rusty747

I am a few years into my MM2H visa and getting ready to turn occasional visits to Penang into one permanent stay.

With age 60 on the horizon and associated loss (or difficulty in renewing) my UK licence, can anyone advise the easiest way to get a Malaysian licence please?

Thanks

SushiFan

Have you found this thread already: http://britishexpats.com/forum/retir...laysia-870306/
This describes how to get a Malaysian driver's license if you have a UK driver's license.
For people from certain other countries is the procedure simpler.

ex reg

I don't have to re new my paper UK license until I'm 70.

Is your renewal something to do with the new photo licenses?

IanBlakeley

UK photo card licence is valid for 10 years at a time so you need to renew every 10 years, once you reach 70 that becomes every 3 years. DVLA will only send a licence to a UK address so as long as you've the ability to have mail sent to a UK address you're good.

My current UK licence is good until 2023 so as yet I can't see the need to convert to a Malaysian one.

SushiFan

Elsewhere on this forum was it discussed how long you are allowed to drive on your UK driver's license in Malaysia. Formally speaking there seems to be a time limit, however I forgot how many months this is. How the authorities check and enforce this is unclear to me. Please be forewarned.

bakedbean

You said .....easiest way, not cheapest.
I would be inclined to just go to Alter Domus and get them to do it for you, for a fee, of course. But then I am getting increasingly lazy.

IanBlakeley

I did look but the only hard information I found was on the JPJ website which basically said as long as the licence is valid in the country of issue.

NeonHippy

Yes, the key word here is valid. When you leave the UK and no longer have a UK address DVLC will tell you that your licence is invalid after 3 months. As others have pointed out it is very unlikely that an inquisitive police officer will put two and two together and make 4. However, my concern would be if you are involved in a serious accident. Insurance companies are renowned for seeking any excuse not to pay out on a policy. If you are driving without a valid licence you may find yourself being sued for a large sum in 3rd party injuries.

Applying for the licence yourself can be a pain but I wonder how certain agencies can be so successful and wonder if any of the fee is used to grease the wheels. Personally I feel the best way I can help stamp out corruption is to not support it. Make your own application and just be patient and persistent.