The Expat Life: How To Get A Driving License In Ajman

A long-time dream of mine came true recently – finally managed to get my UAE driving license! I’m pretty thrilled about it and I’m definitely looking forward to drive regularly from now on. I did have an Indian driving license as well, which I had obtained about 10 years back, but honestly I didn’t really know to drive till a few weeks back. Although I still need to practise a bit in our own car, I can see myself becoming an independent and confident driver a few months down the line. It doesn't seem like an impossible dream anymore!

How To Get A Driving License In Ajman: Getting Started

As most people in this region are well aware, getting a driving license over here is not an easy task. I thought of sharing my experience so that it might be useful to anyone who is thinking about getting a driving license in Ajman. The first thing that you would need to do is to go to the Traffic & Licensing department, commonly known as Muroor, and open your license file. Ladies are eligible to apply for a license to drive automatic light vehicles. You will need to make an initial payment of 1350 AED for this, which includes the cost for a lecture and the theory test.

The lecture will be held within a week or so and it lasts for approximately a couple of hours. Topics such as signals, road rules, best practices while driving, safety tips etc will be covered and you will be provided with a guide book as well. Once done with the lecture, you will be required to take an online signal test within a couple of weeks. If you’ve paid attention during the lecture and read through the guide book it is quite easy to clear the online test.

Prepping For The Parking Test

Once you pass the online test, next comes the eye test followed by the parking test. An initial payment of 170 AED needs to be done for this and then you will need to contact a driving school or a driving instructor for classes. Classes cost 50 AED for an hour and you will be taken to a practise area where a mock test area is setup. Please note that you need to pay 10 AED entry fee to practise in this area. The Parking test involves 3 tests in all: garage parking, parallel parking as well as bridge/slope.

It takes about a week’s time to get familiar with the parking techniques and once you feel confident you can pay 250 AED and take up the parking test. There is no need to book an appointment in advance for the parking test. On whichever day you intend to take the test, show up at Muroor, pay the fees and proceed to take the test. You will need to pass all three parts of this test; if you fail any section, then you will again need to pay 250 AED and redo the failed parts till you clear all three.

Almost There! Road Test

So you have successfully cleared the parking test. Congrats! Next up is of course the road test. Again, you will need to take up driving classes and your instructor will teach you the nuts and bolts of driving in Ajman. The number of classes that you will need to take will depend on how quickly you grasp the concepts of driving! Usually, you will be advised to give the first test a couple of weeks later. It helps to go for regular driving classes so that you don’t lose touch, especially if you are new to driving. The first few days can be pretty confusing and frustrating; you might even wonder if you will ever learn to drive. Don’t worry and hang in there! You will get there, trust me!

Generally it takes a few attempts before you will clear the road test. I took 6 attempts. Each attempt will cost 200 AED. You will need to make an appointment in advance and they typically allow you to choose any week day which falls one week after your last test. You will be expected to show up at Muroor between 8 AM – 11 AM on your test date and submit your papers and your learner’s license to the lady police inspector over there. She will sort out all the candidates and will allocate you to a traffic policeman along with 3 other lady candidates. All 4 will be taken in a single trip and each will be given about 5 minutes to test your driving skills. 

Most people, including me, tend to get nervous before the test. Take a few deep breaths, stay calm, concentrate on driving and follow the traffic inspector’s instructions. There is no need to be afraid of the inspectors – the majority of them are polite and will help you out while driving in case you are unable to control the car. You will be assessed on a variety of things such as how good is your steering control, brake and accelerator control, overtaking, changing lanes, at roundabouts and at signals, respecting other road users, following traffic rules and regulations etc. Even if you do fail a few times, do not get discouraged. View it as an opportunity to improve your driving skills.

At last, the day which you thought might never come will arrive and ta da! You will pass! Yayyy! Now you will need to pay another 200 AED and submit your photo along with your learner’s license and voila! Your brand new driving  license will be ready in a few minutes! All the best!

P.S: Keep in mind that in Ajman only lady instructors can teach ladies and only male instructors can teach men. In case you need to contact a good lady driving instructor, do drop me a word and I can pass on the details of the woman who taught me to drive. She is friendly, punctual and really good J