Renew Your Chinese Licence Before It Lapses
How to renew a Chinese driving licence as a foreign resident: the medical check, the window before expiry, and what changes if it lapses.
No published figure yet. The authority does not publish this cost in a form we could verify and quote, so this guide covers the procedure only: what to bring, in what order, and where it goes wrong. We will add the figures the moment there is a source for them.
In order
- Find the expiry date on your Chinese licence — Read it off the card itself and note it somewhere you will see it again.
- Confirm which office handles renewals where you live — Ask your employer's HR contact or the local office directly for the address and opening hours.
- Book the medical check — Treat it as part of the renewal and complete it inside the renewal window.
- Collect your documents — Bring your passport, residence permit, current Chinese licence and the medical check result.
- Go to the office inside the renewal window — Do this before the expiry date, not after it.
- Ask what applies if your licence has already lapsed — A lapsed licence is handled differently, so get the answer before you spend time or money on the medical check.
- Keep the new licence with you — Once issued, the Chinese licence is the document that counts, not your foreign one.
A Chinese driving licence carries its own expiry date, and renewing it is a separate procedure from converting a foreign licence. The medical check is part of the renewal, not an optional extra. Start before the expiry date printed on the card, because a lapsed licence is handled differently.
Renewal is not conversion
Conversion is the one-time process of exchanging a foreign licence for a Chinese one. Renewal is what you do afterwards, each time the Chinese licence reaches its expiry date. Once your Chinese licence has been issued, your foreign licence is not a substitute for it, even if it is still valid in your home country. If you are stopped or need to show a licence, the Chinese one is the document that counts. Treat renewal as its own task with its own steps. Do not assume the paperwork from your original conversion will carry over.
The renewal window and the medical check
The renewal window opens before the expiry date, not on it. Check the expiry date on your licence as soon as you settle into your new posting, and plan the renewal inside that window rather than after it. The medical check is a required part of the renewal. It is not something you can skip or do later as a separate errand. Arrange it as part of the same process, and keep the result with your renewal paperwork.
If the licence has already lapsed
A licence that has passed its expiry date is not renewed in the same way as one still inside its window. The office treats a lapsed licence as a different case, so do not walk in expecting the standard renewal to apply. If your licence has lapsed, ask the office handling your renewal what applies to your situation before you pay for a medical check or take time off work. The answer depends on how long it has been lapsed and on local practice, and it is not something this guide can settle for you.
What to do at the office
Bring your passport, your residence permit, your current Chinese licence and the medical check result. Confirm the address and opening hours of the office that handles renewals where you live before you go, since this is handled locally. This is a description of the procedure, not legal, tax or immigration advice. Requirements and handling vary by city, so confirm the details with the local office before you rely on them.
Confirm before you act
Fees and processing times change. This page was checked on 2026-10-30; confirm the current rule with the authority named in each source above before you rely on a deadline.
Last checked 2026-10-30, next review 2027-04-28. Every figure above names its source and the date it was read. This page is a guide, not legal, tax or immigration advice — confirm with the authority before acting on a deadline.