Secret Japan

[sanji]

Temporary visitors or people in Japan for less than 1 year

If you come from a country that signed the Geneva Convention of 1949, you can get an international driving license through your national automobile association (valid 1 year) before going in Japan and drive with it.

If you come from France, Germany or Switzerland, your country has not signed the Geneva Convention (but the Vienna one), and you can not use an international driving license in Japan. However, you can use the driving license from your home country, provided that you have a Japanese translation of it (which can be obtained from your country's embassy or consulate in Japan, or from the Japan Automobile Federation).

If you come from another country, you will need to get a Japanese driving license in order to drive in Japan.

If you leave from Japan for more than 3 months, you can again use the above-mentioned option for another year.


People in Japan for more than 1 year

To drive in Japan after staying there 1 year, you need to get a Japanese driving license.

If you have a driving license from one of the countries with which Japan has an agreement, you can get a Japanese license without taking nor written neither practical exam. You just need to go to a license center in your prefecture with your foreign license, an official translation of your license (made by your embassy or the Japan Automobile Federation), take an eye test and prove that you stayed at least three months in the country where your license had been issued before coming to Japan (by showing a diploma, a contract, etc). Those countries are France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxemburg, United Kingdom, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Austria and Canada.
List of the prefectural centers

If you have a driving license from another country which has not concluded an agreement with Japan, you will have to take a written (10 questions) and practical exam to obtain a Japanese driving license. This process can be long and expensive... This is typically the case for people with driving licenses from USA, South Korea, Mexico, Taiwan, China, Brazil, Peru, etc.

[sanji]

For translation by the Japan Automobile Federation:

Check their updated page for more details; you can also directly check which local offices can translate your driving license, or download the application form and submit it by mail.

It costs 3000 yen per translation, as well as a 290 yen fee for sending zou the document back by mail.

[nekosan]

I need to rent a car in September in Kushiro.
I'm flying from Paris to Nagoya where I will stay a couple of days.
Then flying from Nagoya to Kushiro.
I know I have to get translation of my driving licence, but I would like to prepare this in France before flying Japan, to avoid any waste of time.
Do you know if it is possible and where in can I do this in France.
I'm living in the neighbourhood of Paris.

Otherwise is there any possibility in Nagoya?

Thanks for the information you can give.

[sanji]

I think that the Japanese embassy in France can make the translation in Japanese. You should contact them to check whether this is true. If so, it is much better than doing it in Japan...

Japan Automobile Federation can make the translation in Japan, but this takes a couple of days.

[nekosan]

I called the Japan ambassy in Paris, but the girl I talk to say this translation has to be done in Japan only, either by the French ambassy or by the JAF services.
:idea: I beleive I' m going to call JAF services to let them know which day I will come to their office so that I can win a little time!!
Anyway, thank for your post.

[sanji]

I sent my driving license for my embassy (Swiss) as a pdf file in advance, and they prepared the translation for me before I arrive there. This could be a good way to speed things up, if French embassy accept to do so...