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crazylemongirl
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Location: almost there...
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 Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 8:48 pm Post subject: Getting a Korean Driver's Licence |
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Merecdes Benz is giving me one of their cars for a weekend. However to qualify for insurance I need to have a Korean drivers' licence.
I have a valid New Zealand drivers' licence. Anyone had any experience? |
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ChuckECheese
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 9:29 pm Post subject: |
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| Do New Zealanders drive on the wrong side of the road (like England)? If not, you won't have any problem getting your license. Just find the Department of Motor Vehicle nearest you and get it exchanged to a Korean license. You'll have to fill out a form and pay a small fee. Take several best looking pictures and ARC/Passport with you. No tests are involved. |
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crazylemongirl
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Location: almost there...
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| Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 9:32 pm Post subject: |
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| ChuckECheese wrote: |
| Do New Zealanders drive on the wrong side of the road (like England)? If not, you won't have any problem getting your license. Just find the Department of Motor Vehicle nearest you and get it exchanged to a Korean license. You'll have to fill out a form and pay a small fee. Take several best looking pictures and ARC/Passport with you. No tests are involved. |
yup we be POM (propert of Motherengland) so we drive on the left side of the road. |
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ChuckECheese
Joined: 20 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 9:41 pm Post subject: |
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| crazylemongirl wrote: |
| ChuckECheese wrote: |
| Do New Zealanders drive on the wrong side of the road (like England)? If not, you won't have any problem getting your license. Just find the Department of Motor Vehicle nearest you and get it exchanged to a Korean license. You'll have to fill out a form and pay a small fee. Take several best looking pictures and ARC/Passport with you. No tests are involved. |
yup we be POM (propert of Motherengland) so we drive on the left side of the road. |
In that case, I don't know what to say. I heard from my Korean friend that if your country drives on the wrong side of the road, you might be subject to tests. However, he wasn't really sure.
I'm from the U.S. But you should contact the office and get more detailed info. Here is their link in English.
http://www.dla.go.kr/eng/Html_index.jsp?content=/eng/foreign/foreign.jsp&left=/eng/menu/left_foreign.jsp&topFlag=5
Good luck! |
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Old fat expat
Joined: 19 Sep 2005
Location: a caravan of dust, making for a windy prairie
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| Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 9:58 pm Post subject: |
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Just got my license a month ago. I had to hand in my NZ license. Other things you will need to do:
Send an e-mail to the NZDMV to get confirmation that your license is current and not fraudulent. You will have to provide your license number and a scan of your passport.
Send the confirmation to the NZ Embassy in Seoul for them to sign-off on.
Take the forms to the local license place with 3 passport sized photos and money (off hand I think it was 40,000-50,000w; but there is a fee for this and a fee for that etc etc).
You will also have to sit a written test on a computer and get 60% correct. Mostly common sense stuff.
Then you will be introduced to some of the most bizarre driving behaviors you have ever experienced. You will be surprised at how often you find yourself muttering WTF??? I would NOT drive a Merc without insurance here, especially if most of your driving has been on the left. I'm a Kiwi but most of my driving has been in the States-even still my skills are pushed.
There will be some who got their license some time ago that did not go through all this. It is a requirement that is about 2-3 months old.
Hope this helps. Good luck. |
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crazylemongirl
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Location: almost there...
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| Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 10:28 pm Post subject: |
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Thanks Mr Expat!
And yes, there is no way I would drive a merc without insurance... actually I'm a little nervous about driving it! |
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xtchr
Joined: 23 Nov 2004
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| Posted: Sun Oct 01, 2006 11:54 pm Post subject: |
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| Old fat expat wrote: |
Just got my license a month ago. I had to hand in my NZ license.
It is a requirement that is about 2-3 months old.
Hope this helps. Good luck. |
Hi Old fat expat, I've been looking into getting my Korean licence, but don't really like how I'll have to hand over my NZ licence.
Do you get your NZ licence back at some point, or is it gone forever? What happens if you go back to NZ for a holiday and want to drive there? Do you need to do so using your Korean licence and an International Licence?
Thanks for any info. |
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ttompatz
Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Location: Kwangju, South Korea
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 12:31 am Post subject: |
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| xtchr wrote: |
| Old fat expat wrote: |
Just got my license a month ago. I had to hand in my NZ license.
It is a requirement that is about 2-3 months old.
Hope this helps. Good luck. |
Hi Old fat expat, I've been looking into getting my Korean licence, but don't really like how I'll have to hand over my NZ licence.
Do you get your NZ licence back at some point, or is it gone forever? What happens if you go back to NZ for a holiday and want to drive there? Do you need to do so using your Korean licence and an International Licence?
