— Photo thanhnien.com.vn

HA NOI (Biz Hub) — Viet Nam will officially recognise international driving licences as of October 1, said Deputy Director of Directorate for Roads of Viet Nam (DRVN) Nguyen Van Quyen.

The licences are honored in 85 countries worldwide. Ha Noi and HCM City will be the first areas in the country to conduct pilot permission of the licences beginning in October, with an estimated fee of VND150,000.

Meanwhile, other cities and localities will invest in modern printers as preparation for issuing the driving licence. Issuing the licence is scheduled to be carried out nationwide in early November.

The recognition of the international driving licence is part of agreements signed by the country to join the Vienna Convention, which became effective in Viet Nam on August 20, 2015. The licence can be legally used in 85 nations which have participated in the convention, including European nations and five countries in Southeast Asia, including Viet Nam, Myanmar, the Philippines and Thailand, besides Indonesia.

There are five languages printed on the licence, including English, French, Russian, Portuguese and the language of the country that issues the licence.

The licence will be valid for three years, said Quyen.

To get the licence, Vietnamese citizens and foreigners living in Viet Nam should apply to the DRVN or the departments of transport, enclosing their original driving licences issued by Viet Nam, as well as passports and valid residence cards.

They will receive the licence five days after applying. This licence is not valid for people driving in Viet Nam, where drivers are still required to carry both international driving licence and domestic driving licence. This regulation will also be applied for Vietnamese citizens when they drive in other countries. — VNS