I've been riding motorcycles for 20 years here in China.. I never took a test.. They didn't know what to do then so just gave me one.. Tests are straightforward if you have a foreign license.. Someone has said things about a tourist driving license but trust me.. There is no way you can be prepared for driving on the roads in this country. The only thing that works is experience.. Catch 22...
read my blog and live vicariously.. www.simplesite.com/jonsims


Quote Originally Posted by ZMC888 View Post
Getting a Chinese Motorcycle License

It is illegal to ride in China without a Chinese motorcycle license. Overseas driving licenses (with the exception of a few places) and International Driving Permits are not recognized in China.

The costs associated with, and ease or difficulty of obtaining Chinese driving licenses can vary from province to province, autonomous region to autonomous region and city region to city region. Some smaller cities and cities that prohibit motorcycles will not issue licenses. In autonomous regions that have security difficulties it likely to be much more difficult for a foreign nationals to get a Chinese motorcycle license. National laws are also 'interpreted' and this interpretation becomes in essence, the local law.

Many foreign riders have ridden in China without a Chinese motorcycle license successfully, some even for years. It would seem bigger, wealthier cities can and do take licenses seriously, whereas smaller cities and rural areas may or may not take things as seriously at all, or may only take things seriously on a purge basis or in the event of an accident. Also as time passes the whole country is taking driving laws more seriously. 'Taking things seriously' could potentially mean 15 days detention in a detention center or even being deported. Easier to enforce rules are enforced first. So speeding, traffic signals, vehicle registration, insurance and driving license checks are top of the list.

Recent rules suggest that you can get a full Chinese driving license transferred or do the complete test as long as you have 6 months remaining on your visa (any kind). These rules are interpreted differently in different places, so there could be a variation between how much length remains on your visa or which visa type is acceptable. Also that theoretically you could get a temporary license, but as an independent visitor it is unlikely that one could be issued unless for a car, but it's worth asking.

The test was rewritten in 2013.

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!