Gaimen practice questions

Guides to converting a foreign driving license in Japan

Guides to the 外免切替 procedure, written from what the National Police Agency and the prefectural police actually publish — and citing it, page by page.

License conversion is administered by the prefectural police where you live, at their driving license centre or test centre. The documents, the way appointments are released, and the practical-test course all differ by prefecture. These guides give the national framework first, then set the published practice of the Tokyo, Osaka, Saitama and Kanagawa police side by side. Where a rule cannot be generalised, it is not generalised here.

Two things are in motion. An amendment to the Road Traffic Act Enforcement Regulations, in force 1 October 2025, tightened address verification, the knowledge confirmation and the practical confirmation. An amendment to the Enforcement Order takes effect on 1 September 2026 and lowers the default speed limit on residential roads. Out-of-date explanations of both are still circulating widely, so read the "last verified" date at the top of each guide before you rely on it.

Source Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department — “Amended Road Traffic Act Enforcement Regulations, in force 1 October 2025” (in Japanese) · National Police Agency — “The statutory speed limit for cars on residential roads is being lowered” (in Japanese)

Guides

Practice questions by topic

Practice for the knowledge confirmation, grouped into the six topics the test leans on most. Five questions each, every one with a full explanation.

What the written test actually asks

How these pages are written

Every factual claim carries a link to the body that issued it — the National Police Agency, a prefectural police force, or JAF. Secondary sources such as immigration-consultancy blogs are not used as authority for anything. Where a claim could not be traced to a primary source it was left out rather than hedged. The prefectural police where you live decide your application, so confirm the detail with the original and with their counter before you apply.

Sources

Everything on this page is drawn from the public statements of the bodies listed below. Because the procedure is administered by the prefectural police where you live, check the original before you apply.