International Driving Permit in Burundi

🗓 Facts checked against Burundi's road-traffic law and official sources. Research last updated: 30 October 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 Burundi: key facts
• Do you need an International Driving Permit in Burundi?
• What side of the road does Burundi drive on?
• How long can you drive in Burundi with a foreign licence?
• Is Burundi a party to the 1949 or 1968 Road Traffic Convention?
• Why acceptance of your licence varies from place to place
• Can you drive in Burundi with your country's licence?
• Where to get an International Driving Permit
• Moving to Burundi? Rules for new residents
• Driving rules in Burundi tourists get fined for
• Read more about driving in Burundi
• Sources

Driving in Burundi: key facts

Do you need an International Driving Permit in Burundi?

Burundi is a party to neither the 1949 Geneva nor the 1968 Vienna road-traffic convention, so no IDP model has treaty force there. Its Road Traffic Code (Law No. 1/026 of 23 November 2012) nonetheless gives the IDP legal effect: a non-resident who holds an international driving permit may drive, while the permit is valid, the vehicles that the licence it was issued on covers (art. 186). A non-resident may also drive for up to 6 months on a valid foreign licence that covers the vehicle's category, if the issuing country grants Burundians the same right and has ratified the international conventions on driving permits, in particular the Geneva Convention on Road Traffic (art. 183). No list of the countries that meet those conditions is published, and the Code does not say which international permits art. 186 means, so whether your licence, or your IDP, is accepted is not established: check with the Burundi National Police before you travel. UK government advice states a UK photocard licence may be used in Burundi for 6 months, and Netherlands government advice states a Dutch licence is valid in Burundi; this is other governments' advice, not Burundian law. An IDP does not replace the original licence, so carry both; a certified French translation also eases roadside document checks and rental counters if your licence is not in French.

• Tourists and short-term visitors: Burundi's Road Traffic Code lets a foreign licence be used for 6 months only if its country grants Burundians the same right and has ratified the driving-permit conventions; no list is published. It accepts an IDP without saying which kind. Check with the authorities before you travel; the answer below says what is known.
• Car renters: Carry the original licence, passport and entry stamp/visa, vehicle registration, rental authority and locally valid insurance. Add a certified French translation (or an IDP) if the licence is not readily readable in French.

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

What side of the road does Burundi drive on?

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

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

Up to 6 months for a non-resident on a valid foreign licence covering the vehicle's category, if the issuing country grants Burundians the same right and has ratified the international driving-permit conventions. The Road Traffic Code names the Geneva Convention in particular (art. 183) and gives foreign students, development-cooperation staff, trainees and business people staying in Burundi the same 6 months (art. 184). A holder of an international driving permit may instead drive while that permit is valid (art. 186). Never drive beyond the validity of your licence, your immigration permission, the rental agreement or the insurance cover. (Loi n° 1/026 du 23 novembre 2012 portant Code de la circulation routière, arts. 183, 184 and 186)

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

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

Burundi is party to neither the 1949 Geneva Convention nor the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic. An official convention IDP cannot be issued in Burundi, and convention rules do not bind it — licence acceptance is governed purely by local law and bilateral arrangements.

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 Burundi with your country's licence?

This answer is for tourists and temporary visitors. Moving to Burundi as a resident? Different rules apply — see the residents section below. Burundi belongs to neither road-traffic convention, but its 2012 Road Traffic Code lets a non-resident drive on an international driving permit while the permit is valid (art. 186), or on a valid national licence for up to 6 months if the issuing country grants Burundians the same right and has ratified the international conventions on driving permits, in particular the Geneva Convention (art. 183). No list of those countries is published, and the Code does not say which international permits art. 186 means, so whether your licence or IDP is accepted is not established: check with the Burundi National Police before you travel. Carry a certified French translation if your licence is not readable in French, treat residence as a separate clock (30 days on a foreign licence after settling, then an exchange without a test under arts. 187 and 188), and plan conservatively around mountainous roads, frequent roadblocks, fuel shortages and thin emergency cover outside Bujumbura. Rules change — confirm with official sources before you travel. Last verified: October 2026.

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

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 answer below says what could not be confirmed.

