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I’m USA expat in the Philippines. I unfortunately let my USA driver’s license expire. Can I obtain a Philippines driver’s license and then obtain an international driver’s permit to legally drive back in the USA on occasion?
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To get a Philippine license you need to be here on a visa good for at least one year. A tourist visa being extended will never qualify you. However this being the Philippines, anything is possible, it should only cost about 4000 p ($US80) to get a license even if you have never had one and don’t know how to drive. Just don’t expect a receipt. If you want to do things the right way and you have a visa good for at least a year then you could have converted your US license to a Philippine one when it was still valid. Just go to the LTO in Quezon City with all the documentation ( photocopies of license, passport and visa) as well as the medical. (5 minutes 200p, a joke). I went first thing in the morning, was processed quickly because I was over 60 and was in and out in 30 minutes laminated card in hand. However since your US licensed has expired you have to go through the same process as anyone applying for the first time, a written test and a practical test. The written tests are available for practice on line and are pretty easy, do a bunch to know the local laws and get a better idea how they word the questions and you should do OK. The practical test is on a closed track, not on the open road. If you can drive around a short track, do a little maneuvering and back up you will pass. Written and practical can be the same day. Don’t know the costs. I think you can rent a vehicle at the test site but I have heard that these are in bad shape so you may want to get one more trustworthy. A Philippine license is in English and so a IDP, which is only a trusted translation, is not needed. However depending on the cop that stops you you may have issues with them. A Canadian woman had to spend a weekend in jail a couple of years ago because some untrained and stupid cop could not understand a that a Canadian license was valid in the USA.
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Based on my research: A US citizen residing overseas is not required to have a US driver's license to drive in the USA. Your foreign license is acceptable, assuming it is in English or is accompanied by a valid IDP (International Drivers Permit) AND that the country of issuance is party to the international agreement for IDPs (Philippines is on the list). For more info:Can you drive in the US with a foreign license? | US ESTA Visa