Driving licence options

[Stevan]

hi

if you do not have PR it is a drivers permit and you wont loose your uk licence.

to exchange a uk licence for a SA one which you must do, if you are permenant is a bit of a mission and not only because of SA.

First you must get a letter from the uk embassy stating which classes of vehicals you are allowed to drive. this was a nightmare for me every time i phoned the embassy nobody seemed to know or care about what i was asking. in the end i contacted the hounory consul in PE. the lady was a star, sent her copies of my licence via email she notorised them wrote me a letter and returned that day. cost was about R500.

go to an optitian who is authorised to do driving eye tests and get a certificate from him, mine did it for free others may charge. this will save you hours at the test center. if not you will have to join the line for an eye test. go to counter with forms and photos. they will look at you funny scurry arround till they find somone who knows what to do then process. you will be issued a temporary licence on the spot with your full licence about a month later. they never asked for my uk licence and i did not offer it so i now have two licences.

[niknik88]

Hi Stevan,

Sorry for my lack of knowledge here but what is the difference between a drivers permit and the SA licence? Does that require the same documents?

Originally Posted by Stevan

hi

if you do not have PR it is a drivers permit and you wont loose your uk licence.

to exchange a uk licence for a SA one which you must do, if you are permenant is a bit of a mission and not only because of SA.

First you must get a letter from the uk embassy stating which classes of vehicals you are allowed to drive. this was a nightmare for me every time i phoned the embassy nobody seemed to know or care about what i was asking. in the end i contacted the hounory consul in PE. the lady was a star, sent her copies of my licence via email she notorised them wrote me a letter and returned that day. cost was about R500.

go to an optitian who is authorised to do driving eye tests and get a certificate from him, mine did it for free others may charge. this will save you hours at the test center. if not you will have to join the line for an eye test. go to counter with forms and photos. they will look at you funny scurry arround till they find somone who knows what to do then process. you will be issued a temporary licence on the spot with your full licence about a month later. they never asked for my uk licence and i did not offer it so i now have two licences.

[chrisc2615]

Very useful info! The lady I spoke to at the testing centre also mentioned the permit, but pointed out that it is temporary. When I asked what period of time it was valid she said one, year, but then amended that to 3 years.

The "someone who knows what to do" is the important bit

[Stevan]

Originally Posted by niknik88

Hi Stevan,

Sorry for my lack of knowledge here but what is the difference between a drivers permit and the SA licence? Does that require the same documents?

a drivers permit is a paper licence. it basicaly means you wont need an international drivers licence if you dont have a SA licence when stopped by police or hiring a car. having said that never showed my international licence once when stopped and was never asked for it. you would have problems hiring a car without one or the other though.

[Rod Pringle]

Originally Posted by Saartjie

I heard of a guy who waited 11 years for his ID book. During that time HA sent him his birth certificate which stated that he was a woman. HA then asked him to provide divorce papers to evidence divorce although this guy had never been married. Finally they sent him an sms telling him to collect his own his death certificate. Got to love the efficiency of HA.

Most of these stories are old, and some are urban legends - Home Affairs are greatly improved these days and most offices offer friendly and efficient service.

The good news for niknik88 is that he or she doesn't need to go near them. A UK license, supported by an International Driving Permit, is all you require until, and if you want to obtain permanent residence. Once you have that you will be given a South African ID number, which will enable you to swap your British Licence for a local one. You cannot do it before that - no matter what the lady in Hillstar says.

[Saartjie]

Originally Posted by Rod Pringle

Most of these stories are old, and some are urban legends - Home Affairs are greatly improved these days and most offices offer friendly and efficient service.

The good news for niknik88 is that he or she doesn't need to go near them. A UK license, supported by an International Driving Permit, is all you require until, and if you want to obtain permanent residence. Once you have that you will be given a South African ID number, which will enable you to swap your British Licence for a local one. You cannot do it before that - no matter what the lady in Hillstar says.

Not sure which HA offices you usually visit but 'friendly' and 'efficient' are not words that many would use. Sure there are exceptions (I for example found the Barrack St office very good) but any other office that I have visited has been super inefficient, very unhelpful and a thoroughly unpleasant experience usually achieving nothing. Waiting 10 months for my work endorsement and 5 months for my daughters birth certificate are only some of their excellent work lately.

The story about the guy who waited 11 years for his ID was shown on Carte Blanche at the end of last year.

[niknik88]

Hi guys, sorry to bring up this topic again but I've not been able to find anyone in this area who can help me. Do any of you know what forms I would need to fill out and what documents I would need to take with me?
Really appreciate your help

[Johanna]

Originally Posted by niknik88

Hi guys, sorry to bring up this topic again but I've not been able to find anyone in this area who can help me. Do any of you know what forms I would need to fill out and what documents I would need to take with me?
Really appreciate your help

I think you will find all the relevant information here:

Convert your foreign driver?s licence

[Ruaan Kriel de Andrade]

Home Affairs really has improved considerably in the last few years. Still distinctly "African" Ito of work ethic - but at least appear to be better organised. Let me tell you this, I lived in the UK for 3 years - I never swapped licences there, but I know the UK was only temporary for me. If you serious about staying - it's one of things you must do. And seriously, I failed my learners twice and passed drivers first time round. But Ye, totes go for a few K49/53 lessons.

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