Don't you just hate it when that happens....

Does anyone have a list of the agencies they tried and the quotes they were given?

Here is an easier and less costly solution to entering china....

Your chance to go to China! - MyChinaMoto

BTW, not mine, don't know the guy, but someone in Germany can vouche for him, I am sure!

The licences provided by the agencies are fake licences - this is a con.

The only way you can get a proper Chinese licence is by obtaining Chinese residency then sitting the test locally. It is a time consuming process and wil take a month or so to obtain.

The alternative is just to ignore the requirement for a licence. I did this and in 2008 rode for over a month in China with constant interactions with the police and never once being asked if I had a local licence.

Garry from Oz.

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Garry from Oz - powered by Burgman

farquar, did you import a bike, or buy a local one?

www.china-driving-license.com get you a FAKE driver license.
they give some countryside police station money to issue the license illiegal to you. so its worth nothing if your really have an accident!!!
be carefull. better drive without a license and just speak english to the police that stop you. but dont try it with a fake one!!!
dont trust any of this crappy websites that tell you with money they can get you everything.

check the AVIS website for more detailed info
AvisChina

no resident permit, no driver license. simple as that!

or take a organized tour, they will get you a real but temporary chinese driver license

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Riding the horse to death

http://tuo-ma-si.blogspot.com

Simon, I bought my bike brand new (Haobon 125) in Qinzhou, on the Chinese side of the border of Vietnam and China.

I rode without any legitimate papers - no licence, no registration, no insurance and no official ownership papers.

I am not condoning my actions, nor recommending anyone else do the same, but it worked for me in a very positive way. At one point I even got to ride a local police bike with a local policeman on the back - this would never happen in any other country.

Garry from Oz.

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Garry from Oz - powered by Burgman

G'Day,

Scam catches foreign drivers

Shanghai Daily Newspaper 2007-6-31

SOME foreign motorists in the city may be driving illegally and be unaware of it thanks to a bogus application ruse.

Overseas drivers living in Shanghai should only apply for a Chinese driving license with local police.

Shanghai traffic police made the clarification yesterday following reports that some agencies are charging expatriates thousands of yuan to have licenses issued out of town. These licenses are not legitimate.

Shanghai Morning Post broke the story on Thursday after an undercover investigation of the agencies.

With photocopies of the driver's passport, driving license from his or her own country and head-shot photos, clients are told to expect a Chinese driving license, issued by out of town authorities, after a week to 40 days, the newspaper said.

The foreign clients don't need to show up in person but only pass on the material to agents and wait for the licenses to arrive.

Agents charge between about 2,000 yuan (US$263) and 5,000 yuan for the service.

Shanghai Daily interviewed officers from the vehicle administration office under the General Team of Traffic Police who said licenses required by the agents are illegal.

Foreign drivers should swap them for a driving license issued by traffic authorities in their exact area of residence.

Shanghai traffic police are investigating the matter.

"Expatriates with a Shanghai-issued residents' permit, should only apply for a driving license issued by Shanghai traffic police," said a police officer with vehicle administration.

It costs 40 yuan to sit for a test on computer in Chinese road traffic rules. You can obtain a Chinese driving license the same day you pass the exam after paying 15 yuan for certification.

To apply for the test, the expatriate need to come to the police office on 1179 Qingchun Road, with head-shot photos and a hospital-issued physical exam report. Applicants also need to take the driving license issued in their own country.

Police said that international driving license holders are not allowed to drive in China before gaining a Chinese license. Questions about applying for a Chinese driving license should be directed to a hotline, 24023456.

*********************************************

Foreigners warned on out-of-town driving license

Shanghai Daily Newspaper 2007-6-30

SHANGHAI police have warned local foreigners not to buy driver's licenses from out-of-town driving schools.

For those who want a driver's license, the application procedure for a local-registered one takes only one day and a small sum of money, police said. Passing a written test is a must.

For those who hold no license, police suggest them to learn to drive and sit for tests in the city.

Foreigners in Shanghai have been targets of out-of-town driving schools since last August when the schools' business with city residents was ruined by local police.

They were offering a driver's license service that required no written or road test to lure foreigners, said an insider surnamed Zhang.

"The schools offer 'apartment service,' which suited many foreign people," Zhang said.

They usually find it too troublesome to go to a city to do registration.

A salesperson would knock at the door, collect some basic information, get the fingerprints and photos and take copies of the passport.

Then, all in need to do is to wait patiently for at least 40 days when the applicant will receive a driver's license that has been registered outside Shanghai.

"Though foreigners have to pay 1,000 yuan (US$131) more and wait longer, they find it convenient and efficient," Zhang said.

Local students usually pay between 2,600 yuan to 4,200 yuan to get such a license from out-of-town driving schools. It takes at least 5,000 yuan from local schools.

Training outside of the city allows students to get a license quickly. Local regulations require drivers to do 86 hours of in-car training, and they can't spend more than six hours a day on training.

Drivers must also wait at least 40 days between taking a written test and sitting the actual driving test. The whole procedure may take three months.

Other provinces don't have similar regulations, so students can get a license much quicker.

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Somewhere down the road in China since '89 ~ along the route I've learned the hard way that pleasing everyone is impossible, but pissing everybody off is a piece of cake....TBR

Tokyokid and you seem to have figured out one of the only real ways to ride in China. You buy a local, Chinese-registered bike.

The other way is to join an organized tour in China (where you ride their bikes).

I, personally, would go with an enduro, but that is just my preference. From what I understand, you need to find a local to be on the paperwork to buy a bike, and then it is all (mostly) legitimate, fudging just a little, LOL

Yep, that's about it. I was able to arrange purchase through Supersignet - his Chinese partner was officially the owner of the bike.

Off road bikes are few and far between in China - there were none in Guanxi province (which has a 150cc capacity limit) where I purchased. If you want an enduro I suggest you head up to Chongqing province where there is a much broader range of bikes (most of the Chinese bike factories are in Chongqing) and you can buy larger capacity bikes (up to 250cc).

Having said that I was amazed well my ostensible road bike handled the rough stuff. I travelled many kilometres on gravel and dirt tracks - the back roads in China are a real experience and have been allowed to degrade substantially now that the freeways are in place for the majority of car and truck traffic.

Garry from Oz.

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Garry from Oz - powered by Burgman

be carefull who you can trust here, the chinese usually help you in buying something only when they also gain something.
the bike i bought 3 years ago from a shop had papers and license plate
and police confirmed they where real but later found out they dublicated licenses for many bikes, so it was worth nothing.

my solution was to get married to a chinese girl and let her register my bike
hehe just kidding.

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Riding the horse to death

http://tuo-ma-si.blogspot.com