Learning to Drive

Hello,

Related to this question, I would like to know whether it is possible to get a driver's license in Kuwait. Can one take the written test in English?

I don't have a license and I will have to get one in Kuwait. Thanks in advance.

Dean i dont mean (lol, sorry ) to stereotype but, if you are interested in playing gaelic football, i know a group of craic-loving irishmen that would welcome you! if you work for GES you probably know them all already.

anyhoo, back to your matter - as a teacher you are allowed to get a drivers licence. however "learning" is not quite so easy - you need to first apply for a learners permit, you need some docs from your school, you go to this place in jabriya, give em the papers, they start the process and hand you a permit, then, you head over to Kuwait Motoring Company, its located down the 4th ring road, near the "assyma" DMV (main DMV), now they will initially give you all the training to pass the test. given that you need to learn more than that, n00b driver, you might stay with them longer, however you take the test at their grounds and so its easier to land the licence if that is indeed your purpose. seeing as how getting the licence is the only way to get a permit, then go ahead and get the licence.

if however you want to learn to drive a stick, then you'll need to ask in advance, they have ads in every paper in kuwait, so its only a matter of reading the arab times with your morning coffee before class.

as for EWB, it depends on your profession in your residency, as well as your salary - to get a licence. i do believe the test is available in English as it is now an online test with touch screens and stuff, hopefully they have english studying material too.

legacy wrote:

i do believe the test is available in English as it is now an online test with touch screens and stuff, hopefully they have english studying material too.

I can confirm that the test is available in English, can't say for the training materials though,

Thank you for the replies. I also will learn from scratch and I hope I can get a decent instructor. I will work as a professor in a university so I believe I am allowed to drive in Kuwait.

Legacy, no worries about the stereotype. I fit the bracket. Played a couple of times last year but it clashes with expat soccer that happens every Friday afternoon out near 360 mall.You're welcome to come along sometime, I'd be happy to pass on details.

I had some visa issues previously so need to get those sorted and get my civil id approved in my first couple of weeks back to get the ball rolling. But it is very reassuring to know that I can learn from scratch.

I've just spent the last two months in Ireland and to say it has been a pain not being able to drive is an understatement. I'm constantly depending on other people for lifts and then I want to bring my dog to the beach and forests and stuff so it's not really fair to ask people to look after a smelly dog as well as me. It would be a lot easier to get my licence and then go convert it to the Irish one when I get home next Summer and do some top up lessons.

Thanks for the advice and let me know about the soccer.

Dean.

i wouldnt mind the football m8! fill me in on the details of the next match! be forewarned tho; yes i am athletic, my chosen sport is running, so i have stamina to run up and down the pitch till the cows come home, however, i've lost count as to when was the last time i ever played football not sure if its like riding a bike, so my head-foot coordination might be slightly "off".

Look for Kuwait Motoring company - (KMC) or KGL maybe.  I did my license with them cost about 150KD but that was including a couple of lessons and fast track. Once they had all the paperwork then the whole thing took about 10 days. Once they had all the paperwork is the key word UK guy Andrew Docherty I dealt with who is a manager and they did group deals sure he wont mind me passing on the details as they're a company.

Andrew Docherty
Head of HSSE & Training
[email protected]
T   +965 1888 700 Ext: 222
M +965 6900 0084
F   +965 2224 5170

Well Sounds great gmannion! Thanks for the details as it would help others as well.

hey Dean..

one question - do you think they will let you drive or rent a car in Europe by showing your Kuwaiti Licence, let alone have it translated to an E.U. one?

In the UK if you're a  resident of another country then you're driving license is no longer valid. Kuwatis ship their cars to London and drive all the time on their licenses. No reason a car hire company would turn it down, its a valid license from a country. Saudi licenses are accepted in Europe from ex pats why not Kuwati?

Yes that's exactly what I assumed I could do when I got back to Ireland. Applied for an Irish license and then took some more lessons.

You need to use your European licence to get one here so I can't see why it wouldn't work the other way.

I spoke to a few people who advised this though haven't gone ouch official chNnels yet.

Besides in more based in Kuwait than in Ireland.

This is the online test
http://ttd.moi.gov.kw/ttd/qmcTestGetName.do?tbl=2

heres the thing; you want to learn to drive from scratch, that will cost you a bit more because the driving school we mentioned only teaches you enough to pass the exam. im using my wife as an example here (dont tell her I said any of this!) despite driving back home, on a manual car mind you! she was flabbergasted when she started driving here citing the cars are just too fast. even tho she had experience driving, she never drove at such speeds.

but in all cases; your first step is paying a visit to HR, getting the required paperwork to head over to Jabriya and apply for a learners permit. without said permit, no trainer will indulge your request for lessons.