Which countries may require an international driver's license
Having this document in hand gives you the opportunity not only to legally drive a vehicle in many countries of the world, but also to get absolute freedom of movement, that is, to rent a car and go where you need to. However, you should be clear about which countries require an international driver's license, and which can do without them. Such moments are regulated by the relevant conventions signed by various states.
What does international law look like?
Not everyone knows what an International Driving Permit (IDP) is. In fact, there is nothing complicated here.
The International Driving License is a gray A6 booklet in which the data from your national driving license is duplicated in 8 foreign languages.
Remember that such a document is only valid together with the driver's license, of which it is a translation.
In which countries an international driving license is valid and under what conditions depends on the international road safety standards that the country supports.
List of countries that require an international driver's license
All countries in the context of interest to us can be divided into three categories:
- recognizing national documents issued on the territory of other states that have signed the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic of 1968;
- recognizing only international certificates and signing the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic of 1949;
- not signed any conventions. To drive a car in their territory, you need to pass an exam and obtain a local driver's license.
Below are 64 countries where an international driver's license is required.
| Australia | Mauritania |
| Albania | Madagascar |
| Algeria | Malawi |
| Andorra | Malaysia |
| Argentina | Mali |
| Bangladesh | Malta |
| Belize | Namibia |
| Benin | Netherlands |
| Botswana | New Zealand |
| Vatican | New Caledonia |
| Haiti | Papua New Guinea |
| Gambia | Paraguay |
| Guatemala | Peru |
| Gibraltar | Rwanda |
| Hong Kong | Saint Lucia |
| Grenada | Swaziland |
| Dominican Republic | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines |
| Egypt | Singapore |
| Western Samoa | Syria |
| India | USA |
| Jordan | Sierra Leone |
| Ireland | Taiwan |
| Iceland | Tanzania |
| Cambodia | Togo |
| Canada | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Cyprus | Tunisia |
| Kyrgyzstan | Türkiye |
| China | Uganda |
| Congo | Fiji |
| Laos | French polynesia |
| Lesotho | Jamaica |
| Lebanon | Japan |
The experience shared by compatriots shows that very often knowledge of international norms is not enough. There are many nuances that are useful to consider when going on a road trip around the world. Let's look at the most common examples. For example, do you need an international driver's license in Italy: according to local law, you can drive with your regular license translated into Italian for up to a year, as long as they meet all the standards. And after the expiration of this period they are obliged to change them. This is true for those who plan to stay in the country for a long time. However, as life shows, Russians often have problems, so they should still have an IDP with them right away.
Those who go on vacation to Spain or move there for permanent residence are probably worried about the situation in this country with the recognition of a driver's license issued, for example, in Russia, and whether an international driver's license is needed in Spain.
Yes, on the legal side, you can get by with national rights, but in practice, various problems often occur due to the fact that they are not translated into Spanish, and this must be done officially - with assurance from the Spanish consulate. If you do not have this, then without fail you must have an international certificate. In the case of immigration, you are required to obtain Spanish rights in six months.
Finding out whether an international driving license is needed in Greece or not is quite simple. To do this, it is quite enough to look into the Greek rules of the road, where this rule is clearly spelled out. Any owner or lessee of a car is required to have only such a document and no other. This is also stated in the Road Code of this country (Article 94, paragraphs 3a and 4).
Now let's see how things stand with the same issue in Croatia. Usually we are talking about renting a car by tourists or driving a vehicle as a potential resident of the country. When answering the question of whether an international driving license is needed in Croatia, we can say the following: it is valid on a par with the national document issued in your country. Upon receipt of a residence permit, their validity period is 1 year, after which they must be exchanged for Croatian ones.
The best way to get around Crete is to rent a car. In this regard, information about whether an international driver's license is needed in Crete becomes relevant. By and large, you can do without them, but if you have them, then they will not be superfluous. Currently, you can easily take a car using them at any rental point and present it to the police if necessary. There were no misunderstandings about this.