Thanks for any info. |
The other option is to just get a new Korean licence. Sit the test, take the road test, jump through the hoops like like a Korean. Then you get to have both of them.
Advantage is that when you go home, they take away your ARC but you get to keep the DL as a keepsake of your time here. |
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OCOKA Dude
Joined: 04 Oct 2004
Location: Seoul
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 12:52 am Post subject: |
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| crazylemongirl wrote: |
Merecdes Benz is giving me one of their cars for a weekend. However to qualify for insurance I need to have a Korean drivers' licence.
I have a valid New Zealand drivers' licence. Anyone had any experience? |
In Seoul, you don't have to take a test or anything. At the Kangnam DL exam station in Samsung Dong, just go to the second floor, find the Waegook window, fill out the form, put a 8,000 won stamp on it (buy them from the window next to the first floor entrance), present three passport pics, go take your eye exam on the first floor, go back to the window, fill out the "I never took any illegal drugs" questionnaire, turn in your NZ license, wait thiry minutes, and voila, you got a new Korean DL! It's as easy as that.
Btw, why is Mercedes lending you a car?
| xtchr wrote: |
| Old fat expat wrote: |
Just got my license a month ago. I had to hand in my NZ license.
It is a requirement that is about 2-3 months old.
Hope this helps. Good luck. |
Hi Old fat expat, I've been looking into getting my Korean licence, but don't really like how I'll have to hand over my NZ licence.
Do you get your NZ licence back at some point, or is it gone forever? What happens if you go back to NZ for a holiday and want to drive there? Do you need to do so using your Korean licence and an International Licence?
Thanks for any info. |
Here's the deal. On the day you get your confirmed flight out of the ROK, you'll have to go to the Korean DMV with your airline ticket, present it and your ROK DL to the clerk. Then, you'll get your original DL back. Apparently, ROK gov't does not want foreigners driving around with valid DLs from two different countries. Then, when you return to the ROK, go thru the whole rigamarole again to reclaim your ROK license. Don't worry about them misplacing your NZ license in the interim -- Korean gov't agencies are very meticulous and scrupulous about maintaining paperwork.
| ttomplatz wrote: |
The other option is to just get a new Korean licence. Sit the test, take the road test, jump through the hoops like like a Korean. Then you get to have both of them.
Advantage is that when you go home, they take away your ARC but you get to keep the DL as a keepsake of your time here. |
This is not advisable, i.e., reapplying for a Korean DL. The written test, the Korean road test, paying the fees, etc., are an inexcusable waste of time and money. If you have a valid license from a non-reciprocating country, e.g., the U.S., it's just better to exchange it for a Korean DL. You get your original license when you present proof of your departure from Korea (a valid airline ticket). |
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Horangi Munshin
Joined: 06 Apr 2003
Location: Busan
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 1:07 am Post subject: |
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Well I'm glad I got my Korean driver's licence a little over a year ago. Everything was like Old fat expat said but I didn't have to hand in my NZ license, It's good to show the kids at school  |
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Gwangjuboy
Joined: 08 Jul 2003
Location: England
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 1:30 am Post subject: |
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| ttompatz wrote: |
The other option is to just get a new Korean licence. Sit the test, take the road test, jump through the hoops like like a Korean. Then you get to have both of them.
Advantage is that when you go home, they take away your ARC but you get to keep the DL as a keepsake of your time here. |
I never actually got my driver's license back home. Would it be possible for me do the Korean test? |
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Old fat expat
Joined: 19 Sep 2005
Location: a caravan of dust, making for a windy prairie
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 1:40 am Post subject: |
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Seems the handing-in of the license is fairly new. The girl showed us the request from the higher-ups and it was recent. The girl told my wife she hates doing waygok licenses now because we piss and moan (go figure  ).
But without a K license-no insurance so there really was little choice.
And as I would like to keep the license as a trinket of my travels, I'll just replace my NZ one. They won't require an exchange.  |
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crazylemongirl
Joined: 23 Mar 2003
Location: almost there...
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 4:38 am Post subject: |
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| OCOKA Dude wrote: |
Btw, why is Mercedes lending you a car?
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I won a raffle at a party I was at.
Think I'll just hand in my licence and get a replacement in NZ. |
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Kimchieluver
Joined: 02 Mar 2005
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| Posted: Mon Oct 02, 2006 4:58 am Post subject: |
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| Unless it is different system for Kiwis, things were a heck of a lot easier for me and I never had to hand in my license. 10,000 won and 10 minutes later I had a K-license. |
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