Can a Foreigner Have a Driving License in Indonesia?

PERTANYAAN

Can foreigners get driving license in Indonesia? How long is the validity period for a driving license in Indonesia?

INTISARI JAWABAN

The answer to your question about whether a foreigner can get a driving license is yes. Driving licenses can be issued to Foreign Citizens by fulfilling a number of requirements, one of which is immigration documents. What are they?

Please read the review below for a further explanation.

ULASAN LENGKAP

This article is an English translation of Bisakah WNA Memiliki SIM di Indonesia? written by Dian Dwi Jayanti, S.H., and published on Wednesday, 9 August 2023.

This article is an update of the article entitled Driving Licence Validity Period for Foreigners first written by Letezia Tobing, S.H., M.Kn. and published on Wednesday, 15 July 2015.

All legal information available on Klinik hukumonline.com has been prepared for educational purposes only and is general in nature (read the complete Disclaimer). In order to obtain legal advice specific to your case, please consult with Justika Partner Consultant.

Can a Foreigner Have a Driving Licence?

Before answering your question about whether foreigners can have a driving license, you need to know first the definition of a driving license (in Bahasa Indonesia is known as Surat Izin Mengemudi/ "SIM"). A driving license is proof of the legitimacy of the driver's competence according to the type and class of driving license he/she has after fulfilling administrative requirements, age, physical and spiritual health, and has passed through the testing process.[1]

Every person who drives a motor vehicle on the road is required to have a driving license in accordance with the type of motor vehicle driven which is issued by the National Police through the Driving License Administration Unit (Satuan Penyelenggara Administrasi SIM/ "Satpas") which is an implementing agency of the National Police in the traffic sector that organizes driver registration and identification activities.[2]

The driving licenses issued consist of:[3]

1. individual driving license;
2. general driving license; and
3. international driving license.

The issuance of a driving license is based on an application. Driving license issuance includes requirements and procedures for driving license issuance.[4]

The requirements for driving license issuance consist of age, administration, health, and passing the test.[5] For the issuance of an individual driving license and a general driving license, the administrative requirements for driving license issuance are as follows:[6]

1. fill in and submit the driving license registration form manually or show proof of registration electronically;
2. attach a photocopy and show an electronic identity card for Indonesian Citizens or immigration documents for foreigners;
3. attach a photocopy of the original driving school certificate of education and training certificate issued by an accredited driving school, no later than 6 (six) months from the date of issue;
4. attach a photocopy of the original work permit from the ministry in charge of manpower for foreigners working in Indonesia;
5. carry out biometric recording in the form of fingerprints and/or facial recognition or eye retina; and
6. submit proof of payment of non-tax state revenue;

The immigration documents for foreigners mentioned above consist of:[7]

1. passport and permanent stay permit card for those who are permanently domiciled in Indonesia;
2. passport, diplomatic visa, diplomatic membership card, and other identification for those who are embassy staff or family; or
3. passport and service visa or temporary stay permit card (Kartu Izin Tinggal Sementara/ "KITAS") for those working as experts or students studying in Indonesia.

In our opinion, this is different from an international driving licence issued in Indonesia which is only valid in the territory of another country and for an international driving licence issued in another country which is valid in the territory of the Republic of Indonesia based on the 1968 Convention on Road Traffic.[8]

Driving Licence Validity Period

Referring to Article 4 section (1) Police Regulation 5/2021, there is no distinction between the driving license period for Indonesian Citizens and foreigners, individual driving licenses and general driving licenses are valid for 5 (five) years starting from the date of issuance and can be extended before the expiration date.

So what happens if the validity period of a driving licence expires? The driving license is no longer valid if it expires and the Driving License Administration Unit will revoke the driving license.[9]

These are the answers we can provide, we hope you will find them useful.

Legal Basis:

Police Regulation Number 5 of 2021 on the Issuance and Marking of Driving Licences.

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[1] Article 1 number 6 Police Regulation Number 5 of 2021 on the Issuance and Marking of Driving Licences (“Police Regulation 5/2021”).

[2] Article 2 section (1) and (2) and Article 1 number 9 Police Regulation 5/2021.

[3] Article 3 section (1) Police Regulation 5/2021.

[4] Article 6 section (1) and (2) Police Regulation 5/2021.

[5] Article 7 Police Regulation 5/2021.

[6] Article 9 section (1) letter a Police Regulation 5/2021.

[7] Article 9 section (2) Police Regulation 5/2021.

[8] Article 3 section (12) and (13) Police Regulation 5/2021.

[9] Article 5 section (1) Police Regulation 5/2021.