How to get a Chinese Motorcycle License

Even more, a reason to play by there rules.

Like I said smile take a picture if you can of the office with you in it? walk away go back in 3 months smiling again.
Or better still if you can get her to write something down saying no can do now but ok in 3 months time?
Then you have her by her balls ??? well nearly lol

Yeah, I think you're right prince666.

There's either a Shineray xy400 or a CFMoto 250 (recommendations would be appreciated) with my name on it hence my sense of urgency. Guess I'll' just grin and bare it.

Ovaries doesn't have the same poetic ring, eh?

Both are good bikes...


Which one...........


That depends on what you are aiming to do with rides out?

Day out locally on good roads, then I think the CF will be good fun.
Hit stuff that you will hit on long rides out, then XY400?

So to play safe go for the XY400?

Good engine off-road friendly?
Not bad power, but you need to get your hands dirty with like most Chinese made bikes?

X5 XY400GY

After 3 months time?????


Attachment 20100




Link....https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm...cket=13#detail

Quote:

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Originally Posted by prince666

Both are good bikes...


Which one...........


That depends on what you are aiming to do with rides out?

Day out locally on good roads, then I think the CF will be good fun.
Hit stuff that you will hit on long rides out, then XY400?

So to play safe go for the XY400?

Good engine off-road friendly?
Not bad power, but you need to get your hands dirty with like most Chinese made bikes?

X5 XY400GY

After 3 months time?????


Attachment 20100




Link....https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?spm...cket=13#detail

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If you are interested, a German friend in BJ is selling his just 1 year old red X5 at 8000km. Price 20k. This lucky guy got an extended contract to stay several more years. So he want to buy a bigger machine.

Sent from my GN8003 using Tapatalk

@prince 666 That's a damn sexy bike, although little past my price point unfortunately.

@Shuben Again, a little bit too expensive for the time being. Maybe once my house has been paid off ;)

Just a follow up, I went to the bike registration place today and that is indeed the new rule in Xi'an. You need to have been registered to your current accommodation (as a foreigner anyway) for at least three months. Only 40 more days.

I tried to ask some more questions with my limited Chinese but would appreciate some clarification. I can buy a bike without a motorcycle license, right? Everyone there registering or doing their practical test didn't have one yet. They also didn't have number plates? So when I buy the bike does the seller supply me with one? What's the process regarding registering the bike in my name?

Appreciate the help I've received on this website so far.

Jimmy

Hi Jimmy

No Chinese DL needed to buy a bike?

To register the bike in your name normally it can be done BUT not easy, and no point going into details as what details I have is for when I register my bike in my name in MY TOWN.

You will soon find out what laws applied in 1 town, province may not be applied in other towns or provinces.

Well, good luck you are going to need it.

New bike not plated?

You should be allowed to ride the bike if insured for 14 days from the date of invoice? some people say 30 days
before you need to plate the bike?

But TIC (This is China)

I am looking at getting a license in China and this thread has given me a lot of info!

I've had a lot of experience driving with 150cc bikes, but never with larger machines sadly. What class of bikes do most people ride there? Also, If I were to hop on a larger motorcycle should I expect to be okay based on my 150cc experience? Or is it a whole other ballgame?

I've been prepping for the multiple choice test but my buddy said it can get tricky due to the poorly worded test questions. Does anyone have recent experience with this?

Never exspect to be ok ridding any size c.c. Bike in China.
When stepping up from a 12 HP 125 kg bike to a 160 HP 250 kg bike.
Can be challenging at times.
With the test question you may need a few go's to get the 90 %.
No shame in that.

How can one even ride a motorbike 100% by the rules if I'm being told it's impossible to transfer a bike to my name because I don't have a 身份证 (ID card) for the district the bike is registered in? I'm a foreigner we don't have 身份证...

All I can do is get the driving licence, the insurance and the inspection certificate. The bike will have to remain in my Chinese friends name.

I want to play by the rules but they are preventing me lol.

Hi and welcome to the logic-free zone of China.
The bike being in a friend name is still ok and legal.
The rules are their rules and you can't play.

The bike being in my friends name is a bit mafan isn't it though? Doesn't it means I need his help to buy insurance every year? And wont the insurance be in his name and not mine? So I'm not actually the one insured to ride the bike? Or is insurance different in China and the bike is the object that is insured, not the specific person?

Here in China you get insurance for the bike not the rider, so in your case, the bike which is not in your name still means the bike has insurance.

