Drive license

International license means nothing in VN. You need a Viet license.

I am not sure whether you can apply for a Vietnamese driving license with a 3 months tourist visa. The driving license is only valid als long as the visa is valid.

I think with a 1 year multi-entry business visa you can apply for a Vietnamese Driving license (or better, a conversion of your Spanish driving license to a Vietnamese one).

You can ask https://dichthuat.org/en/  (translate996[at]gmail.com / phungocviet[at]gmail.com).
I used this translation agency to convert my Swiss driver's license (500k Dong, and a few hundred thousand Dong in driver's license administration).
But I have a 3 year TRC.  The expiry date of the driving licence is the same as that of the TRC. For Vietnamese citicen the driving license is valid for 10 years.

A few hundred thousand dong generally works miracles.

The law does not change but the interpretretration is easier to understand.

Andy Passenger
"For Vietnamese citicen the driving license is valid for 10 years."

I think you will find it never expires, that is unless the laws have changed over the last few years.

colinoscapee wrote:

Andy Passenger
"For Vietnamese citicen the driving license is valid for 10 years."

I think you will find it never expires, that is unless the laws have changed over the last few years.

My wife made her driving license (to drive a car) about half a year ago. It is valid for exactly 10 years.
My wife says that her mother has to renew her driving license (to drive a motorcycle) every 10 years.

A car is different.

Just checked with my wife, it lasts forever, same as what my other friends said.

Is your wife's family Viet Kieu?

colinoscapee wrote:

A car is different.

Just checked with my wife, it lasts forever, same as what my other friends said.

Is your wife's family Viet Kieu?

No, my wife's family is not Viet Kieu.
My wife has a B2 driving licence, which is limited to 10 years.
B1 driving licences (only for automatic transmissions) are only limited for persons over a certain age.

http://www.trungtamdaynghelaixe.com/ban … au-cho-nao
https://vnexpress.net/tin-tuc/phap-luat … 78908.html

Why apparently her mother has to renew her motorcycle driving licence every 10 years, I don't know either. Maybe she is wrong.

Thankyou very much for your explanations.

I will travell with an international driving lisence, UNO recognised in the mayority of countries. I think it will do.

yacocati wrote:

I will travell with an international driving lisence, UNO recognised in the mayority of countries. I think it will do.

The international driving license is not valid in Vietnam.

But you can do whatever you want.

I just hope that you are never involved in an accident (and the danger of being involved in an accident is considerable in Vietnam traffic).

At a normal traffic control you can usually solve the problem with money.  But not in an accident, I think.

Everything I've read agrees with Andy. You need to protect yourself with both a license and insurance.

Andy Passenger wrote:

The international driving license is not valid in Vietnam.

True and false.

Pursuant to Clause 2, Article 1 of Circular No. 48/2014 / TT-BGTVT:

"Foreigners or Overseas Vietnamese who wish to drive in Vietnam shall be affected by the following:

a / If having their national driving licenses, they must carry out procedures for changing their licenses into Vietnam's corresponding driving licenses;

b / If having international driving licenses granted by the competent agencies of the countries participating in the 1968 Road Traffic Convention, they shall be allowed to drive the vehicles prescribed in the driving licenses."

Vietnam became a member of the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic on Aug 20, 2014.  Thus, an IDL issued by any of the 85 member countries is valid in Vietnam.

If the OP has an IDL issued by his home country, then he can use it here because Spain is a member of the Vienna Convention. 

If Jim-Minh has an IDL issued by the States, he cannot use it here because the US is not a member of the convention. 

If a local has an IDL issued here, he cannot use it in lieu of Vietnam DL because IDP is not valid in the country of issue.

Of course, if the OP encounters a traffic police who doesn't know the law, he may face some difficulties.  If I were in his shoes, I would carry a printed version of Article 1 (in Vietnamese of course) and the list of member countries with me, just in case.

Thanks you

Thanks for your complete answer

Ciambella wrote:

If I were in his shoes, I would carry a printed version of Article 1 (in Vietnamese of course) and the list of member countries with me, just in case.

But what if you were in OP's car?

OceanBeach92107 wrote:

Ciambella wrote:

If I were in his shoes, I would carry a printed version of Article 1 (in Vietnamese of course) and the list of member countries with me, just in case.

But what if you were in OP's car?

I won't.  His shoes are more than enough troubles for my feet.

Ciambella wrote:

Of course, if the OP encounters a traffic police who doesn't know the law, he may face some difficulties.

Meaning that traffic police may have their own ideas about the law and will expect a fine to be paid on the spot, regardless. I have never heard of police stopping drivers for no reason. A common reason is they didn't see you use your turn signal. Carry 200.000 VND, should be sufficient for typical traffic stop fines. Remember your turn signals and helmet!

Here is a translated list of fines, I don't know how accurate or current:
Fines

Ciambella wrote:

If I were in his shoes, I would carry a printed version of Article 1 (in Vietnamese of course) and the list of member countries with me, just in case.

Policeman (translated): "And where is your passport? Where is your insurance card?"  They are always looking for some way to justify a fine.

Also if you are riding a motorbike in Vietnam with an International Driving Permit, the Permit must show a checkbox that you are qualified for motorcycle. You don't have that? Well then there's another reason that your International Driving Permit will be invalid.

Gobot said
" I have never heard of police stopping drivers for no reason."

Surely you are being sarcastic?

colinoscapee wrote:

Gobot said
" I have never heard of police stopping drivers for no reason."
Surely you are being sarcastic?

Nopes, but I'm still a newbie. Sheltered life. I got stopped once for not signaling* and I have only seen or heard of people stopped for that or missing helmet.  I think they set up and hide around corners for that very purpose. They really go after bare heads, which has been a success! Nowhere has such high helmet-wearing compliance. But I have not once seen police stop anyone for the egregious moving violations that shock all visitors.

* A travesty of justice it was. It was at the popular Turtle Lake trap. As I came out of the rotary I had used my turn signal, but turned it off during the turn, because not necessary anymore, right?. But the police in the trap didn't see it. I learned my lesson: I keep it blinking until I have cleared the intersection and see there are no khaki men ahead.

gobot wrote:

colinoscapee wrote:

Gobot said
" I have never heard of police stopping drivers for no reason."
Surely you are being sarcastic?

Nopes, but I'm still a newbie. Sheltered life. I got stopped once for not signaling* and I have only seen or heard of people stopped for that or missing helmet.  I think they set up and hide around corners for that very purpose. They really go after bare heads, which has been a success! Nowhere has such high helmet-wearing compliance. But I have not once seen police stop anyone for the egregious moving violations that shock all visitors.

* A travesty of justice it was. It was at the popular Turtle Lake trap. As I came out of the rotary I had used my turn signal, but turned it off during the turn, because not necessary anymore, right?. But the police in the trap didn't see it. I learned my lesson: I keep it blinking until I have cleared the intersection and see there are no khaki men ahead.

They used to set a trap on the main road into Nhon Trach, near Saigon. The road came to a right hand bend, the white line in the middle of the road also took a right turn, meaning that the traffic had to flow in that direction. This didnt stop the beige mafia from pulling people over for not indicating.

It has since stopped due to an outcry from the public over corrupt collection of fines. They used to do the same thing on the A1 at D9. So I can assure you, it's very common here.