Getting your Drivers License in the Philippines

The Philippines is a so much nicer country when you can roam around freely not having to hop on buses and tricycles everywhere you go or look and haggle for habal habal.

So it is worth to get your driver’s license here when staying long term.

Getting your driver’s license in the Philippines, even as a foreigner, is a piece of cake.
Where in the Netherlands you have to take driving lessons, that cost you a fortune, and apply for the exam and pass both a written and practical exam. Here in the Philippines at many LTO offices (Land Transportation Office) They do not even do a practical exam and when they do it is a small proof of capability on the parking lot.

When you do not have any driver’s license, you just go up to an LTO office nearby and apply for a student permit. This permit is valid for 3 months. After one month you can come in for the examination which is a multiple-choice questionnaire. You can find it online to practice so that will not be too difficult.

I think the hardest was waiting. Waiting for the paperwork to be processed each step op the way, waiting for the actual license (plastic) to arrive, waiting at the laboratory for the drug test……..

You can ask the guard what you exactly need to apply, it is a drug test, an eye test for colorblindness and a filled-out application form. When you go for the actual exam you have to do the drug test and health check again.

The whole thing will cost you more or less a 1000 PHP (around 20 euro) and you are ready to drive.

Listen to me explaining about the Filipino driver license and my thoughts on the whole process int he (short) podcast.

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