How to get a Chinese Motorcycle License

[euphonius]

I didn't even know there was such a thing as a temporary two month license! If my plans go sour I'll look into that for sure.

As far as the Visa situation I've been assured twice by the agent in Hong Kong that a 6 month/180 day Visa is no problem, and really it doesn't cost much more than the 30-day tourist Visa I can get here in Vancouver. I know, surprising I can't get something better here but apparently some rules have changed recently and it's either that or a 60-day family visit/invitation Visa. Neither are good for my purposes.

So the license should be no problem as I'll follow the steps that are well documented here (thanks again to all who put the effort in to post this info!). And hopefully I'll be able to find a dealer willing to register a new bike. I see a lot of people here talking about ordering direct from the factory, is it possible to get a bike like that registered? It doesn't really matter to me where it's registered as I'm going to use it for one long trip across China. At least I don't think it matters, I just want to have a plate and insurance and I figure since I won't really have a home base, plates from anywhere are just as good. I'd like to get something similar to the Sineray xy200gy-7, so I thought from the factory might be the easiest way?

Dude, check the fine print. Yes, you can get a six-month multiple-entry business visa in Hong Kong, but as ChinaV has noted, the duration of any stay under that visa is probably limited to 30 days. People on these business visas are endlessly dashing down to HK on day 29 or 30 to exit and re-enter for another 30 days. There may be exceptions, but ordinarily the only visas that allow extended stays of longer than 30 days are long-term residency permits, work visas and study visas.

Go back to your HK agent and ask specifically about the maximum allowed stay under a "six-month" business visa.

Good luck!

[Max Power]

Yeah I've checked, 3 times in total. Twice by phone, and once by email. Actually I had called another place in HK as well before i found the current place I'm dealing with. They were more expensive but also said it would not be a problem for a 6 month, 180 consecutive day visa. I've gotten a 6 month visa in HK during 2007 and it was pretty slack. They wanted my passport, two photos, and of course the money. Ready that afternoon and for six straight months.

As far as looking into this further there's not much I can do. Anyway I'm flying in to HK February 2nd so I'll pass on the results.

[euphonius]

Yeah I've checked, 3 times in total. Twice by phone, and once by email. Actually I had called another place in HK as well before i found the current place I'm dealing with. They were more expensive but also said it would not be a problem for a 6 month, 180 consecutive day visa. I've gotten a 6 month visa in HK during 2007 and it was pretty slack. They wanted my passport, two photos, and of course the money. Ready that afternoon and for six straight months.

As far as looking into this further there's not much I can do. Anyway I'm flying in to HK February 2nd so I'll pass on the results.

That's fantastic. Have a great trip and do keep us posted. Any chance you'll be passing through Shanghai, do give a shout. We'll organize a (No-)Bike Night in your honor!

cheers!

[Max Power]

Man that would be awesome! I want to visit a friend that's in Shanghai so I really hope things go smoothly and I'm able to make it up there on my bike, otherwise it's gonna be back to overnight trains! I'll definitely keep updates going and hopefully something works out!

[lightend]

Man that would be awesome! I want to visit a friend that's in Shanghai so I really hope things go smoothly and I'm able to make it up there on my bike, otherwise it's gonna be back to overnight trains! I'll definitely keep updates going and hopefully something works out!

so whats your general plan? come here and travel or come here and do some work or come here looking for love? where abouts are you visiting?

[Max Power]

My plan is really to travel. I want to get a license and a bike as soon as possible and then make my way around China and eventually into Mongolia. My route is by no means set but I've got some ideas of areas I'd like to see. Also I don't want to get too much into planning as I have the feeling things might not go to plan as much as I'd like and this way I'll be better able to adapt/less devastated as I watch everything fall apart!

I was gonna head to Shanghai just to visit my cousin who is living there and also a good friend from a previous time in China (I may or may not have my bike at this time, hopefully I do). Once I get a bike I want to start by heading across the South toward Yunnan. I'm gonna be based in Guangzhou when I first arrive.

[gambitox]

Hi everyone,

Im about to take the motrocycle exam and a little doubt has arised regarding some of the questions, concretely there is one picture that shows a policeman lifting his left hand and showing the palm of the hand. This picture appears twice in the book (actually is a dvd) translated for foreigners, and each time has different answers.

Here is the image http://postimage.org/image/gj7hy514d

First time it appears as question 2.4.1.3 where the answer says its "A signal for turning left gently"

Next it appears as question 2.4.1.8 where now the answer is "A signal for turning right"

If any of you guys has already faced this problem, or knows anything about the actual reliability of the dvd in terms of correct answers I would appreciate the input.

Thanks


By the way, Max Power, my plans are very similar to yours, next step after I get my driving license is buying a bike, also for travelling round Chine, and since I am now in beijing, the mongolian route really suits me. If you are looking for a travel partner or just wanna discuss some routes just send me a message

[gambitox]

Never mind guys, I passed the exam yesterday, after waiting half an hour for the police to fix a software problem that made it imposible to make the exam by the time we arrived to the DMW.

I am seriously considering buying a CF moto in Beijing, I will keep you updated!