Do I always need his help to buy it? I was told to go to the 中国人民保险公司 （insurance company) with the bikes 行驶证 (Ownership papers)， and the 车主的身份证 (Owners Chiense ID)

Will the insurance company really need to see his ID card? Why can't anyone purchase insurance? I'm from the UK and anyone can insure a vehicle they don't own. The company only cares they get their money, not where it comes from.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zhejiang rider

Do I always need his help to buy it? I was told to go to the 中国人民保险公司 （insurance company) with the bikes 行驶证 (Ownership papers)， and the 车主的身份证 (Owners Chiense ID)

Will the insurance company really need to see his ID card? Why can't anyone purchase insurance? I'm from the UK and anyone can insure a vehicle they don't own. The company only cares they get their money, not where it comes from.

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The insurance company need to read the the information from the ID card, so in most case the answer is yes, However, in Beijing there's some insurance agent can just input the ID number to buy the insurance, but the photo of the ID is still needed.

You can ask if there's some local could do that, and keep a copy and photo of the ID card.

I spoke to a motorcycle dealership and he said he could help me get the insurance, he wanted me to send him a photograph of the 身份证 and 行驶证 and he would go to the insurance office and get the insurance.
It wasn't clear if he was intending to pretend he was the person on the 身份证 or not.

If all that's required is a photograph of the owners card for anyone to purchase, without pretending they are that person, I should be ok to insure it myself.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Zhejiang rider

I spoke to a motorcycle dealership and he said he could help me get the insurance, he wanted me to send him a photograph of the 身份证 and 行驶证 and he would go to the insurance office and get the insurance.
It wasn't clear if he was intending to pretend he was the person on the 身份证 or not.

If all that's required is a photograph of the owners card for anyone to purchase, without pretending they are that person, I should be ok to insure it myself.

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Yes you can insure it on your name, but it's require the owner's ID to prove that "you have been authorized from the owner to use the bike." If you want to insure a bike not on the owners name, both of your IDs are required.

Since the insurance is very cheap, (about 60rmb a year) can we just buy like 5 years of insurance up front? Then I wont have to bother my friend for his ID in a years time.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by raduop

Well if it's going to be a bike, it will HAVE to be a Chinese bike...always better to buy or hire local...other recommendations beside the MT?

So my conclusions so far are:
- not really necessary to get residence and full DL, it should be possible to get a temporary car and MOTO DL at Chengdu airport; this temporary DL together with an IDL should be good enough to drive anywhere
- it should be possible to obtain the bike from some dealer (easier rent than buy??)
- any of this failing, there's still the backup option of car rental

Did I get it right?

Thanks and regards!

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Hoping this thread develops more over the next few weeks / months! I'm in a very similar situation, looking (hoping / praying) to acquire a bike, and the documents required to ride it as peacefully as possible, through Yunnan, Sichuan, and Xinjiang, with a tourist visa.

Looks like it won't be possible to do it 100% legit, but potentially doable.

Anyone have experience riding in (the remoter parts of) Western China recently? If so, what's the situation on the ground with security / checkpoints / freedom of movement?

Thanks in advance!

Xinjiang was closed recently, need travel permit similar to Tibet.

Yunnan and Sichuan should be fine.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SaryTash

Hoping this thread develops more over the next few weeks / months! I'm in a very similar situation, looking (hoping / praying) to acquire a bike, and the documents required to ride it as peacefully as possible, through Yunnan, Sichuan, and Xinjiang, with a tourist visa.

Looks like it won't be possible to do it 100% legit, but potentially doable.

Anyone have experience riding in (the remoter parts of) Western China recently? If so, what's the situation on the ground with security / checkpoints / freedom of movement?

Thanks in advance!

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PM me if you want to buy or rent
A fully legal Cfmoto 650 MT
Fully set up for touring .

Hi gang, I'm a resident in the UK on a Full UK Licence my Fiancee will have her A2 licence by the time we start our Round the world tour.

After completing our USA leg we plan on flying the bikes into Shanghai {visiting Disneyland for a couple of days/nights and riding Northwest to Khorgas border crossing

Can any of you help us with the licencing and insurance details we will require

We plan on no more than 20-30 days in China including rest days along the route

We have a Triumph Trophy 900 and a YAMAHA Virago 535 if that helps
Thanks gang

Can't see it happening

Getting your bikes into China.

For the Chinese driving license you need longer then a 30 days visa to even apply.
Well good luck.


Even if you do get the bikes in and you was abel to get chinses DL
Then you have a big problem that Shanghai has a very strick Motoerbike ban.?


TIC

This is China,

As the man said, the short answer is unfortunately "no".

For the long answer, you can definitely search the forum for this issue and see lots of discussion by others about why not.

