International Driving License

[kittylove 0]

i am currently holding a united arab emirates international driving license which is valid for 1 year and in UAE i was driving an automatic car. will it be a problem if i will be driving a manual car in california? please advise. thanks!

note: am currently using my uae international license for the time being.

[Kez/JWolf 6]

Check with your local DMV as to the rules of using your driving licence... the International licence is just a translated vesion of your countries one ....

Kez

[Otto 83]

FYI - Unlike many countries, there is no distinction for manual or automatic 'ability' (or classification) on a US driver's license.

[kittylove 0]

hey guys! thank you soo much for the info!!

[Mags 112]

FYI - Unlike many countries, there is no distinction for manual or automatic 'ability' (or classification) on a US driver's license.

I didn't know that! Learn something new every day.

[Yodrak 7]

sweetest_thing,

It may be a problem if you don't know how to use a manual shift.

Yodrak

..... in UAE i was driving an automatic car. will it be a problem if i will be driving a manual car in california? ....

[lucyrich 20]

Interesting question -- I don't know the answer, but practically, it doesn't matter.

In all the US states I'm aware of, there's generally no distinction in the license between an automatic or manual car. Some people with an obvious physical impairment (someone with only one leg, for example) may have a restriction on their license that requires an automatic, similar to the common restriction that requires the use of corrective lenses for those who can't pass the vision exam without them. But that restriction is rare. Most people get an unrestricted license, regardless of what kind of car they take the test in. I know I passed my initial driving test in an automatic, but shortly thereafter, I bought a manual transmission car. I've been driving manuals ever since, but I've NEVER demonstrated my ability to use a manual transmission in front of a license examiner or any other official.

On the other hand, an international driving permit doesn't give you any new privileges. It's just a translation of your original license. If your original license was for automatic only, the international permit wouldn't entitle you to anything more. But US police officers probably wouldn't be looking to cite you for violating that term of your license, since they're not used to seeing it on US licenses.

If you roll back into a car behind you when starting up a hill, you'll be cited for causing the accident, though. It's up to you to drive your car safely and maintain control of it, regardless of what kind of transmission it has.

Anyway, all of that discussion is probably moot, because it assumes you aren't actually coming to live in California, but just visiting temporarily while you maintain your home elsewhere. The moment you get an apartment or house in California, you only have ten more days to drive on an out of state license. After ten days, you have to get a California license or else stop driving. It doesn't matter when your license from your former place of residence would have expired. Since this is an immigration forum, I assume you're intending to live in California, so you'll need your California license within ten days.

Your California license will not be restricted as to automatic vs. manual transmission.

sweetest_thing,

It may be a problem if you don't know how to use a manual shift.

Yodrak

..... in UAE i was driving an automatic car. will it be a problem if i will be driving a manual car in california? ....