What to Do If Your Vision Doesn't Meet the Requirements for a Driver's License?
2 Answers
If your vision doesn't meet the requirements for a driver's license, you can wear glasses to correct it. As long as your corrected vision meets the vision requirements for the driver's license physical examination, you are eligible. If even with correction your vision doesn't meet the standards, you cannot obtain a driver's license. For applicants applying for large buses, tractors, city buses, medium-sized buses, large trucks, trolleybuses, or trams, the naked or corrected vision of both eyes must reach 5.0 or above on the logarithmic visual acuity chart. For other types of vehicles, the naked or corrected vision of both eyes must reach 4.9 or above on the logarithmic visual acuity chart; applicants must also not have red-green color blindness. For those applying to drive manual transmission cars, the motor function of the lower limbs must be normal, and the difference in length between the lower limbs must not exceed 5 centimeters. For those applying to drive automatic transmission cars, the right lower limb must be sound.
Just went with my cousin for his physical exam a couple of days ago. He has 500-degree myopia plus astigmatism and thought he'd definitely fail the driver's license test. But the driving instructor said wearing corrective glasses is fine! As long as his vision reaches 4.9 (equivalent to 0.8) with glasses, he passes. Remember not to wear colored contact lenses—the exam requires either frame glasses or clear contact lenses. If the on-site test shows insufficient correction, there's still time to get new lenses at the nearby optical shop. My cousin had to add 50 degrees to his lenses on the spot to pass. If vision remains unclear after correction, it might be necessary to check for retinal diseases—in such cases, driving really isn't advisable.
