Register for Driver Education at the Yujo Community Center!
You will find answers to the following questions below. Have a question not answered here? Send an email to yokotadrivered@gmail.com.
How much does the Driver Education Class cost?
Where does a student register?
How long is each in car lesson, and where do we meet the instructor?
Can I drive off base once I have my full license?
I have a student driver permit/license from a U.S. state or territory. Can I practice driving with my parents on base?
How do I get a Student Driver 4EJ permit/license?
Do I have to have my Student Driver 4EJ to take the Driver Education Course?
How often is the course offered?
I will not turn 16 until after the course starts. Can I still take the Driver Education class and then complete the driving requirements once I turn 16?
Will completing this course help me get a Driver License in my home state or a different country?
The Driver Education course consists of two parts: (1) the online classroom portion, which a student registers at the AAA How to Drive online site; as of December 2022, that part costs $39.99 and is payable directly to AAA. The second part of the class is the in-car instruction with a professional instructor. Six hours are required, and the cost is $360. Students 16 and over who have their 4EJ Learner's Permit can register at the Yujo Community Center. Successful conclusion of the course will result in a AAA course completion certificate that meets Yokota AB and the USFJ requirements for a person to be issued a 4EJ driver license in Japan.
As of January 2023, at the Yujo Community Center front desk. The student does not need to be present when registering for the course, but the Yujo Staff will need to see the student's USFJ 4EJ Driver License/Permit--the permit is required in order to register for the in-car lessons with the Driver Education instructor.
90 minutes. Meet the instructor in the parking lot on the west side of the Yujo CC (the side facing the chapel).
The SOFA agreement allows 16- and 17-year olds to drive on U.S. military facilities only. The driving age in Japan is 18, so only drivers who are 18 and over may drive off-base. NOTE: if you get your first license when you are 18 or over, note that the USFJ instruction requires you to drive on-base for 30 days after you get your full license before driving off base.
No. According to the USFJ and Yokota AB Instructions, student drivers on U.S. military facilities must have a Student Driver 4EJ license to practice driving with a parent or with an instructor.
To get the Student Driver 4EJ license, students must attend the Local Conditions course (no cost) that is offered as part of the Right Start classes at the AFRC (this is separate from the FSS Driver Education course at the Yujo). They do not have to attend all of Right Start, just the driving portion. The Local Conditions driving sessions is typically on Thursdays. Call the AFRC at 225-8725 to confirm details, including the next class date, meeting place, and meeting time. After successfully completing that Local Conditions course, new drivers can take Form 50 to Pass/ID at the Supply Gate, and there they will be issued their Student Driver 4EJ license.
For the online classroom portion: No, you do not have to have your 4EJ, yet. It is recommended that you register for that class when you are within a month to two month's of your 16th birthday. To register for the in-car lessons: Yes, you must have your student driver 4EJ, which means you must have attended the Right Start Local Conditions briefing and completed the requirements of that session (see above for more details about the Local Conditions briefing).
Same answer as above: you can take the online classroom portion before you are 16, but USFJ and Yokota AB regulations require students to be 16 before getting their 4EJ learner's permit.
As of August 2020, the class is now offered on a continuing basis. The online classroom portion can be taken any time at your own pace. The in-car lessons are offered year-round.
The Yujo Driver Education course is designed to meet the USFJ and Yokota AB requirements for new drivers and we can only guarantee that successfully completing the course here will allow you to obtain a USFJ 4EJ that will permit you to drive on U.S. military facilities in Japan (and off-base in Japan if you are 18 or over).
Each state makes its own laws concerning driver licensing, and the rigor required varies from state to state. The class we teach is based on AAA's stateside curriculum and several states do honor certificates earned here like one that would be earned in a driving school in that state, but other states have requirements that must be met in-state. Check the official state-sponsored website for details and possible contact information. We have tried to maintain a spreadsheet of each state's official Driver Licensing information websites. Note: The links may change, so if you search on your own using a search engine, the first sites that turn up are often commercial websites like dmv.org. Avoid those and instead look for the search results that come from your state's official government websites. They typically end in ".gov".
Also, most states have Graduated Driver Licensing programs that have fewer and fewer mandatory requirements the older a student is. A 16-year-old, for example, almost certainly is required to attend a driving school in every state, whereas 18- and over students oftentimes only need to complete a written and driving test conducted by the driver licensing officials in that state. Check your state's official website for details.
The Yokota Driving Instructors have heard stories from previous students who have gone back to the states concerning whether various states accepted the Yujo-issued AAA Certificate to meet that state's requirements. Feel free to ask us if we have any further insight about the licensing requirements in your home state.