Driver's License Renewal

It was my birthday last month... And that meant... LICENSE RENEWAL! I know you’re probably thinking these things: HASEL, BUONG ARAW KA DUN, SERYOSO KA BA. Haha! I know, I know. But license renewals don’t need to be these things if you only come in early. Yup, you read that right! So to help you out on your LTO journey, I’ll share the step-by-step process as well as some tips you might find useful. I always renew my license at the SM North LTO Office because it's the nearest one from our house. Not sure about the specifics in other offices, but I think it's more or less the same.

First things first. What should you bring?

1. Your current/expiring license
2. License receipt (for safety, but not required)
3. Black pen
4. Money - P600 should be enough if your license is still valid
5. Water and candy to tide you over - not sure if food (as in burger/sandwich, etc) is allowed
6. Book or a smartphone (Candy Crush, anyone?)

Step 1: The early bird gets the worm seat. (9:40am)

Not sure about how other offices look, but the SM North office was very cramped so you might want to go earlier so you can have a seat. I arrived at 9:40am and there were very few seats left. All LTO satellite offices are open from 9am to 6pm, Mondays to Fridays, except holidays.

Step 2: ID submission. (10:00am)

The windows were numbered so it'll be easy to know which one you'll need to approach first. Or so you'd think. Window 1 was empty but almost everyone seated were filling out some sort of form. I had to ask someone where to go first. Turned out there's this small table on the left corner where you submit your expiring license. I hope they put up a notice next time. Once you've submitted your license, you wait for a few minutes to be called. Mind you, there's always a LOT of waiting in government offices so best to follow step 1.

Step 3: Pay up. (10:10am)

The guy from step 2 gave me my license back and asked for P100 for the medical exam. He also gave me a number and 2 medical forms to fill out. They're not carbonized because according to the guy, 'naghihirap na kami'. Haha! He's a chatty old guy who greeted me a happy birthday when he saw my license. :)

Step 4: Medical exam. Not. (10:20am)

The same guy called out 5 succeeding numbers for medical  exam and asked me to sit on a separate bench.

Step 5: Real medical exam. (10:25am)

The doctor called out my number for the actual medical exam which lasted for, like, 5 minutes max. She just asked me to step on the weighing scale, threw a few questions like 'Have you always been thin?' and the like. Then she asked me to read the optical board and that's it! No more drug test, by the way. Yey to that! :D

Step 6: License form. (10:30am)

The doctor asked me to submit my medical form, license and receipt to Window 2. Window 2 officer gave me the license form to fill out. You just have to give back this form to Window 2 once you're done.

Step 7: Photo op. (10:40am)

Window 1 was the photo op window. Now, my tip is to always be prepared. Who doesn't want to be pretty in IDs? Before, I always ended up looking like an escaped convict. But now that I know better, my ID pictures look so much better (and I look so much happier in them too!)! The trick is to fix your hair and add color to your face, be it your cheeks or lips. Their cameras serve up washed out/bland pictures (which have NOTHING at all to do with us by the way) so these are important. Flash your most disarming smile and you're good to go!

Step 8: Pay up! (10:45am)

Window 3 officer asked me to pay P418 for my license.

Step 9: Photo finish. (10:50am)

Window 2 officer gave me my license and receipt, and I'M DONE!

Can I just say, I'm so relieved they scrapped the drug test because it was a waste of time and money. It's not even effective! I mean, obviously, if you're an addict and you wanna pass a drug test, you simply don't take drugs before the test and it'll turn out negative. I don't understand how this didn't even cross their minds. Or maybe it did, but they still pushed through with the test because it's another money-making medium. Anyway, I digress.

I finished my renewal in less than 2 hours and paid a total of P518 for my license that's good for 3 years. I hope your LTO experience is just as efficient, if not more.