VietNamNet Bridge – From October, Ho Chi Minh City’s Department of Transports will begin issuing new driving licenses made of PET (a type of plastic), with digitized personal information, to local drivers.

The new driving license that is made of plastic.

The new licenses, measuring 85.6 x 53.98 x 0.76 mm, are supposed to have a yellow background and a code system to differentiate each one and features about individual drivers.

The licenses will include a profile photo, personal information including full name, birth date and address, and an expiry date, all of which will be printed in both Vietnamese and English.

According to VietnamNews, the change is designed to synchronize the issuance of driving licenses, prevent counterfeit documents and improve the management of traffic violators nationwide.

The proposed cost of a new license is VND135,000 (US$6.5).

The city is expected to issue 1,000 new licenses per day.

Earlier, on demand from the General Directorate for Roads under the Ministry of Transports (MOT), the new model of driving licenses took effect from July 1, 2012.

Those who have expired, lost or damaged driving licenses are eligible to apply for a new one.

However, driving licenses issued before July 1, 2012 remain valid, MOT said.

According to the latest statistics released by the MOT, there are nearly 6 million vehicles, including 5 million motorcycles and 500,000 automobiles, in Ho Chi Minh City.

National transport officials are currently managing 28.8 million motorbike driving licenses and 3.1 million automobile licenses.

VietNamNet/Tuoi Tre