Maybe SE Asia to India?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SJtrophy900

Hi gang, I'm a resident in the UK on a Full UK Licence my Fiancee will have her A2 licence by the time we start our Round the world tour.

After completing our USA leg we plan on flying the bikes into Shanghai {visiting Disneyland for a couple of days/nights and riding Northwest to Khorgas border crossing

Can any of you help us with the licencing and insurance details we will require

We plan on no more than 20-30 days in China including rest days along the route

We have a Triumph Trophy 900 and a YAMAHA Virago 535 if that helps
Thanks gang

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The reality is that the process to get private vehicles into Ch!na is quite complicated and expensive. People have attempted to do so and few have been successful. There are numerous threads here on MCM detailing the same. In a snapshot, one has to use an approved travel guide (minder/facilitator) with the requisite government credentials. The dates, itinerary, routes and hotel accommodation are to be preapproved and fixed prior, with no variation to the planned route, or changes to any dates etc. All licenses for riders and bikes would be facilitated by the tour guide, meaning that the riders and motorcycles would be required to obtain PRC Drivers License and License Plates. These would be supplied and cover only the duration of the preapproved dates/itinerary. As Prince666 points out, any planned route would need to consider any areas/cities where motorcycle bans exist and there are something in the order of 180+ cities which ban motorcycles.
Essentially think of this as an organised preapproved tour group.
The cost of the Tour Guide, includes fees, all hotel/accommodation and meals plus their fuel costs, and any incidentals. The result is "it ain't cheap"
TIC

With regards to the 180 or so city with a motorbike ban.
I have rode my bike through a good 100 of them with limited problems.
The 2 exception are inner ring Beijing and down town Shanghai.
Normaly the police will turn a blind eye if you are riding on out of provinces plates.

Next problem is getting from A to B with out going on the toll roads, which in most province there are banned.
TIC.

A while back I wrote up some wiki articles about how to get a Motorcycle DL in China and related things. Unfortunately the wiki decided to focus on movies and TV shows and the articles got deleted. :taz:
At the moment I've dumped them to a google doc & a docx shared on onedrive.
Getting a Chinese driver's License, including motorcycle - Google Link (suggestions welcome)
Onedrive link, view only

I had to do most of this from memory so Suggestions & improvements welcome.

Ed

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ZMC888

Getting a Chinese Motorcycle License

Attachment 16879

It is illegal to ride in China without a Chinese motorcycle license. Overseas driving licenses (with the exception of a few countries with special agreements) and International Driving Permits are not recognized in China. Chinese driving licenses are accepted across China and can be used in most other countries for up to a year. The license is issued for an initial six years and is then extended by ten years each time it is renewed so long as you keep a clean license.

Legally speaking any foreigner with an address, a Chinese name and a passport with more than six months remaining on their visa can apply for a Chinese driving license at their local Public Security Bureau traffic division. However this is often not straightforward because the Chinese legal and administrative system revolves around Chinese ID cards and ID card numbers, and using a passport can mean making things difficult, but there is a procedure and computer system for this. The ease or difficulty of obtaining Chinese driving licenses can vary from province to province or region to region. What is the case in one place, may not necessarily be the case somewhere else. Some smaller cities and cities that prohibit motorcycles will not issue licenses to locals or foreigners, some may not understand how to issue foreigners licenses, or not realize it is possible. In autonomous regions that have security difficulties it's likely to be much more difficult or prohibited for a foreign nationals to get a Chinese motorcycle license, and may make excuses to block the process as having free roaming foreigners is not seen as desirable. National laws are also 'interpreted' and this interpretation becomes in essence, the local law. Sometimes it can be difficult to obtain a Chinese driving license, but you need to be persistent and not take no for an answer in a polite yet determined manner. Usually you will need help from an English speaking local, unless you speak passable Chinese or you may even need a connection with a senior police officer through a network of friends or colleagues. Theoretically being on a shorter visa you can get a temporary Chinese driving license, but as an independent visitor it is unlikely that one could be issued unless for a car, or being part of overland motorcycle tour group with a guide, but it would be worth asking, especially if you are arriving at an international airport.

Many foreign riders have ridden in China without a Chinese motorcycle license successfully, some even for years. In fact I did for over six years, believing the law to be ridiculous, as I already had a license from home. However, wherever people travel worldwide, being a resident in another country (with the obvious exception of within the EU) usually means transferring your license or taking a local test within a year, so really there is no excuse. Some foreigners believe copying the locals and riding an unregistered uninsured bike without a local license is fine, but in my view this is seriously asking for trouble especially if you were to hit a pedestrian or cyclist. Others believe in following the law exactly, which is very probably an excellent idea in Shanghai or Beijing and other massive cities, but outside of vast metropolitan areas may be overkill and seriously restricting yourself in the short term, being as legal as possible is often thought to be acceptable, but you need to fully understand the potential risks of breaking any laws.

