Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Weigookin74]

Had anyone ever gotten one from here and have it recognized in other countries? I have a Canadian and a Korean Driver's Licence. I was thinking of renting a car in other countries, like Japan. I would assume that Japan would see a Canadian Passport and look for a Canadian licence maybe covered by an IDP (International Driver's Permit)? Anyways, can I obtain one in Korea? An IDP? Have any of you tried?

[CentralCali]

Here is a map of countries recognizing the IDP. Remember the IDP must be based on an already issued driver license. I just checked Hertz's Japanese site and they require a valid IDP to rent a car to you.

Unsolicited advice: Having lived and driven in Japan for five years, I suggest you abandon the idea of driving there yourself. A number of factors come into play: cost of gas, cost of rental vehicles, difficulty of getting someone to rent a vehicle to you in the first place (other than the major players such as Hertz), cost of a rental (Hertz had a minimum of $85 per day), heavy traffic, small roads, complete lack of English except for major destination markers, amazingly high tolls, and you will be stuck in Japan for an extended stay if you are involved in an accident--Japan does the "shared responsibility" bit because anyone with a driver license is considered to have professional responsibility. And that's just to name a few things that make driving in that country not a good idea if you're a tourist.

Japan has a great public transportation infrastructure. Use it and enjoy your trip.

[ttompatz]

[byrddogs]

Yes, I used it to drive back in the US on a visit home. It was painless to get.

They used to have some policy that you had to have lived in Korea for 36 months to qualify. Maybe that has changed since then (2009).

[Quack Addict]

I used to get an IDL every year. Until I found out Korean cops don't pull anybody over. The government just mails you tickets from cameras.