Fine and Learner license suspension

Ldileme on 28/04/2014 - 17:24

hey guys,

I am from Brazil and I've been living in Australia since September last year as a Permanent Resident. I have been driving since then with my driver license from Brazil, which I have for over 14 years now.

At the beginning of April I made the DKT test and booked my driving test to 30th of April, due to lack of schedule.

Last Friday I was driving my son to the hospital (he is diabetic) because he was not feeling very well, and I got pulled over on my way to the hospital by the police. The officer asked my license and I gave him my Brazilian License Driver and asked me to do the breath test. After that he asked me if I was a Permanent Resident and I said yes. Then he asked me when my visa had been granted. I told him my visa has been granted May last year, but I was in Australia for 6 months. He told me I was not allowed to drive with my driver license from Brazil anymore, so I gave him my Learner Driver License, because as my wife's been living here for less than 3 months I though she could be my "supervisor".

After that the officer took my Learner license, suspended it and gave me a fine of AU$776. I tried to explain him that I got a wrong information in RMS and that I was in an emergency with my son, but he did not want to listen to me.

I know I can try to Review this fine, but am I be able to Review the suspension he gave me?

Also, my Driving test was booked for this Wednesday, do you know if I will be able to do the test or will I need to re-schedule it?

I am kind of lost with this situation and I do not know what to do.

Thank you very much!

Diego

Automotive

Comments

    • Baysew on 30/04/2014 - 11:23
      +1

      Has anyone got the number of the grammar police ?

  • BobD on 30/04/2014 - 07:50

    Note that if you change which state you live in you will need to get a driving licence for the new state. This may apply also if you are there on an extended "temporary" basis.

  • dileme on 30/04/2014 - 09:11

    hey guys,

    Thank you so much for all your comments and help! I will see what I can do now…

    At least I could get a refund for the Drive Test fee. I called RTA yesterday to re-schedule the test and now my wife will do the DKT and Drive Test this week.

    Lesson learned! :)

    Cheers,

    Diego

    • Azn310 on 30/04/2014 - 09:18

      Diego, did you know with 14 years on you Brazilian license, you can transfer it to a full NSW license from the first day you arrive in Australia? I think you need some driving tests but it should be fairly quickly, dont think you need to go through all the learners stuff. The officers at RMS should have advised you that!

      • dileme on 30/04/2014 - 09:21

        That's very true mate!

        I just need to pass the DKT and Drive Test, then I can get a full license right away!!!

  • boganrogan on 30/04/2014 - 09:43

    Don't lie to the police, as said above,
    there is a direct hotline to Immigration which can be used by the
    police, if he calls up, then you are screwed and need to pay double….

    Rubbish.

    It will cost him Triple, not Double.

    I love how uninformed people make the prices up as they go!

    • lplau on 30/04/2014 - 11:33
      +1

      Lol you tried it? I just heard from people it is double, I guess you tried and then got pawned with triple.

  • boganrogan on 30/04/2014 - 11:02
    -3

    The OP should've just lied and said he has only been in Australia 2 months.

    • EnALup on 30/04/2014 - 12:11
      +1

      First you do a wrong thing by breaking law and then tell lies.
      I hope you will not pass on this legacy to you kids….

      • itajac on 30/04/2014 - 14:35

        What exactly did he lie about?

        • EnALup on 30/04/2014 - 15:04
          +1

          Did I say OP?
          boganrogan was suggesting OP to lie and I mentioned him.

        • itajac on 30/04/2014 - 19:58

          The way you worded it sounded like you were referring to the OP, apparently I wasn't the only one who thought so. My bad

      • dileme on 30/04/2014 - 14:55

        What are you talking about?!?!

        Nobody lied here! someone mentioned I should have lied, which I did not!!!

        • lolmao on 30/04/2014 - 22:53

          you shouldn't've lied about driving on an international license when you had a learners permit

  • p1 ama on 30/04/2014 - 16:05
    +2

    I think there's some room for sympathy here given that he said:

    I tried to explain him that I got a wrong information in RMS…

    This information is confusing enough and given that he was given the wrong information, that just makes the situation worse.

    • one man clan on 30/04/2014 - 16:51
      +1

      Exactly!

      This isn't a case of 'ignorance of the law is no defence' like multiple people keep saying. The OP was given advice by a representative of the government, relied on it, and has now been fined because of it.

  • taylaj on 30/04/2014 - 17:31
    +2
    1. Under NSW transport laws you do have to transfer to a NSW licence 3 months from the date the visa was accepted
    2. When you got your NSW learner, this would have automatically cancelled your ability to drive on your overseas licence
    3. NSW will only recognised certain overseas licence when transferring, Brazil must not be one of the authorised countries and that is why they gave you a learners
    4. However, in regards to driving whilst on your NSW learners, usually the supervisor can be anyone on an open C class licence no matter if this was someone from overseas or not
    5. you should see on the infringement what the fine was for i.e. not displaying L plates, driving whilst unsupervised, or failing to produce licence on first request etc. if for the first one and you can prove your wife had a valid (i.e. either Australian C class licence for a year, or open overseas licence as she hadn't been in Australia for 3 months) then i would contest if I were you
    • gevidian on 30/04/2014 - 18:02
      +6

      And the hundreds of drunk and speeding Australian citizens getting caught by the police have respect for the law and are interested in ovbeying them???? You are probably just another xenophobe who hates migrants.

      • pmupsinep on 30/04/2014 - 23:35
        -6

        So you're saying, we have a lot of criminals already, so we should allow even more in? Interesting logic.

        You are probably just another xenophobe who hates migrants.

        Migrants who break the law. Yes. And you don't? You must be one of them.

        • Amaris on 03/05/2014 - 01:03

          Unless you are indigenous you or your family before you are migrants too. This is a country of migrants….so live with it!

    • p1 ama on 30/04/2014 - 19:15
      +5

      OP clearly said in his post that he received the wrong information.

      I tried to explain him that I got a wrong information in RMS…

      The police should have zero leniency, I agree with you, but whether he is a migrant or not is irrelevant, the police are here to uphold the law as best they can whether the person at fault is a migrant or a local. To say that police should have zero leniency towards migrants because they are migrants or because they come up with so called "sob stories" is an insult to migrants, to people who believe in a fair and equal society and to the entire police force and justice system.

      Also, should also mention that I am not a migrant, I was born in Australia, but I believe all should be treated equally.

      • gevidian on 30/04/2014 - 22:36

        +1

      • pmupsinep on 30/04/2014 - 23:43

        To say that police should have zero leniency towards migrants because they are migrants or because they come up with so called "sob stories" is an insult to migrants, to people who believe in a fair and equal society and to the entire police force and justice system.

        So having the opinion that people who get the privilege of migrating here should obey the law is an "insult" to an endless list of people. Lol. Your argument died when your heart started bleeding.

        • p1 ama on 02/05/2014 - 09:22

          No, I think everybody should obey the law regardless of who they are.

          I clearly said that to say police should have zero leniency towards migrants BECAUSE THEY ARE MIGRANTS is an insult. Learn to read before you post.

    • itajac on 30/04/2014 - 20:02
      +1

      Unless you are Aboriginal,then your ancestors would have "migrated" to Australia aswell.

      • EnALup on 30/04/2014 - 22:49

        hahah. True and might not be skilled migrants :)

        • Amaris on 03/05/2014 - 01:04

          Skilled crims!!

      • pmupsinep on 30/04/2014 - 23:36
        -1

        Yes, and they all managed to obey the law.

        • johnno07 on 01/05/2014 - 00:49

          The funny thing is, for us white Australians, there's a good chance that the only reason you're alive is because your ancestors didn't obey they law, and came to our great country via prison ship.

        • Daabido on 01/05/2014 - 09:51

          If only there had been this thing called free settlers…

        • pmupsinep on 01/05/2014 - 11:36
          +1

          for us white Australians,

          My god that is painful to read. Perhaps you should research immigration history into Australia. Most migrants into Australia have not come on a prison ship.

        • p1 ama on 02/05/2014 - 09:24
          +1

          Please provide us with statistics which show that people who are not migrants are less likely to commit crime.

          You can sit there and spew as much crap as you want, but that doesn't make what you say credible.

        • StewBalls on 03/05/2014 - 10:13

          FWIW, from an (albeit older - circa 1997) paper by an academic at the Australian Institute of Criminology:

          "Migrant groups born in New Zealand, Lebanon, Vietnam, Turkey and Cambodia all had a higher per capita involvement in crime than those born in Australia."

          http://www.aic.gov.au/documents/B/3/B/%7BB3B48FE3-A70B-4290-…

          Make of this what you will…

      • StewBalls on 01/05/2014 - 14:24
        +1

        Even if you are Aboriginal, then your ancestors would have "migrated" to Australia as well.

        Fixed.

        Time to do some reading kids…

  • cantstanzya on 30/04/2014 - 20:38
    +1

    Ozbargin: love, care and understanding.

  • jacklynhydejr on 30/04/2014 - 21:35
    +2

    There was probably someone getting mugged on the other side of the street whilst you were getting this fine. The police have the wrong focus, and it's unfortunately all about revenue raising!

    • Ravishing1 on 02/05/2014 - 00:00

      They are told to fill holes in revenue by forcing more fines.

  • tiara on 30/04/2014 - 22:54

    Feel sorry for you for coping the hefty fine but law is law. How did you get wrong information ?, unless it's given by authority then there's no excuse. You got the learner driver license so you should know and understand the rule better.

  • andyken on 30/04/2014 - 23:57

    OP can simply lie to the cops, just saying he was not a Permanent Resident . If he is saying that, he might only get a warning or $1xx fine by not translating the license into english.

    Non-resident allow to use their overseas license as long it comes with English translation.

    • Ravishing1 on 01/05/2014 - 23:59

      Wrong.

      You are only allowed to use it for three months, even if you are permanent resident:

      "After three months, you MUST obtain a NSW licence to continue driving or riding."

      http://www.rms.nsw.gov.au/licensing/newtonsw/international_d…

      • andyken on 02/05/2014 - 09:47

        Wrong, if you are NOT Permanent Resident you can use your own driving license. Eg. Student visa

        So if the OP lie, he wont get $7xx fine.

