddy" … Mita's dad … along, he's the only one in the family who actually has a postal ID … go figure. I've also heard of some LTO offices refusing to issues licenses to those on tourist visas, while others (and the LTO headquarters office in QC) routinely issue to anyone in any legal status.
As the old saying goes, YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary).
Clean jeans are certainly 'semi-dress' to me. I just was thinking of the painters pants complete with paint stains and other smelly things I have seen on recent flights. There's a TV show here called "Executive Class" which goes around Asia visiting all the top hotels and restaurants and the host's standard 'uniform' is a dressy shirt and designer jeans. He's skinnny enough to wear the kind I can't, but hey, jeans are jeans, pretty much.
Hi Dave Starr – Since I have a permanent visa, I tend to think along those lines. I am not certain if you can get a Postal ID as a tourist in my area or not…
Hi Dave Starr – I enjoy watching "Executive Class" – it is a good show. Jeans are a good way to go, IMHO.
Hi Bob!
My boyfriend is a Canadian and we wanted to enjoy the fun of riding a motorcycle we would buy here in the Philippines (sometime Jan 2009). He has a valid Canadian driver's license for cars. My questions:
1. Is his Canadian driver's license (for cars) is enough requirement for him to drive a motorcycle for 2 months period here in the Philippines?
2. If there is a need for him to apply for a Driver's license (for motorcycle), how long will it take to process in LTO? Do you have any idea how much it cost? What would be the requirements?
I would appreciate a reply. Thanks so much! Enjoy Davao!
Monik
Hi Monik- No worries about getting a reply. I respond to every comment on my articles.
If your boyfriend wants to ride a motorcycle, he needs a motorcycle license. He can apply for that at the LTO.
How long will it take? It depends on how busy they are when he goes there. I would say a half day minimum, maybe up to a full day.
Has your boyfriend ever been here before? Personally, if this is his first visit, I would not encourage him to ride a motorcycle here. Traffic works a lot different here than it does in Canada, and I don't think it is very safe for him to ride a motorcycle on his first trip here.
Thanks for the answer Bob , and that was fast …you just answered my girlfriends ( monik ) question about the liscence so thank you so much !
Yes i've been in the country 4 times now , and i know about getting hit by buses and having a hand on the horn at all times with no flashers going in the wrong direction without wearing a helmet …but i need the freedom of having my own ride ..
Another question about the liscence …do i just pay for it ..or i have to sit down and pass a test ( or questionnaire ) ..
Again thanks for the quick reply ,
Have a nice day from our first snow this morning in Quebec Canada
Hi Discoheat- OK, good luck on the motorcycle. If you do not currently have a motorcycle endorsement on your license in Canada, you will indeed have to take a test to get it here. If you have a Canadian license they will generally give you a Philippine license without any further test, but they will not give you endorsements that you do not currently have.
Sir,
I just want to ask if there’s any chance that i can apply Philippines Driver’s License when I’m out of the country? I’m here now in Dubai, working. and I need a Driver’s License. You think Is it possible to get one? And how the process for that?
Thanks Sir
You cannot apply for a Philippine Driver’s License anywhere but in the Philippines.
Thanks for that Bob.. I’m currently in Qatar. will travel soon back home to get the license
Sir,
I want to ask, my husband doesnt have philippine drivers license. He learned to drive here in Qatar and he is now holding a Qatar Drivers License. We applied for International Drivers License because we are going home for vacation next month. Can he use this International drivers license in Manila? OR he still needs to apply for Philippine drivers license?
Thanks
To be honest, International Driver’s licenses are a farce, just a way for organizations to make money. If you will be here for less than 90 days, your husband can legally drive here with his Qatar license. If you will be here for more than 90 days, he must obtain a Philippine Driver’s license.
hi bob, what if i don’t have license to drave car in my country do i need to pass a motocycle permit to drive in philippine or is or in philippines with car license we can drave motorcycle too? is what i want just to drive motorcycle there:)
thanks!
Hi Steph – To drive a motorcycle, you do need to get a special waiver on your license for that.
ok but its valid only 90 days? so is it easy to get licence there can i take it in english? or can i just pay and get it right away? 😉
sorry for the double post reply, i thought it didnt work the first time ..
ah ok, but its valid only 90 days ? so is it easy to get my license there can i do it in english? or can i just find a way to pay and get it faster 😉 thx
Hi.. I accidentally left my Australian driver’s licence behind when I came this trip.. usually not a problem, but my girl has bought a car just recently.. I do have a colour scan of my licence though.. and wondering if that’s enough to drive with?
A friend suggested going to the local cop shop and reporting the licence as stolen.. and can then drive with the scanned copy..
ANy advice please?
You cannot legally drive on just a scan of a driver license.
Hi. Good info.
So then Im the worst case scenario. Im from Quebec. French driver licence not motorcycle endorsed…. hurray…. so im better to take the philippino motorcycle class well the philipino whaterver required class if I want to ride a bike…. are there also restrictions on hp? And I loose a month. What pisses me is thay other provinces I could have my mcdl free of assle…. any suggestions… do they offer online… so i get it when i arrive?
No, you can’t do it online, you will have to wait until you are here and do it in person.
Hi Bob, I really enjoyed your articles, and I’m so glad you like Davao. BTW, I was born in Davao with both Filipino parents and now I live here in California ( the city of Lathrop ). My dual citizenship is currently under process and hopefully be there maybe by next year. I am planning to see you when I get there if you don’t mind, I’m just so proud of what you’re doing out there in Davao. So, keep up the good work and be safe, may God bless you always, see you soon Bob.
Hi Ray – Thank you very much for your nice comment! I really appreciate it. Good luck with your Dual Citizenship, I hope it comes through quickly.
I would be very happy to meet you when you are in Davao! Just give me a shout when you are in town. You can e-mail me, or my cell number is always listed in our “contact us” page.
i have australian drivers lic and motorctcle lic cn i use both in philippines fhank you
Hi Ken – Philippine law allows you to use that for a period not exceeding 90 days. In some cities (including Davao where I live) they do not allow you to use a foreign license for that long, they expect you to get a Philippine license within a few days of your arrival, and they can legally require that.
So, your answer is that you can’t use an AU license longer than 90 days, and in come cases you can’t use it longer than a few days, it just depends on where exactly you are going, and the local policy.
one question since i do not have a drivers license what all dose the driving test in the philippines consist of ?