[Max Power]

Hey guys,

It's been a while since I posted on this topic, at first I was spending all my time sorting out my license, and more recently I just haven't been able to log in. My vacation in China has just recently started and so far I've had the pleasure of seeing nearly every PSB in Guilin!

I decided to locate myself in Guilin to get my license as I wanted somewhere smaller and less hectic than my original choice of Guangzhou, which I chose mainly as I've got a good friend living there. I also thought it would be easier to do in a place that's a bit smaller, just in terms of getting around to the different offices, but my logic may well have been off on that. I don't think they've had many foreigners getting their license here in Guilin so it took a bit of convincing, at times I was even told that foreigners couldn't get motorcycle licenses in China anywhere (by someone at the licensing bureau).

I followed the steps outlined here exactly, and went the first time with what should have worked. For some reason the traffic licensing bureau (che guan suo) didn't like my temporary residence registration at all as it was issued by a hotel. I was told to get one from a local PSB office. Went to three local PSB offices (gong an ju) before one would issue me a temporary residence registration with their stamp, only it was still the hotel form. Went back to the traffic licensing bureau a second time, they still didn't like the form. This time they directed me to the Entry and Exit Bureau of Guilin (chu ru jing guan li chu) who told me that they could not issue a temporary residence form and that the original hotel-issued temporary residence registration form was in effect the same as the form the licensing bureau was requesting. I explained that this was my 4th day spent running around organizing things for my license, that I had already been to the traffic licensing bureau twice with what they were now telling me was the correct form, and luckily the clerk decided to take pity on me. She gave me their (entry and exit bureau) phone number and her extension to have the traffic licensing bureau call so that she could explain the similarities of the form I had and the form they were requesting. I went once last time, morning of day 5, to the traffic licensing bureau. An argument ensued, and after 20 minutes or so they agreed to finally call the number. After the clerk at the traffic licensing bureau hung up she said that I could in fact get my license!!!

Five days of running around for the majority of the day and I'm scheduled for my C1E knowledge test and license assuming I pass next Friday! I want to note that the traffic bureau is 1 hour away by two busses, each way, from the center of Guilin, and I've seriously been all over the place getting this stuff in order. If it hadn't paid off in the end I would be really distraught right now!

I'll list everything that I needed for anyone that is interested:

1. Home country license translated by an official translator. Make sure they also translate your license classes as stated on your license. Example, mine is Canadian and only says class 5 and class 6, so had to get them to translate from the Canadian licensing website (ICBC) as to what this meant. Also make sure your Chinese name is on this translated form, this was something they checked for in my case. Cost was 100 kuai.

2. License photos - slighly smaller than a passport photo, 12 copies of which only about 3 or maybe 4 were needed, got at some random photo shop for 20 kuai.

3. Temporary Residence Registration - Of course a residence Visa or similar should work as well. The standard temporary residence registration form was all that was required of me. There was great confusion as mine was issued by a hotel, if it was issued by the local PSB (if I was staying in a rented apartment for example) I don't think I would have had any trouble at all. This was free.

4. Visa - Needs to be valid for more than 90 days. Mine was a class F Visa valid for 6 months with more than 5.5 months still remaining. If you're looking for a Visa valid for 6 months and can't get one in your home country I got mine in Hong Kong at Forever Bright Travel and I would recommend them. I couldn't get a Visa for this amount of time anywhere in Vancouver including through agents. Call them first as I believe the length available varies by country. Cost was 2000 HKD.

5. Photocopies - Photocopy of both sides of home country driver license (not translated), photocopy of main passport page, Visa, and entry/exit stamps for China. Maybe also your temporary residence registration, I just gave them my original. Cost 3 kuai.

6. "Physical" - Very brief and done in my case by the doctors located right next to the driver licensing bureau (they're more or less a part of the bureau in Guilin). Consists of a color blindness test and not much else. I guess he did see me writing some stuff on my application so probably inferred that my hands were working. Cost was 19 kuai.

7. This isn't really a requirement but including it for the total cost. Take approved application to the cashier window to make payment thereby reserving your test time/day. Cost was 110 kuai.

Probably most people wouldn't include the cost of a Visa, in which case my license cost me just over 250 kuai. Maybe there will be another fee for issuing the license when I pass my test, not sure yet. The process actually wouldn't have been that bad, I just don't think they had seen many foreigners in Guilin getting their motorcycle license and especially using a hotel issued temporary residence registration, so that caused great confusion in my situation. In theory it could have easily been done in three days or even two, in my case it took two days for the translation to be completed.

Also I had some very valuable help from a guy that previously got his car license in Guilin, his post on the subject can be found here: http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntre...readID=2143124

Now I need to get a motorcycle registered and properly licensed, which has been causing me a quite a few problems as I don't have a permanent registration and the few Chinese friends I have are living in areas where motorcycles are not allowed...

[euphonius]

Congratulations on getting this far. In China more than anywhere, perseverance pays! Hope you can sort out the bike plates and registration with similar ease or better.

Yours is not a typical holiday, that's for sure!

Keep us posted!

cheers