On Thu, 04 Dec 2003 06:20:58 -0800, - o s g o -
<osgo@panties.hotmail.com (remove panties)> wrote:

>On Thu, 04 Dec 2003 19:12:11 +0900, Michael Cash
><mikecash@sunfield.ne.jp> wrote:
>
>
>>They can't take your UK license. It isn't their property. In fact,
>>they can't even take your Japanese license without either your consent
>>or a court order. There are certain traffic violations where it is
>>routine procedure to confiscate the license and issue a receipt for
>>it, but if you stand firm and refuse to give it to them, they can't
>>take it from you absent an order from a judge.
>
>I *always* use an Int'l lic. after having a Japanese one taken away in
>the 80's for driving too fast.  That is...if u can get away every
>year...if not, order it over the Internet.  Now I realize that prof.
>drivers can't do this, but after all, any driver in Japan is
>considered professional.

I used an international license for the first 9 years living in Japan.
I hope you are aware of the new laws barring their repetitive use over
here. They are cracking down and now every cop seems to know the new
procedures. In the past when I got stopped they'd just oftentimes look
at my permit, shake their heads and say get lost not wanting to even
bother with it. This is not the case any longer though. The following
is from the U.S. Consular Information sheet on Japan:

http://travel.state.gov/japan.html

==============================================================
INTERNATIONAL DRIVING PERMITS (IDP): An international driving permit
issued in the United States by the American Automobile Association
(AAA) or the American Automobile Touring Alliance (AATA) is required
of short-term visitors who drive in Japan. International driving
permits are not issued by the U.S. Embassy or by its Consulates, and
must be obtained prior to arriving in Japan.

"Residents," however, are expected to convert to or obtain a Japanese
drivers license. Persons using an international drivers license who
are resident in Japan can be subject to fines or arrest. The exact
boundary between "resident" and "non-resident" is unclear. In practice
it seems to involve more than simply visa status or length of stay in
Japan and is determined by the police. In short, an international
license is not a permanent or expedient substitute for a valid
Japanese license.

Japan requires American citizens to take not only a written but also a
road test in order to obtain a Japanese driver's license.

We have heard from several Americans who were told by the police that
it is illegal to use an International Driver's License for more than a
year from the date of their first entry to Japan (even if one leaves
and reenters Japan within 3 months, the first entry date is still
considered the date of entry for the one-year period), or if they have
a Japanese Alien Registration Card, or if they are planning to stay
more than 90 days, or to use one after exiting and then returning to
Japan, or when residing in Japan, or to use an International Driver's
License obtained by mail while you are in Japan. In such
circumstances, Americans have been charged with driving without a
license, a serious offense. Driving without a legal license may also
void insurance coverage.
===============================================================

Now from personal experience when I first came to Japan I attempted to
switch my U.S. license to a Japanese one but because of a stupid rule
that you have show proof in your passport that you resided in your
home country for 3 months after the issue of your license I was denied
even applying. I WAS in America for 3 months after my U.S. license was
issued but in that 3 month period I took a trip to the U.K. When I
returned home as was often the case in those days they just waved
large groups of us through customs and did not stamp my passport. So
my passport showed I entered England but not that I had returned to
the US. They said I could have gotten a fake license in the UK or
something and that pretty much I could fuck off since there was no way
they were going to allow me to apply. I have NEVER seen such a
rock-headed, procedure-loving bunch of idiots as the retired police
force that run the Menkyo-Centers in Japan.

Meanwhile, I was stopped for speeding about 2 years ago and I was
driving on an expired International Permit. My home state of New
Jersey allows mail in applications for International driving permits
so I sent away for one and then took a short weekend excursion over to
Pusan, South Korea so I could have a brand new reentry stamp into
Japan to coincide with the new permit. 

Well, as luck would have it I got nabbed for speeding again and even
though I had a valid permit and I had come back into Japan less than a
year before they weren't going for it. They took me downtown and
pretty much threatened to make my life a living hell if I didn't go
out and get my Japanese license. They were talking about arresting me
and/or shipping my ass back to the states if they caught me driving
again on any International Permit.

So I went back to the Menkyo-Center again and they told me if I got
all sorts of tax records and an official letter from the New Jersey
Department of Motor Vehicles translated they could CONSIDER allowing
me to apply. It took weeks but I finally put together enough for them
and I applied, aced the simple written test on the first try and
passed the incredibly difficult driving test on the second.

>Saves time, hassles, and many problems, as essentially they can't or
>don't know what they hell to do with 'ya when you inevitably get
>pulled over.

>My two shekels.
>-osgo

That's what I always thought. Beware, the laws are changing.

Raj