DRIVER'S LICENSE

You need to have a valid driver’s license and also meet the qualifications to drive in Japan.
The detailed information is as follows. Please read through the information before departure.

Qualifications for Driving in Japan

Please check the qualifications necessary for driving automobiles in Japan.

• Qualifications
  Check Chart LEARN MORE

Driver’s License

Driver’s licenses which permit driving of automobiles in Japan are as follows:

Japanese Driver’s License

Driver's licenses issued by public safety commissions in Japan

International Driving Permit

International driving permits issued by a certifying body in one of the signatory countries/territories of the Geneva Convention based on the format of the Geneva Convention

Must be able to present passport at the same time.

List of signatories to the
Geneva Convention on Road Traffic

Expiration date:

• International Driver's License is valid for one year from the date of issue (please be sure to check the date of issue) and valid for driving in Japan for one year from the date of landing in Japan. (Please check the entry/exit stamp in your passport showing the date of landing in Japan).
• When using the “Automated Gate” for entry and exit, please ask a staff member to obtain an entry/exit stamp (landing permission seal) or bring a “specific registrant card” with you when passing through the gate. If you do not have your passport (landing permission seal) or “specific registrant card”, you will not be able to rent a car as the date of entry and re-entry cannot be confirmed.
• When going ashore on a cruise ship, please present your passport or "permit to land in Japan for cruise ship tourists" in which the "start of landing period" is described. If you don't have your passport or "permit to land in Japan for cruise ship tourists", you will not be able to rent a car as the date of entry cannot be confirmed.
• However, if a person listed in the Basic Resident Registration re-enter Japan within 3 months of his/her departure from Japan, the date of re-entry is not considered as the date of landing (the start date of acquiring driving license in Japan).

Foreign Driver’s License and its Japanese Translation

Driver's licenses issued in Switzerland, Germany, France, Taiwan, Belgium, or Monaco, along with a Japanese translation of the license

Must be able to present passport at the same time.

Notes:

• For the Japanese translation of your license to be valid, it must be issued by one of the following organizations:
  ・The issuing authority of the driver's license or the embassy/consulate of that country in Japan
  ・Japan Automobile Federation (JAF)
  ・Taiwan-Japan Relations Association (for Taiwanese licenses only)
  ・Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club (for German licenses only)
  ・Ziplus Co., Ltd. (for Taiwanese licenses only)
• Foreign driver's licenses are valid for driving in Japan for one (1) year from the date of landing in Japan (confirmed by the immigration stamp in the passport showing the date of landing in Japan) or until the expiration date of the foreign license, whichever is earlier.
  However, persons on the basic resident register who leave Japan and subsequently re-enter the country within less than three (3) months, will not have their re-entry date considered as their date of landing (the start date for driving eligibility in Japan).

For Customers Who Rent a Truck or Bus

Please check that your permit has a stamp in the D box for driving a car in the W4 class or BUS2 class.
D: Large passenger vehicle (10 passengers or more)