International Driving Permit in Albania

🗓 Facts checked against Albania's road-traffic law and official sources. Research last updated: 29 July 2026. You may copy this information only if you provide a link back to this page.

⚠ This page is general information about driving rules, not legal advice. Rules change, and each authority applies its own — confirm your case with the relevant authority before you drive.

ℹ We are a private company. We are not a government body, a licensing or issuing authority, or a treaty organisation, and we are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting for any of them. The International Driver's Document we sell is a translation of your national driving licence: it is not a driving licence, and it is not a government-issued document.

• Driving in Albania: key facts
• Do you need an International Driving Permit in Albania?
• What side of the road does Albania drive on?
• How long can you drive in Albania with a foreign licence?
• Is Albania a party to the 1949 or 1968 Road Traffic Convention?
• Why acceptance of your licence varies from place to place
• Can you drive in Albania with your country's licence?
• Where to get an International Driving Permit
• Moving to Albania? Rules for new residents
• Driving rules in Albania tourists get fined for
• Read more about driving in Albania
• Sources

Driving in Albania: key facts

Do you need an International Driving Permit in Albania?

Albania is a Contracting Party to both road-traffic conventions: 1949 Geneva (accession 1 Oct 1969) and 1968 Vienna (accession 29 Jun 2000) per the UN depositary status lists. Road Code Article 133/1 lets a visitor drive on a foreign national licence or an international driving permit, so an IDP is not legally required as such. Article 133/2 makes the IDP (or a notarised Albanian translation) necessary only when the document does not match a model in a convention Albania is party to. UK FCDO tells UK licence holders 'The 1949 IDP is not accepted any more' — that is correct for the UK because, under Vienna Article 48, the 1968 Convention replaces the 1949 Convention in relations between states party to both. It does not mean Albania rejects 1949 IDPs generally: for origins party only to the 1949 Convention (USA, Japan, Australia, India, Israel and others), the 1949 Convention still governs relations with Albania and a 1949 IDP is the conforming model. Rule of thumb: take the newest IDP your own country can issue.

• Tourists and short-term visitors: carry your national licence together with the document named in the row for your country of issue, in the table below — for most origin licences that document is not an IDP, so read your own answer rather than assuming one.
• Car renters: Carry the original licence plus a 1949 or 1968 IDP (or a notarised Albanian translation) if the licence is not a convention-model card, passport, vehicle registration, compulsory third-party insurance and the rental agreement. A green card or locally bought border insurance is needed for a foreign-plated car.

No specific penalty for driving without the required document was verified from an authoritative source. Official source.

What side of the road does Albania drive on?

Albania drives on the right-hand side of the road, and overtaking is done on the left. Cars in Albania are left-hand drive.

How long can you drive in Albania with a foreign licence?

Up to one year, for as long as the foreign licence and the lawful stay remain valid. The clock is residence in Albania, not the entry stamp. (Road Code Article 133/1)

Planning to move to Albania? Different rules apply once you become a resident — see the residents section below.

Is Albania a party to the 1949 or 1968 Road Traffic Convention?

Albania is a Contracting Party to both United Nations Conventions on Road Traffic — the Geneva Convention of 19 September 1949 and the Vienna Convention of 8 November 1968. International Driving Permits of both the 1949 and the 1968 type are therefore issued against its framework; which types Albania accepts from visitors is shown in the table above.

• 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic: accession on 1 Oct 1969.
• 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic: accession on 29 Jun 2000.

Why acceptance of your licence varies from place to place

Whether a foreign country accepts your driving licence hangs on a tangle of variables: three different road-traffic conventions signed decades apart (1926, 1949, 1968) — the oldest predates the United Nations itself, and only the latter two were concluded under it — countries at different stages of joining each (signed vs. accepted vs. ratified), licences printed in alphabets local police can't read, vehicle-category systems that don't line up between countries, document generations that may not meet a convention's format even when the country is a member, bilateral deals between individual states, and local laws that are looser in one place and stricter in the next. The same licence can be fine at one border and rejected at the next — even at the next rental desk. The International Driving Permit exists to cut through most of it: a standardized, multilingual presentation of your existing licence, with harmonized category symbols, that most officials can read at a glance. It doesn't replace your national licence or grant new rights — you carry both — and it doesn't guarantee acceptance: a handful of destinations still require a local permit alongside or instead of it, but for most it meaningfully improves your odds.

Can you drive in Albania with your country's licence?

This table is for tourists and temporary visitors. Moving to Albania as a resident? Different rules apply — see the residents section below. Find your licence's country of issue below. Albania lets a visitor drive on a valid foreign national licence from any country for up to one year, so an IDP is not universally required. Albania is a party to both the 1949 and 1968 conventions, so either IDP model is a conforming document — take the newest one your own country issues (UK holders must take the 1968). If your licence is not a convention-model card, Article 133/2 requires an IDP or a notarised Albanian translation alongside it. Rules change — confirm with official sources before you travel. Last verified: July 2026.

Legend: "1949" — Geneva Convention on Road Traffic (IDP valid up to 1 year); "1968" — Vienna Convention (IDP valid up to 3 years).