Bigger, wealthier cities can and do take licensing more seriously, whereas smaller cities and rural areas may not take licensing seriously at all, and seeing thousands of unregistered small displacement motorcycles and scooters may be quite normal in rural areas. These areas only take motorcycle licensing and registration seriously on a purge basis or in the event of an accident, sometimes not at all. Car and truck licensing and registration seems to be almost completely universal, whereas motorcycle, scooter and three wheel riders/drivers seem to believe it is optional.

As time passes the whole country is taking driving laws more seriously which could potentially mean a maximum 15 days in a detention center (but a fine and motorcycle seizure is much more likely in smaller cities) or paying tens of thousands of yuan from your own pocket for riding without insurance to pay someones medical expenses after an accident, which probably wasn't even your fault. Easier to enforce rules are enforced first: Speeding, traffic signals, vehicle registration, insurance and driving license checks are top of the list.

Previous to the new rules in 2013 it was possible foreigners to obtain a car and motorcycle license by passing the Chinese driving test if they had not already passed it in their home country. As of 2015 It seems there are fewer places where foreigners can take a complete test in English than before, however the hope is that will change over time.

So given that you have an address, a Chinese name and a passport with more than six months remaining on your visa....

• Find your nearest Foreign Affairs Office and pay them to translate your home license.
• Find your nearest Public Security Bureau traffic division and present your home license, passport and stamped translation. (You may be required to attend a different specific Public Security Bureau traffic division than the one you are at). Then do a medical test, which is generally just an eye test including vision and colorblindness. They could weigh you and measure you heart or even do blood pressure, but they rarely bother. Then they'll take a special police photo, with which you will probably be given double the number of photos you need.
• Pass the 100 test question multiple choice which will be booked at a specific Public Security Bureau traffic division or a specific testing center. (You will be told the location and the time, could be a few weeks in advance), and passing this test you will be required to score over 90 with two chances, and doing this will require some studying. If doing a car and motorcycle transfer you will do the car questions only.
• Go back to the original Public Security Bureau traffic division, with all your information and your license will be ready in due course (could be same day).

****2016 update. The motorcycle question test is only available in Chinese, not English. However the car questions are available in English. This means you can ONLY get a Chinese motorcycle license by transferring a foreign car and motorcycle license at the same time or if you can read Chinese.****

Some useful links...........

http://www.howchinaworks.com/2008/12...ivers-license/

http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...e-License-Blog

http://www.mychinamoto.com/forums/sh...sed-the-brake!

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I know you can get a Chinese bike from taobao agent. But I dont think that licence will be valid for any other country. But I think they are valid in all the province in China

Hi Guys,

Im new to the website.

I live and work in Fuzhou for the last 2 years. I do have a car driving license from back home, but want to get a motorbike license (not interested in driving a car anymore). My friends tell me that I wont be able to get it in Fuzhou because the whole ordeal is in Chinese, and was suggested to go to Shanghai and that the online test could be done in a day. After that i could do the road test in Fuzhou Is this a myth? I work here in Fuzhou so its going to be hard for me to spend more than 2-3 days in Shanghai if this process to get the online test takes more than a week, a month or so..and I might give up getting the license if that's the case. If its a matter of a few days, i can definitely do that.

Would appreciate if someone can throw some light on this.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by abidsbox

Hi Guys,

Im new to the website.

I live and work in Fuzhou for the last 2 years. I do have a car driving license from back home, but want to get a motorbike license (not interested in driving a car anymore). My friends tell me that I wont be able to get it in Fuzhou because the whole ordeal is in Chinese, and was suggested to go to Shanghai and that the online test could be done in a day. After that i could do the road test in Fuzhou Is this a myth? I work here in Fuzhou so its going to be hard for me to spend more than 2-3 days in Shanghai if this process to get the online test takes more than a week, a month or so..and I might give up getting the license if that's the case. If its a matter of a few days, i can definitely do that.

Would appreciate if someone can throw some light on this.

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Shanghai license is for people living in Shanghai. I think it's going to be very difficult for you to meet the residency requirement. You need to move to Shanghai, get the license, and then move back to Fuzhou. Possible, yes... in a few days... probably not.

Converting a car license in Beijing was fairly easy. You do have to study a bit though. The written test for a car license was in English. Is there a motorcycle test in English in Beijing?
EDIT: Never mind. Just read that in case you don't have a license prior to the application, you'll have to pass a test in Chinese after all