Friday, November 11, 2011

Renewing your driver's license

It had been almost three years since I last renewed my non-professional driver's license (DL) and I had already forgotten what to do. All I know is that doing it in one of LTO's Driver's License Renewal Center (DLRC) is convenient and fast.

My suggestion is to call the DLRC you are going to, to confirm what time they close and suggest that you arrive there about one hour before closing time. When I called up the one at SM Manila I was told that they usually close at 7PM, but for the month of November they close at 5 PM because they have to practice for the cheerleading contest for their family day.

It beats going to a regular LTO Office, which was where I went when I returned from a 1 1/2 year stay in Australia in 2006. I was penalized then due to an expired license. The LTO office in FTI was hot, had long lines and so slow.



Once you arrive in one of the DLRC, you do the following:

1. Accomplish and submit the application form (which you can get from the LTO staff)
2. Proceed to the Drug Testing Center and get the required forms. Fill three forms and submit it at the counter. Wait to be called.
3. Once called, they take you picture then sign a form and given a bottle to fill with urine.
4. You then go another office to have your eyes checked for vision (both of my eyes were rated 20/25 and was told that a prescription glasses would be required if your eyes are 20/40) and color blindnesss.
5. Go back to the Drug Testing Center and submit the forms again. Wait to be called.
6. Pay P400 for the the tests and get the accomplish forms and submit it to the DLRC. Wait again to be called.
7. Get your picutre taken and give a specimen signature by signing on a tablet. Wait again to be called.
8. Pay P418. Well, its between P417 and P418, but they don't give you the change, he he he.
9. Get your new license.

It looks tedious, but all the procedures take only less than 45 minutes and you do it in the comfort of an air-conditioned mall.

If only motor vehicle registration can be as easy as getting a license, then what a wonderful world this would be.

Oh by the way, for expired DLs, the penalty is as follows:

1 day - 1 year - P75
1 year and 1 day - 2 years - P150
More than 2 years - P225

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