What the Status column means on this page:

• National licence OK — the destination lets a visitor drive on the national licence itself. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, gives the basis, and any period or condition that qualifies it.
• National licence OK — IDP advised — the destination does not require an IDP for this licence, but carrying one is advised. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, gives the reason and any conditions attached.
• Not established — the record does not settle whether you may drive here on this licence; confirm with the destination's licensing authority before you rely on it. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, says what could not be confirmed.
• National licence OK — IDD/translation advised — the destination does not require an IDP for this licence, and no official convention IDP can be issued for it; carry an IDD or a certified translation instead. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, gives the reason and any conditions attached.

Sources and notes for the table above

[1] Road Code Article 133/1

[a] Licence categories do not follow the convention A–E scheme — rental staff may ask for an IDP to map them.

[b] IDD = International Driver's Document, a standardized translation of your national driving licence. You can apply here: https://idaoffice.org/apply-now/.

Where to get an International Driving Permit

An International Driving Permit must be obtained before you travel, and only certain countries may issue one to you — you cannot buy an official IDP from an unrelated country. Under the 1968 Vienna Convention it may be issued only by the Contracting Party where you normally reside and which issued or recognizes your licence — by that Party's competent authority or by an association it has duly empowered. Under the 1949 Geneva Convention it is issued by the competent authority of a Contracting State, or by an association that authority has duly empowered. Which body that is varies by country: a government agency in some, an authorized motoring club in others.

• Travelling from Albania? Albania's official IDPs are issued by General Directorate of Road Transport Services (DPSHTRR). Official site.
• Travelling from another country? Ask that country's driving-licence authority which body it authorizes to issue IDPs — a government agency in some countries, an authorized motoring club in others.

Separately, IDA offers a digital International Driver's Document — a translation of your national licence that you carry alongside it. It is not an International Driving Permit issued under the 1949 or 1968 conventions by the body your country authorizes for that purpose, and it is not a certified, sworn or otherwise official translation: no authority certifies it, and where a country requires an official or certified translation by law, our document does not satisfy that requirement. It is a private translation meant to make your national licence readable at rental desks and roadside checks.

Moving to Albania? Rules for new residents

Two different clocks. The visitor entitlement in Article 133/1 runs on being resident in Albania for not more than one year. The resident penalty clock in Article 134/6 and 134/7 runs from the day a residence permit was granted: after one year from that date a foreign licence no longer covers you and you are treated as driving without a licence. Official source.

Driving rules in Albania tourists get fined for

• Mandatory equipment: Seat belts are compulsory for driver and passengers (Article 170). A reflective warning triangle must be carried and deployed when the vehicle stops outside built-up areas (Article 160). Helmets are compulsory on two-wheelers (Article 169) and the high-visibility vest duty in Article 169/5 applies to motorcyclists, not car drivers. A first-aid kit and fire extinguisher are not Road Code carry requirements for private cars, though rental fleets often supply them.
• Drink-driving: Article 184/1 prohibits driving after consuming alcoholic drinks and there is no tolerated band — sanctions start at any detected value up to 0.3 g/l. Drivers with less than three years' licence seniority and drivers of vehicles over 3.5 t, taxis and public transport face suspension even in that lowest band. Article 184/2: up to 0.3 g/l — 5,000-15,000 lek; over 0.3 up to 0.5 g/l — 10,000-20,000 lek plus 3-6 months' suspension; 0.5-0.8 g/l — 10,000-20,000 lek plus 12-24 months' suspension; over 0.8 up to 1.5 g/l — 20,000-40,000 lek plus 12-24 months' suspension. Every case above 0.5 g/l is referred to the investigating authority for criminal proceedings. Causing an accident while intoxicated adds two months' vehicle impoundment; above 1.5 g/l with an accident the licence is withdrawn. Penalties rise by one third to two thirds for offences between 22:00 and 07:00.
• Speed limits: Statutory ceilings under Article 140/1: 130 km/h motorways, 90 km/h main interurban roads, 80 km/h secondary and local interurban roads, 40 km/h in built-up areas. Road owners may and do post lower limits; the posted sign always governs.
• Carry the original licence plus a 1949 or 1968 IDP (or a notarised Albanian translation) if the licence is not a convention-model card, passport, vehicle registration, compulsory third-party insurance and the rental agreement. A green card or locally bought border insurance is needed for a foreign-plated car.
• Traffic keeps right. Road Code Article 140/1 caps speed at 130 km/h on motorways, 90 km/h on main interurban roads, 80 km/h on secondary and local interurban roads and 40 km/h in built-up areas. Posted signs govern and on Albanian motorways they are frequently set lower than the statutory ceiling.
• Treat it as no alcohol at all: Article 184/1 prohibits driving after consuming alcoholic drinks, and penalties begin at any detected value. Road quality, street lighting, unlit pedestrians and livestock and aggressive overtaking are real hazards, especially on rural and mountain routes; UK FCDO says deaths from road traffic accidents are among the highest in Europe.

Read more about driving in Albania

• 10 Interesting Facts About Albania
• Best places to visit in Albania

Watch what driving in Albania looks like

A few minutes of real POV footage is the fastest way to feel confident before your first drive in Albania:

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Sources

1. National road-traffic law
2. Resident licence conversion rule
3. UK FCDO Albania travel advice — driving section ('1968 international driving permit', 'The 1949 IDP is not accepted any more', one-year rule)
4. DPSHTRR — Albanian-issued international driving permit service
5. UN depositary status, 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic — Albania, accession 1 Oct 1969
6. UN depositary status, 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic — Albania, accession 29 Jun 2000
7. UK FCDO Albania — ambulance number 127
8. UN Treaty Collection — 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic
9. UN Treaty Collection — 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic