I took my international license to the license office on Ba De Road amd they inserted a piece of paper and stamped it. I can drive legally in Taiwan until such time the international license expires ( that being one year from June 04)
Could I offer my humble opinion here? ::
Don’t be afraid or scared to take the Taiwanese driving license tests. It’s rather easy: Written test can be done in English. Anyone with a little driving experience can pass the practical part, even me. 
Almost all my foreign friends passed it the first time. All you need is a valid ARC, some time, patience and money to spare, and you’re out of trouble. This hassle you’re describing with the international license would be too mafan for me! 
Norbert
About this 60 days rule (or 30 days - depending on your info source) - for using an international license.
Does the clock start again every time you leave Taiwan and return.
We spend about 2 weeks every 2 months in Taiwan, spouse owns a car here, and I have an ARC.
Can I apply the 60/30 day rule if they ask for my license - does that mean I have to carry my passport to prove that it is only 10 days since I last arrived?
Given that - the only time I had occasion to show my licenses to the police, they were treated with similar interest to used toilet paper (licenses that is - not police). Maybe the fact that the Chinese who pranged me had no ID or drivers license to show may have clouded his enthusiasm to inspect my documents.
Incidentally I was on my way to a western NYE party and almost missed the clock after signing documents a police station with my thumb, to accept the compensation offered.
Do they ask for proof of residence location and kick you out the door if your registered place is Jilong?
Rian, have you tried getting your international driving permit stamped at the Keelung DMV?
I don’t know about the 30/60 day thing you mentioned, but if you could get your IDP stamped for the remainder of its validity then you needn’t worry about it.
I think the Jilong DMV is in Qidu - they don’t speak much English there
Hi
I’ve already posted on another thread about this topic, but just in case - how international driving licenses are handled is different per country (and in the US, different even by individual states!!!). Go to thb.gov.tw/english/left-licences.htm for more info. The guy with a UK one, it’s okay for 12 months.
All the best
Ben
You can’t extend it but you can get your parents to take in your local licence with your passport size photos and have anew one issued.
Anyways you don’t take ya kid on the scooter do ya mate?
I’ve always seen you walk everywhere, even with a big woc in hand.
For the first time ever (4th year here) I went to get my International driving permit stamped as I read somewhere that after 30 days it needs a stamp.
They asked what state in Aus I am from. Funny question I thought. They then told me that I can not drive in Taiwan. I tracked down the manager and got a photocopy of a document that says if you are from Canberrra or Western Australia you have reciprocal rights. So, obviously the same thing would work in reverse off a Taiwan issued international licence being used in Australia.
Note that I have no ARC and come in on a 90 day visa as thats plenty of time before a trip out for whatever reason.
So, I still do not believe this. There has to be a communication/ interpretation error. Anybody know about or heard about this?
I heard something similar when I converted my DL from Ohio to one here; I was surprised that they asked me which state I was from, rather than which country, because we are used to such rights being based on nationality. But in the US, DL’s are issued by states, not the nation, and so decisions in each state about whether a Taiwanese DL can be exchanged for a local one without testing are made separately. Thus, Taiwan only recognizes DL’s of those states which recognize Taiwanese ones.
That’s my limited understanding of it. Hopefully someone can correct me if this is not right.
Well, they could be right…Some laws change overnight around here and the same thing happened to me when I first came here four years ago…I had gotten myself a Canadian International driving permit from my Hometown of Montreal…and when I went to the DMV here, they saw that my permit had been issued in the province of Quebec…they then told me that my permit was not valid in Taiwan since there had been some law changes involving several Canadian provinces…(driver’s permits are issued from the provincial govt in Canada, not federal)…so, to make a long story short, some provinces in Canada were approved and some weren’t!..It makes no sense to me be from what I was told I understood that it’s a two way deal when it comes to these things…If one nation(state or province for this matter) revokes the recognition of a Taiwanese permit, then in turn, Taiwan revokes that privilege from that place as well!..so, you might be in the middle of one of these fiascos…
My advice is, if you are here for short durations, keep your international drivers permit up to date in Australia and if you are ever pulled over here, just say you weren’t aware of this ammendment…chances are that the cop won’t even know either!..cheers
I’m from Ontario and didn’t have any problems with my international license. So it could be that Taiwan only recognizes certain places where your license is issued, and not just your nationality. BTW, didn’t know you were also a fellow Canuck Skylarkpuma eh!
Yeah, there’s no way the cop would know each state’s deal; just show it and pretend it’s valid. It should only matter if you go to the BMV to trade it in for something.
Oh, and speak French or something weird to them if you know it. Some say you’re even less likely to get a ticket this way. I’ve avoided tickets using English, Cantonese and Spanish. The only ticket I ever got was the time I blurted out something in Chinese without thinking. Then again, that was also the only time I accidentally knocked the cop’s bike over while parking mine 
Coincidence? You decide.
My international permit just states that Taiwan is on the list.
As far as local law enforcement goes I have been told to order items such as Taco’s, Enchilada’s and Margarita’s then give them the how to use instructions from your latest purchase in 6 languages.
Not happy so far, I still hope to find out its all a big mistake and I can drive legally.
Just repeat after Speedy Gonzales,
Epa, epa, arriba, 'riba, andale, yeehaaah!
They won’t know what to make of you. 
I just found this confusing information:
Go to: thb.gov.tw/english/australia.htm
and other countries. thb.gov.tw/english/licences.htm
My situation is as below where Taiwan drivers come to Victoria they can drive for 3 months but it is not officially recognised so I have the same unofficial approval. (confused yet)
Although our int
Try going to another DMV. Taiwan is not famous for its left/right hand co-ordination. Perhaps they won’t have an issue.
[quote=“Dragonbones”]Just repeat after Speedy Gonzales,
Epa, epa, arriba, 'riba, andale, yeehaaah!
They won’t know what to make of you. [/quote]
:bravo: :bravo: :bravo:
I had a similar thing happen last summer. They looked up my state (U.S.) and said “You don’t like us, so we don’t like you.” It was great! That was their best English translation of “we don’t have a reciprocal agreement with your state.” What that means is the most important, however. It means that they will not let me drive with ONLY my state’s drivers license here. However, I had a valid IDP and they eventually stamped that, grumbled some, stuck some paper in it, and let me go, telling me it was good for one year.
I think we’re talking about 2 different things here. On the one hand, is using your home country/state’s license to exchange for a Taiwanese license. This is subject to reciprocity. If your state/country does not allow Taiwanese to exchange their licenses for a local one, then you also do not have that privilege in Taiwan.
Now, the other thing, which I think is the subject of this thread, is if you have an international driving permit issued in your home country. You can drive with those in Taiwan for 30 days. If you stay longer than 30 days, then you can go down to the Taiwan DMV, and have it stamped, and a little piece of paper stuck in it, at which point, it becomes valid for the term of the permit. I was in Taiwan for 2 years, and I did this with no problems. After the first time, all I did was bring in my old IDP along with the new one, and show them the paper and the stamp, and they understood immediately what I needed, and took care of it with no hassle.
I just went to my local DMV (Taichung) today to do the test for o-tho-bai (passed!). While I was there anyway, I showed my international driving license (issued in Germany) and asked whether I could use it to drive a car in Taiwan. The woman at the counter had me fill in a form which was then glued into my IDP. It is valid for 6 months. She said that I could extend it after six months as long as the IDP itself is still valid. I am prepared to get a different answer in six months, when I am going to extend it, but for now I can use it, which is cool.
Driving legally in Taiwan, wow.