What you need to carry — Check with local authorities before travel

Why — Burundi's Road Traffic Code lets a foreign licence be used for 6 months only if its country grants Burundians the same right and has ratified the driving-permit conventions; no list is published. It accepts an IDP without saying which kind. [1]

Sources and notes for the answer above

[1] Loi n° 1/026 du 23 novembre 2012 portant Code de la circulation routière, arts. 183 and 186

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 Burundi? Burundi's IDPs are issued by Police Speciale de Roulage (PSR). Official site. Burundi is party to neither road-traffic convention, so the permit is issued outside the UN convention framework and is not an official convention IDP — check that your destination accepts it.
• 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 Burundi? Rules for new residents

Someone who settles in Burundi may drive a private car on a valid foreign licence for 30 days after settling (Road Traffic Code, art. 187), and may exchange that licence for a Burundian one without a test, on payment of the fees set by regulation (art. 188). A test may still be required when the licence covers commercial vehicles, emergency vehicles, taxis, buses or minibuses.

Driving rules in Burundi tourists get fined for

• Mandatory equipment: Every vehicle must carry a pair of fluorescent warning triangles (Road Traffic Code, art. 118), set 10 metres in front of and behind the vehicle when it stops with a breakdown (art. 209), and a working fire extinguisher that is within its validity date (art. 111). Cars must have seat belts in the front and rear seats (art. 109); the driver and all passengers must wear them, and children under 13 must sit in the rear (art. 208). Not wearing a seat belt and failing to set out the triangles are each fined 20,000 Burundian francs (arts. 552 and 553). Check lights, tyres, brakes, spare wheel, fuel reserve, water and communications before leaving Bujumbura; recovery services are effectively unavailable up-country.
• Drink-driving: A driver whose blood alcohol exceeds 80 mg/100 ml is legally under the influence (Road Traffic Code, art. 192), and drunk driving is strictly prohibited (art. 190). Police may require an on-the-spot breath test when they suspect alcohol (art. 191). The safest course is not to drink at all before driving. Impaired driving can bring detention, prosecution, action against your entitlement to drive and loss of insurance cover. A driver over the limit has the licence seized and gets it back only on payment of a fine of 50,000 Burundian francs (Road Traffic Code, art. 547).
• Speed limits: Obey posted km/h limits and police directions. The Road Traffic Code sets two different general limits outside towns: art. 200 sets a maximum of 100 km/h on the open road, while art. 324 allows 100 km/h only on dual carriageways and 80 km/h on other roads. Both set 50 km/h in towns, and art. 200 applies the same 50 km/h wherever people or livestock gather. Keeping to 80 km/h outside towns, except on dual carriageways, complies with both. Speeding is fined 50,000 Burundian francs (art. 548). Reduce speed sharply for rain, broken surfaces, landslide debris, pedestrians and animals.
• Carry the original licence, passport and entry stamp/visa, vehicle registration, rental authority and locally valid insurance. Add a certified French translation (or an IDP) if the licence is not readily readable in French.
• Roadblocks and document checks are frequent and are not always official. UK government advice recommends carrying copies of your passport and visa, though originals may be demanded, and keeping doors locked and windows closed.
• Most Burundian roads are mountainous and hazardous, paved roads are few and often in poor condition, landslides block or damage roads after heavy rain, and driving standards and vehicle maintenance are poor. Avoid driving outside Bujumbura after dark.
• Severe fuel shortages are current — do not assume fuel will be available, and expect long queues where it is. France Diplomatie discourages minibuses, shared cars, motorcycle taxis and taxis, and recommends a rented 4x4 with a driver.

Read more about driving in Burundi

• 10 Interesting Facts About Burundi
• Best Places to Visit in Burundi

Watch what driving in Burundi looks like

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

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Sources

1. Loi n° 1/026 du 23 novembre 2012 portant Code de la circulation routière, arts. 183, 184 and 186
2. UK FCDO Burundi travel advice — driving licence validity (6 months), road conditions, roadblocks, fuel shortages
3. UK FCDO Burundi — emergency numbers (112 ambulance/fire/police; Red Cross 109)
4. Netherlands government Burundi travel advice — 'Uw Nederlandse rijbewijs is geldig in Burundi'; police 112, fire and ambulance 113
5. France Diplomatie Burundi practical information, updated 30 June 2026 — road hazards, fuel, transport recommendations
6. UN Treaty Collection — 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic participants (Burundi absent)
7. UN Treaty Collection — 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic participants (Burundi absent)
8. Police Speciale de Roulage (PSR) — authorized IDP issuer in Burundi
9. UN Treaty Collection — 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic
10. UN Treaty Collection — 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic