The Friday morning my husband and I headed out to get our Mexican driver’s licenses in Guadalajara didn’t start well. Street closings in our neighborhood due to the annual La Romería religious pilgrimage had created worse gridlock than normal.
As we neared the Secretaria de Transporte (where licenses are handled), traffic snarled again. This time the reason was an accident between a car and a motorcycle. As we passed the grim scene, we saw the motorcyclist still splayed on the pavement, surrounded by a small crowd.
It felt like a bad omen. But we shouldn’t have worried.
A Quick Review of the Facts
Anyone with a driver’s license from their home country can legally drive in Mexico as a tourist for up to 90 days.
U.S. expats who decide to live here may bring a U.S.-plated car to the Mexican mainland on a temporary import permit (TIP). In this scenario, you can drive here legally as long as your foreign license, residency visa, and TIP are still valid (and you hold a Mexican insurance policy).
But what happens when your foreign license is set to expire? It can be a real hassle to return to your native country to get a new one.
In this case, your best option is to apply for a Mexican license to keep driving here legally.
Where to Go for Your Mexican Driver’s License in Guadalajara
Now, unlike most bureaucratic procedures in Mexico, you do not need an appointment to get your Mexican license. I suggest just showing up to take care of this rather than wasting time online trying to arrange an appointment.
The Secretaria de Transporte de Jalisco office in Guadalajara is located at Av. Prol. Alcalde S/N, Jardines Alcalde, 44290 Guadalajara, Jal.
My theory that Friday would be the least busy day of the week turned out to be dead wrong. One of the SDT staff told us Fridays are the worst day to apply for a license in Guadalajara.
Apparently, more of the staff take Fridays off. Plus, more locals come to apply for licenses after getting paid (Fridays are payday in Mexico).
If your time isn’t infinite, this is worth keeping in mind as you plan your visit.
What Documents Should You Bring to Apply for a Driver’s License?
- Your Passport, with a copy of the information page.
- A valid foreign license (if you have one), with a copy of the front & back.
- A proof of CURP number document. My post here explains how to get it.
- Proof of your Mexican residence (comprobante de domicilio) such as a CFE (electric) or Siapa (water) bill, with your name on it – the original & copy.
- For expats, bring your Mexican residency visa, with a copy of the front & back.
- A completed driver’s license application.
Step 1 – Present Your Documents at the “Dirección de licensias”
When you walk in the front door of the Secretaria de Transporte de Jalisco building, there’s an information desk. I was told to head down the ramp to the lower level and join the Licensia line, which had about 20 people in it at 10 AM on a Friday.
Regarding the proof of residence, I had no utility bill with my name on it. Instead, I showed our CFE bill containing my husband’s name AND a copy of our marriage certificate with both of our names on it, to prove my connection to this person on the CFE bill. Fortunately, the lady processing our documents accepted it.
It was odd that they make such a big deal of having your name on the proof of address document, as this isn’t necessary anywhere else in Mexico that a comprobante de domicilio is required.
I suppose if you rent an apartment and the property owner’s name is on your CFE bill, it would help to bring a copy of your rental agreement as well to prove that you live at that address.
Another expat I know who didn’t have a utility bill in his name brought a copy of his local bank account statement instead, as that showed his name and a Mexican address. Fortunately, they accepted that too.
As for the driver’s license application, I have no idea where others were picking it up. We got ours at the first window where we presented our documents.
Anyone who’s dealt with Mexican Immigration or SAT knows how much bureaucrats here love their copies. So be sure to bring all of those copies with you and avoid the hassle of having to hit up the copy shop on-site.
That said, if you find that you’re still short copies (like we were!) you can get them for 2 pesos per page.
Step 2 – Data confirmation (Captura de Datos)
Once you’ve gotten your documents processed, you will be moved to another room to wait in a new line.
Here you wait to see a person who enters all of your personal data into a computer and prints it out for you to review.
Be sure to validate that your personal data is correct as it will be used to make your license. My lady had keyed in a name incorrectly and had to do it again.
Step 3 – Biometrics
Next, you will head to another section to wait for someone to become available to capture your finger & thumbprints, then take your photo. In our case, this step went very quickly.
As a side note, there are no questions about whether you use corrective lenses. And there is no vision test. I guess you could be semi-blind and still get a license in Mexico (as long as it’s not your first one).
Step 4 – The Written Driver’s Test
The test consists of answering 10 questions on a touch-screen computer. It can be taken in Spanish or English.
That said, the English translations are hilariously bad, so it might be worth taking in Spanish if your language skills are decent. For example… sigue was translated as “follow” instead of “keep going” while alto (it was referencing a stop sign) got translated as “high,” which is nonsensical.
I guess this is what happens when you run the Spanish content through a translation app and no one bilingual reads the output to confirm it makes sense before green-lighting its use.
If you decide to take the test in English, studying the practice questions will help you a LOT, especially with interpreting confusing signage that tends to dominate the written test. You can find practice questions posted to the files of the Mexpat Guadalajara group on Facebook.
Because I’m a type A person, I reviewed all of the practice questions (and the answer key) at least three times. So, I immediately noticed that the practice exam did NOT contain all of the signs that appeared on my actual test. If this happens to you, be prepared to make some educated guesses.
Fortunately, you can pass the test with only 60% correct answers. My husband and I both cleared that margin comfortably.
Step 5 – The Driver’s Test
When we arrived at the driving test area (in the parking lot of SDT) and presented our U.S. licenses, the guys overseeing actual driving competency waived our tests.
If you lack a valid license from another country and must take the driving test, there are small-ish Chevy pick-up trucks used for those getting a truck driver’s license and two compact cars for those seeking “automovilista” licenses.
The cars used for testing (no one is allowed to drive their own) are a yellow Honda Fit and a white Nissan sedan. The Nissan had a stick shift (!) so the Honda was presumably an automatic.
The test consists of driving around the parking lot and parallel parking between cones. It was clear that if you hit any of the cones you would not pass.
We suffered watching a lady struggling to parallel park the Nissan sedan … She eventually sorted it out and got the car wedged in between the cones.
Skipping this step, we were pointed onto the caja. (payments)
Step 6 – Pay for your License
This was by far the longest line we had to wait in. It took us 30+ minutes to pay for our licenses as about 60 people were waiting for only three cashiers.
But it was a beautiful day and you wait in a line that winds around a covered courtyard.
A new Mexican license procured in Jalisco in 2024 costs $854 MXN (automovilista) and is valid for 4 years. If renewing an auto driver’s license, the cost is $716 MXN.
The cost for a truck license is slightly higher, while a new motorcycle license is $491 MXN.
Fortunately, they take foreign credit cards. We used a Visa as they don’t accept American Express.
Step 7 – Turn in your paperwork
Once you’ve paid, your final task is turning in the approved paperwork with the all-important “Pagado” stamp on top (paid). This triggers the last step — getting your new license made.
Step 8 – Pick up your new license
With the excitement building (this is really happening!) we waited for our names to be called.
Every 5 minutes or so a lady brings out about 10 new licenses and shouts out newly minted drivers’ names. Depending on the day, it may take another 15-20 minutes to get that license in your hot little hands.
If your energy is flagging, there’s a decent coffee bar at the back of the courtyard to caffeinate you through this critical last step.
Final Thoughts
We completed the whole process in about two and a half hours and just ONE visit — with no appointment necessary. When dealing with the Mexican bureaucracy, an outcome like this is truly cause for celebration!
Let me say it another way…
Getting our Mexican driver’s licenses was — by far — the least complicated, least frustrating bureaucratic procedure we’ve completed while living in Guadalajara.
Everyone we interacted with at the SDT was courteous and helpful. It was the polar opposite of every experience I’ve ever had at a U.S. Department of Motor Vehicles office.
Just keep in mind that only 1 of the 10 people we dealt with at SDT in Guadalajara spoke any English, so be prepared to navigate the process in Spanish if you apply for a license here.