My boss kept urging me to get a driving license since I joined the company. Perhaps he was keen to mold me to be one of his sales team. No doubt, it is a lucrative job compared to my current post but selling is simply not my cup of tea.
Anyway, I still pursued my driving. My driving saga started in late November 2008. Being a neophyte with no knowledge at all in driving, my route was quite lengthy and financially draining.
Here are the guidelines you can refer if you wish to get a driving license in Abu Dhabi.
File Opening. You can open your file in the Traffic Police in Muroor district or in Emirates Driving School (the only legitimate driving school in Abu Dhabi) in Musaffa. The required documents will include passport copy with the visa stamp, passport picture and one Arabic letter from your company which you can always ask from your HR Office.
Then there will be an eye test also. Don’t worry because this service is available in the Traffic Police in Muroor. Once you finish the registration, you need to enroll for the theory class. Regardless of your driving skill level, this four days theory class is mandatory when obtaining a driving license in Abu Dhabi. It is followed by a written exam on the fifth day though the written exam is given only every Wednesday in Muroor area.
This entire process (file opening, eye test, theory class) will cost between AED 800 – AED 1,000.
After you pass the written exam, the next step is to go to Emirates Driving Company in Musaffa which is 20-30 minutes drive from the city proper.
Actual Driving Class. If you are a beginner, you need to enroll for the actual driving class that is consisting of five lessons. It is given in two sets, lessons 1-3 and lessons 4-5. Schedule for the classes are stretched from morning to late in the evening.
Lessons 1-3 will take you around one week to complete and lessons 4-5 for 10 days. Basically you will have a one-to-one session with the instructor. Your classroom will be the driving yard of Emirates Driving Company.
Emirates Driving Company
The schedule of your classes will depend on the availability. In my case, I passed my written exam in end of November but the earliest available for the actual driving class was on January only. There was more than a month gap from my theory class and actual driving lessons 1-3. The same scenario when you will get a schedule for lessons 4-5.
If you are flexible with the time, then the interim will not be long. As for me, I could only take evening classes, which I believed the most sought after schedule, because I have a fulltime job.
The fee for the actual driving class was between AED 2,200 – AED 2,400. This covers the entire lessons from one to five.
Because Mussaffa is far from the city proper, the taxi fare is quite expensive. I had to shell out between AED 35 – AED 50 per way for the taxi fare to Mussaffa for my daily driving lessons.
Parking Test. Parking test is scheduled only after you finish the entire driving lessons. That’s why you need to remember your lesson 3 because this will be the parking test. Fortunately, they offer refresher class for lesson 3.
Before you get a schedule for parking test, make sure you are scheduled for refresher class. This will give you better chance of passing the parking test.
Driving Yard of Emirates Driving Company
Green I.D. Card. After you pass the parking test, the Traffic Police will issue you a green ID card. It is a temporary driving card which will allow you to contract driving instructors. During your driving class in Emirates Driving School, you are driving only in the vicinity of the school. When you contract a driving instructor, you will be driving in the real road with his guidance.
There is no required number of hours. You have to personally gauge your capability. If you think you are already confident to drive alone, then you can proceed with the road test.
The driving instructor charges between AED50 – AED70 per one hour lesson however most of them take only a minimum of two hours. The instructor will pick and drop you off unfortunately this is already counted. It means for the two hours lesson, your actual driving class is only one hour and thirty minutes because fifteen minutes will count for your pick-up and another fifteen minutes for your drop off.
Road Test. Be early during your schedule for road test. Bring your appointment sheet, green card or temporary Driving ID, passport copy and AED 200. There will be two police, one seated in front and the other at the back, in the car.
When the policeman returns to you the green card, it means you didn’t pass. If the policeman hands you the appointment sheet, it means you pass.
After you pass, you have to go back to the Traffic Police, pay AED 200 and give the appointment sheet and passport copy. They will take you a photo and after 10-15 minutes, viola! You have your driver’s license.
Advance Level. If you know how to drive or have a driver’s license back home, you can skip the driving classes. Simply take a schedule for road test. If you pass, then you will instantly get your driver’s license. If you don’t pass, you need to take the driving lessons in Musaffa.
However, driver’s license from Australia, New Zealand, United States of America, Canada, UK and most of the European countries can transfer their current license to UAE license.
Personally, it was quite a long agony for me. Fortunately, I passed my road test and parking test in my first attempt.
Frugal Tips:
- Try to find a buddy when taking driving lessons in Mussaffa. It is cheaper to share the taxi bill with your buddy.
- There is a shared taxi from Musaffa to Abu Dhabi. Taxi drivers charge for AED 5 per person however if you don’t want to share, make sure you haggle for the fare. The average fare should be AED 25-AED 40 varying on your drop off location.
23 responses so far ↓
lorela // September 11, 2009 at 7:58 am |
hi cyra! will add this blog on my blogroll ha. i wonder why the rest of your blogs arent working anymore… hope to get more tips here.
vidhyaa // September 14, 2009 at 9:42 am |
you are so good
ash // October 22, 2009 at 5:13 am |
Hey buddy, It was quite a informative subjects ou have chosen to put it up here & quite enjoyed reading it too.. My wife works for Eitihad airways as Cabin crew & im stuck up here in LOndon, I’m a fully qualified driving instructor in UK but wud like to move to Abudhabi & was wondering if I can use my advance driving licence to teach ppl in Abudhabi, My wife 2 yrs back exchanged here UK licence to UAE licence with in hours.
any more information wud be appreciated….