        • EnALup on 02/05/2014 - 09:54

          Police asks your story first and when they go back to check, they can access the immigration record. Lieing is never a good idea.

        • andyken on 03/05/2014 - 14:25

          Wrong again, Police cant check your immigration record as they dont have anything to check! if you give them overseas license, they cant cross-check anything unless you give him your passport.

        • EnALup on 03/05/2014 - 17:18

          Any proof? They do have access…

        • andyken on 04/05/2014 - 00:53

          think about it, what access the police have if you only show your overseas license? when you apply for your permanent resident, they never ask your origin license therefor no history of your license. they only know your address based on your car registration and when you register your car, vicroad never ask your passport details.

          it happen to my uni mate, he got fine based on his overseas license plus 3 demerit point, pretty useless hehe :)

  • itajac on 01/05/2014 - 09:34
    -1

    It's funny how "white" people always take ownership of any land they migrate to or settle in.When in fact here and in other continents around the world there already existed aboriginal/indigenous tribes, that owned that land, no one had to "find it", conquer it or settle in it, it was already there. lol. Just as the aboriginals permitted "white" settlement in their land, so should you.With multicultural migration you have to take the good with the bad just as they did.This is a great land but it has been made that way by all. Just like in the OZB community :) IMHO

  • [Deactivated] on 01/05/2014 - 10:44

    Let it go to court, that is where you can argue your case if you want to.

  • thejew on 01/05/2014 - 14:46
    +3

    Enjoy your time in Australia, Thanks for respecting our laws.

  • gimme on 01/05/2014 - 15:23
    +5

    People get too emotional and/or self righteous about this stuff. Plenty of qualified morons with Driver's licenses on the roads, theoretically respecting and/or abiding by Australian laws. So the OP made a mistake while driving to the hospital. Big deal, give him a break. For all we know he's a far better driver than half the retarded drivers out there.
    PS: Neg away….

    • p1 ama on 02/05/2014 - 09:26

      I completely agree. There are morons everywhere from all walks of life, from all places around the globe.

  • tiara on 01/05/2014 - 21:53

    Dileme, my advice to you : be responsible, when you break the law you bear the consequences. I'm not trying to be mean here but its time for you to accept that ignorance is not an excuse. Some people got fined for simply holding the mobile phone while waiting on the red light, some people also got hefty fined for stopping at the bus stop. It's sounds silly I agre, but law is law. I once got fined for making illegal u turn which I thought was legal, I accepted it and in fact I felt embarrassed for being ignorance. I should've known better

  • turbo77 on 01/05/2014 - 23:54

    I saw on the news briefly but not sure if i heard correct about vic police scrapping on spot fines for straight to court notices. Not sure if that was related to drink driving and drugs or everything.

  • Ravishing1 on 02/05/2014 - 00:02
    +1

    It's always better to say "No comment" to the Police.

    Learn your lesson.

  • imcold on 02/05/2014 - 00:35

    I believe i can add a few things that will help you in the future but NOT help your current situation.

    1) First of all if you for some reason fail in your test you loose all your privileges you may have got from holding a foreign license. Make sure you pass the first time.

    Meaning you need to go through the whole L—>P1—>P2—>P3 process.

    2) When you go to the actual test, and you use your own vehicle you will definitely need to bring a supervisor as you can't legally drive on your own no more. And have one ready for the return trip if it comes to it.

    • EnALup on 02/05/2014 - 09:57

      Oh is there a P3 as well, I thought you get full licence after P2.

      • imcold on 02/05/2014 - 18:20

        errr a typo lol dont ask.

    • Amaris on 03/05/2014 - 01:11

      Actually, if you fail the test you just need to repeat it and they withdraw recognition for your overseas licence. You can then only drive on the L plates. Once you do pass you get a full licence without having to go through P1 and P2. Many of my immigrant friends failed their first attempts but got a full licence when the passed.

  • neil on 02/05/2014 - 01:12
    +2

    The foreign licensing rules in Victoria are a bit of a joke. They accepted my EXPIRED by a couple years license from the US and issued me a full Victorian license. No tests, no need to know the road rules, no asking about experience, just hand over a couple of hundred dollars and you're on your way. Very easy to get a full license in the US (most states, no required driving hours either).

    For those countries who don't get automatic licenses, its just mind boggling. 6 months driving on Australian roads THEN you need to do tests? Surely all new users to Australian roads should do a test/basic training before driving?

    • EnALup on 02/05/2014 - 09:57
      +2

      Unfortunately Aus. has blind faith in US and some other countries where just you hand over your overseas licence and you are expected to know all the driving rules in the book and given a full licence.

      The reason being in many countries you can make fake driving licences very easily with no tracking of fake ones.

      US driving is different than ours, so not sure why they do it. I can understand for UK and other left hand driving countries though.

  • [Deactivated] on 02/05/2014 - 11:45

    Sounds like you were just testing your luck, how long can it possibly work.

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