Can I still renew my driver's license if I fail the vision test during the medical examination?
3 Answers
Renewing a driver's license is not allowed if you fail the vision test during the medical examination. The renewal and verification must meet the following conditions: Holders of large passenger vehicle, tractor, city bus, medium-sized passenger vehicle, or large truck driver's licenses must have no demerit points in the current scoring cycle, or holders of other types of driver's licenses must have fewer than 12 demerit points in the current scoring cycle; Holders of large passenger vehicle, tractor, city bus, medium-sized passenger vehicle, or large truck driver's licenses who have demerit points in a scoring cycle, as well as holders of other types of driver's licenses who have been involved in a traffic accident resulting in death and bear equal or greater responsibility but have not had their driver's license revoked, must have completed the verification education; The applicant must have no pending road traffic safety violations or traffic accidents; The applicant's physical condition must meet the driving license requirements; The driver's license must not be under circumstances of being legally seized, detained, temporarily suspended, revoked, canceled, or annulled.
Last time I accompanied my relative to handle this matter, I gained quite some experience. If your vision doesn't pass, they'll give you three chances on the spot. You should quickly get a new pair of glasses or wear contact lenses. If your corrected vision still doesn't meet the 4.9 standard, you really won't be able to renew your license. However, the DMV is very considerate—they provide a 90-day grace period to deal with it. During this time, just bring your new prescription back for re-examination. Remember to use the Traffic Management 12123 app to apply for a license renewal extension in advance, otherwise you'll have to retake the written test if you exceed the deadline. By the way, if you misidentify more than three color blindness test charts, you'll fail directly. My relative managed to save their driver's license by getting LASIK surgery during the grace period.
As a seasoned driver, let me share a tip with you: test your eyesight with the vision chart before going for the physical exam. If your naked-eye vision is below 4.9, don't force it—get prescription glasses right away. With over 200 degrees of myopia, I passed the test using professional driving glasses. Color vision deficiency is even trickier; red-green color blindness is an outright disqualification. However, new regulations this year have relaxed the standards—meeting the vision requirement in one eye along with a field of vision test can also get you through. Remember to bring your optometry report and old driver's license for the re-examination. The basement parking lot at the DMV is always packed with people retaking the vision test, so going at 8 a.m. saves the most time.