CyraMiles // November 17, 2009 at 5:18 am |
@ Ash: Thanks for the appreciation.. I sent you a PM regarding your query. Hope it helps.
@ Vidhyaa: Thank you!
@ Lorela: Thanks for dropping by Lor!
Thashif // December 16, 2009 at 9:18 am |
Hi cyra…
The blog was really informative and quite interesting.. hey i plan to start the process to obtain my driving license on the start of jan.. actually i already have my indian driving license wit dat help me 2 reduce the length of my process 2 get the license.. Plz do tell me approx how long(in terms of months) wil it take 2 get my licence if i start it at jan 2010.. also if my indian driving license helps me out then hw long wil it take… ur info is appreciated..
Regards,
Tash
CyraMiles // December 17, 2009 at 3:48 pm |
Hi Tash,
Thank you for dropping by and I am glad that you find this blog to be informative. Somehow it serves its purpose…LOL!
If you have a driving license back home, you can request for road test schedule. If you pass, then the license is issued on the same day. If you fail, then you must enroll for the driving class.
Alternatively, you can book for assessment. They will evaluate your driving skill and will be asked to take the lessons required according to your level of driving.
The theory class is mandatory regardless if you are a beginner or seasoned driver already.
Lastly, I cannot tell you the duration because it varies. It depends on the earliest available slot for the classes.
Good luck!
Cyra
Navin Singh // February 18, 2010 at 12:52 pm |
Dear
Can you tell me total expense (Including Theory Class to the Final Test) for obtain diriving license and how much time required if i start from the month of March 2010.
h.shahid // March 29, 2010 at 5:05 pm |
i have dubai visa. can i apply from abu dhabi to get my licence
Cyra Miles // March 31, 2010 at 8:00 am |
Hi Shahid,
As far as I know, you can apply or open your license file only to the same Emirate in which your visa is issued.
Cheers
atik hasan // April 11, 2010 at 9:01 am |
which profession could open the file, and which not.pls. notify me early as possible.
mayura // April 15, 2010 at 9:38 am |
dubai visa holder can open an driving file in Abu dhabi?
Cyra Miles // April 15, 2010 at 3:18 pm |
Hi Mayura,
You can only open your file in the same Emirate where your visa is issued.
Cheers
Cyra
ashish kale // April 19, 2010 at 1:46 pm |
i have dubai visa. can i apply from abu dhabi two wheeler motorcycle licence and how much the total fee for file opning to get the licence
and what is the required documents i have india licence so any facilities
ashish kale // April 19, 2010 at 1:51 pm |
can i apply from abu dhabi two wheeler motorcycle licence and how much the total fee for file opning to get the licence
and what is the required documents i have india licence so any facilities
ashish kale // April 19, 2010 at 1:52 pm |
my vissa is dubai can i opening file in abu dhabi
Cyra Miles // April 23, 2010 at 4:45 am |
@ Ashish: Thanks for dropping by. You can only open your file in Dubai. I suggest that you contact the driving schools in Dubai for more details about your motorcycle license requirements and cost as I am not sure if it is the same for light vehicles.
Abhishek Shah // April 25, 2010 at 6:17 am |
Please send me the Chart of How I Get License Which is There on 1st floor of Emirates Driving Company in Musaffa
Pam A // June 22, 2010 at 2:04 pm |
Hi Cyra,
Thank you for sharing this. It is indeed very helpful. I just came back from Muroor today and have finally opened my own driving test file. I’ve never had any formal lessons in the past but am hoping for the best.
I am moving to Dubai soon so I can’t wait to get this all over with…successfully, I hope. Sounds like I have to brace myself…there are a lot of steps (and money) involved!
I’m happy I came across your blog.
Cyra Miles // June 29, 2010 at 4:40 am |
@ Pam: Thanks Pam that this blog helps you one way or another.. All the best! It is not a rocket science..
Nette // July 7, 2010 at 10:27 am |
Hi, Cyra, I chanced upon your blog while looking up for some parking test tips. I just had my parking test this morning in Emirates Driving Company, unfornately, I failed. Could you care to share some tips? I managed to park perfectly during the parking lessons (lesson 3) training and referesher, however, I still failed. I just noticed that the area of the parking test is quite bigger than that of what is being used for parking lesson.
Cyra Miles // July 27, 2010 at 3:55 am |
Hi Nette,
I was just lucky that the instructor was very kind during my parking test so I managed to pass it.
All I can say is my parkng skills improve only after I started driving.
All the best!
Cheers
libran1583 // July 28, 2010 at 11:31 am |
Hi.. Cyra
Quick one ..i have to go for 6 classes traning .. and need to pay 1500AED.. can i do my payment through my credit card, as m following short of some money .. please advise .. thanks ..
Cyra Miles // July 28, 2010 at 2:38 pm |
Hi Libran..I am not really sure if they accept credit card. Better to check with them directly.