Driving License In Ba

[Irelander]

I happily drove with my Spanish EU licence for six years. When it expired, I went to get an Argentine one but when I got to my local office, I realised that my licence had expired. That meant that I had to re-sit the test. Man, what a bummer to have to do that again at the age of 47... I felt such an idiot. Anyway there was no alternative so I went on my bicycle to the Dirección General de Licencias in Av. Cnel. Roca to start the process. I did the sight test, the hearing test, the 'psychological' test (copying geometric shapes with a paper and pencil - I thought I'd failed, everybody else seemed to do much better). I then should have been given a date to go and sit the written exam, but I was told to go to the ventanilla and pay, and wait at the counter. It turned out that they gave me a licence anyway... saing that they had a convenio with Spain.

I seem to have been lucky with policias in my time here. I was stopped many times with the EU licence and I was never told I needed an Argie licence or asked for a coima. Usually they were quite intrigued to see a Spanish licence.

 

[Irelander]

Actually, one important thing I learned about the Argentine Driving Licence is that, if you're going back to the old country or other non-adjacent country, and you want to drive there, you need an International Driving Licence, which you get from Avenida Roca and which lasts for one year. This, they tell you, is all you need, but in my case I went home, went to pick up a hire car and when I showed them the international licence they wanted to see my Argentine one too... which I hadn't brought. They said they can't trust that it's valid, and it's true, the licence itself looks like something from the 1940s, a big cardboard book thing with stapled in photo. The point is that I handn't been warned about this in BA. I went to the cops and they told me the licence was tecnically valid to drive, but the hire company wasn't having any of it. I sorted the problem by swapping cars with a family member so they took the hire car, but it could have ruined my trip. I can't remember what company it was, Hertz or Europcar or someting, but it was a major car hire company and it was their policy. So be warned.

 

[PhilinBSAS]

jajajaj above was incomplete.

Alt+164 = ñ
Alt+165 = Ñ

All this is too much faff for me!

And it requires a numeric keyboard which isnt on my laptop and even switching to and from Span Int. keyboard is a bore

I would recommend the following little app which makes an intuitive leap by using the caps lock key plus whatever other key to be accented etc.

e.g ..... caps lock + n = ñ = simples

It's freeware and I have no financial interest in it - and its not even from my own home town and I've spam and virus checked no probs

It's described here

http://www.spanishnewyork.com/spanish-characters.html

 

[PhilinBSAS]

Agreed - I have a car here and haven't bothered to get an Argentine drivers license. Never really seen the need.

I guess after your recent experience this might be a reason for getting your licence in order?

..........

Got stopped today in one of those random stops. Police guy asks for license and all the paperwork. I have a foreign license. He starts off with telling me that it's not allowed for me to drive here with it. It is, I point that out, he tells me I'm wrong and we keep going. Long story short, he comes up with 3 or 4 random and untrue things that will necessitate a ticket. I tell him to write me a ticket as I'm late for a doctor's appt. (rookie mistake there). He then tells me that he won't let me drive on my license and I'm going to have to wait until someone will come pick me up. Obviously, he realizes that I'm in a rush and then follows it up with the standard "cough, cough - let's find a way to manage this situation".

Long story short - I had one hundred pesos on me. He told me that amount was worthless and he then oh so politely suggested that if I had dollars on me, the entire thing would go away and go easier. (He clearly had seen the bill in my wallet when I took out my license). As I was running late at this point and couldn't miss the doctor's appt, I wound up giving him the dollars I had with me. He thanked me very politely, handed me back my license and the like and got on his motorcycle and zipped away.

..................

Unlucky to have got caught out so soon after posting

 

[citygirl]

It did make me laugh re-reading what i wrote and then it happening a few days later. I've never had any cop say anything to me about my license when I've been checked before and I also have rented cars with my US license without any issue. So no, still don't see the need. Maybe when I become a perm resident, I'll reconsider.

 

[PhilinBSAS]

It did make me laugh re-reading what i wrote and then it happening a few days later. I've never had any cop say anything to me about my license when I've been checked before and I also have rented cars with my US license without any issue. So no, still don't see the need. Maybe when I become a perm resident, I'll reconsider.

Hope you have someone reliable with wheels standing by at all hours and with all their paperwork intact in a few months time!

I've had to do the hospital dash a couple of times when my children were born. But not here

Infact I recall we were actually stopped by the Police on the way - because the seat belt was dangling out from under the passenger door. But one look in the car and we were waved through with a police escort for the rest of the jouney - to the door at Maternity at least I should add :lol:

 

[citygirl]

Rest assured, when that time comes, I won't be the one driving myself to the hospital!! And the SO is Argentine so his paperwork shouldn't be an issue Heck, in a month or two, I'm not sure I'll even fit behind the wheel!

The best part of that entire debacle is that there were legitimate reasons the cop could have given me a hard time - cough, like my inspection being overdue or me not having the permission from the notary in the car to drive it (I registered it to the company). So I guess at the end of the day, I can't complain too much. (And memo to self - go get car inspected!!)

 

[Splitty]

I got my licence last month which involved.
3 x to La Roca and waiting 10 hours in lines (End of line H then another 30 peso TAXI)
Attending a driving school class for 3 hours to learn the difference between a green and red light $125 pesos
DNI, passport, proof of domicillio 2 copies of everything.
200 pesos to bribe the driving instructor as I couldn't be f...ked doing the practical
passing the eye, ear, pysch, medical before doing the theory ( You can buy books with the answers in them or Google for it)
The law changed recently and everyone has to sit the full set of test now.
Apparently you can do much of this at AAA which I would highly suggest after the debacle I went through.

I also got my gun licence last month which took about the same amount of bureaucracy and I still have no idea about the actual laws here.

 

[cbonanni]

City girl,

Wait until holidays are over for inspection. I hear it is a 12 hour wait !!

 

[nlaruccia]

I got my licence last month which involved.
3 x to La Roca and waiting 10 hours in lines (End of line H then another 30 peso TAXI)
Attending a driving school class for 3 hours to learn the difference between a green and red light $125 pesos
DNI, passport, proof of domicillio 2 copies of everything.
200 pesos to bribe the driving instructor as I couldn't be f...ked doing the practical
passing the eye, ear, pysch, medical before doing the theory ( You can buy books with the answers in them or Google for it)
The law changed recently and everyone has to sit the full set of test now.
Apparently you can do much of this at AAA which I would highly suggest after the debacle I went through.

I also got my gun licence last month which took about the same amount of bureaucracy and I still have no idea about the actual laws here.

If you have DNI Permanente and want an Argentine driver's license you have to take the driving exam as well as the written exam? I'm finally thinking of buying a car and am not sure if the insurance company will cover me with my U.S. driver's license or if I need an "international" or "Argentine" driver's license.