International Driving Permit

The Center for International Education cautions students about driving overseas.  Local road conditions, traffic laws, and driving customs can all be very different from the United States, making driving abroad a great challenge and potentially dangerous.  Public transportation is often much more a part of every day life in foreign cities.  If students are still insistent on driving while overseas, an International Driving Permit (IDP) allows an individual to drive a private motor vehicle in another nation when accompanied by a valid license from their home country. The document is slightly larger than a standard passport and is essentially a multiple language translation of one's own existing driver's license, complete with photograph and vital statistics. It is not a license to operate a motor vehicle on its own.  The United States Department of State authorizes the American Automobile Association (AAA) and the American Automobile Touring Alliance (AATA) as the only entities in the United States to issue IDPs. The AATA offers IDPs through the National Automobile Club (NAC). For more information, please link to the following websites:

American Automobile Association

National Automobile Club