International Driving Permit in Ghana

🗓 Facts checked against the best available secondary sources for Ghana; we could not independently verify the underlying road-traffic law. 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 Ghana: key facts
• Do you need an International Driving Permit in Ghana?
• What side of the road does Ghana drive on?
• How long can you drive in Ghana with a foreign licence?
• Is Ghana a party to the 1949 or 1968 Road Traffic Convention?
• Why acceptance of your licence varies from place to place
• Can you drive in Ghana with your country's licence?
• Where to get an International Driving Permit
• Moving to Ghana? Rules for new residents
• Driving rules in Ghana tourists get fined for
• Read more about driving in Ghana
• Sources

Driving in Ghana: key facts

Do you need an International Driving Permit in Ghana?

A genuine 1949 (Geneva) IDP carried together with the valid original national licence is the documented visitor route; the only alternative is a Ghanaian licence. Two governments state this as a requirement, not a recommendation: UK FCDO — 'You can drive in Ghana using the 1949 version of the international driving permit (IDP) or a Ghanaian driving licence'; Government of Canada — 'You must carry an international driving permit.' Ghanaian statute contains no provision that lets a bare foreign national licence authorise driving: Road Traffic Act 2004 (Act 683) s.53(1) requires a driving licence, and s.55 recognises a foreign licence only for conversion. An IDP never replaces the national licence. Ghana accepts only the 1949 type; a 1968-only IDP has no documented standing here.

• 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 non-exempt licences that is an IDP.
• Car renters: Carry the original national licence, a genuine 1949 IDP, passport and immigration evidence, vehicle registration, rental contract and insurance. UK FCDO: 'Carry your driving documents with you.' Government of Canada: 'always carry a copy of you ID documents, such as your passport, your International Driving Permit and the vehicle registration'.

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

What side of the road does Ghana drive on?

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

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

Up to 12 months on a 1949 IDP carried with the original national licence. Government of Canada: 'You must carry an international driving permit. You can use it for up to 12 months' — after that a Ghanaian licence is required. A 1949 IDP is in any case valid for at most one year, and a shorter immigration permission, rental contract or insurance term controls if shorter. (Government of Canada Ghana travel advice; 1949 Geneva Convention (IDP max one-year validity))

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

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

Ghana is a Contracting Party to the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic, but not to the 1968 Vienna Convention.

• 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic: accession on 6 Jan 1959.

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 Ghana with your country's licence?

This table is for tourists and temporary visitors. Moving to Ghana as a resident? Different rules apply — see the residents section below. Find your licence's country of issue below. Ghana requires a 1949 (Geneva) International Driving Permit. Both the UK and Canadian governments state that you drive in Ghana on a 1949 IDP carried with your original national licence, or on a Ghanaian licence — Ghanaian law recognises a foreign licence only for conversion (Road Traffic Act 2004, s.55), never as a standalone driving permission. The IDP route runs up to 12 months; after that, or to convert, DVLA requires a residence permit covering at least a one-year stay, embassy or issuing-authority authentication, and approved English translations. Ghana accepts only the 1949 IDP type — a 1968-only permit has no standing here. 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:

• IDP required — the destination requires an IDP in addition to your national licence. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, says which IDP to carry and what else to carry with it.
• 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.

Sources and notes for the table above

[1] UN Treaty Collection, Multilateral Treaties Deposited with the Secretary-General — status of the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic (chapter XI-B-1) and of the 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic (chapter XI-B-19) — XI-B-1, XI-B-19

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 Ghana? Ghana's official IDPs are issued by Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA). 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 Ghana? Rules for new residents

A foreign resident converts a valid foreign licence through Ghana DVLA (service B5). Both the UK and Canadian governments treat 12 months as the point at which a Ghanaian licence becomes necessary. Official source.

Driving rules in Ghana tourists get fined for

• Mandatory equipment: L.I. 2180 reg. 69 requires, in a readily accessible position, at least one fire extinguisher (capacity 1 kg, 3 kg or 6 kg depending on engine size) and 'a first aid kit which contains Class C medication'. Government of Canada adds that vehicles must carry 'up-to-date road-worthy insurance stickers', 'a first aid kit', 'a fire extinguisher' and 'a warning triangle'. Check belts, tyres and spare, brakes and lights before setting off.
• Drink-driving: 0.08 percent — Road Traffic Act 2004 (Act 683) s.4(2): a person 'shall be taken to be under the influence of alcohol where the alcohol concentration in that person's blood or breath ... is 0.08 percent or more'; s.10 states the prescribed limit as '80 milligrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood'. Enforcement is uneven; zero is still the safe operating rule for a visitor. Act 683 s.4 penalty scale: no or minor injury — fine up to 100 penalty units or up to 6 months' imprisonment; aggravated injury — 250 to 500 penalty units or 1 to 2 years; death — 1,000 to 2,000 penalty units or 3 to 5 years. Insurers can decline cover on top of the criminal penalty.
• Speed limits: Drive on the right and obey posted km/h limits — no current official numeric limit table (urban/rural/highway) was reachable during verification, so signage governs. UK FCDO: 'Grass or leaves strewn in the road often mean there is an accident or other hazard ahead'.
• Carry the original national licence, a genuine 1949 IDP, passport and immigration evidence, vehicle registration, rental contract and insurance. UK FCDO: 'Carry your driving documents with you.' Government of Canada: 'always carry a copy of you ID documents, such as your passport, your International Driving Permit and the vehicle registration'.
• Drive on the right. UK FCDO: 'Roads can be in a poor condition, particularly in rural areas'; 'Street lighting is poor or non-existent. Avoid travelling by road outside the main towns after dark, when the risk of serious road accidents is much greater, and there is a heightened risk of attacks on vehicles'.
• UK FCDO verbatim: 'If you choose to drive at night be aware of impromptu police checkpoints. Do not give cash to the police as this can be perceived as a bribe.' For longer trips outside major cities the FCDO advises: 'travel during daylight hours', 'travel in a convoy of at least 2 vehicles', 'get advice from local police', 'do not stop your vehicle if people at the roadside try to flag you down'.
• Regional risk: the FCDO reports attacks linked to the Bawku conflict on the Nasia-Walewale-Bolgatanga road (North East) and the Bolgatanga-Zebilla-Bawku-Pulmankom road (Upper East), notes that 'Many people are arranging police escorts when travelling along these roads', and that curfews 'usually run from 7pm to 5am but times can vary'. Check the current advisory before routing north.
• Government of Canada: 'Vehicles with temporary license plates are prohibited from travelling anywhere in Ghana between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m.' If you are involved in a collision, 'proceed immediately to the nearest police station to make a report'.

Read more about driving in Ghana

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

Watch what driving in Ghana looks like

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

Open the video on YouTube if the player does not load.

Sources

1. National road-traffic law
2. Government of Canada Ghana travel advice; 1949 Geneva Convention (IDP max one-year validity)
3. Resident licence conversion rule
4. UK FCDO Ghana travel advice — 1949 IDP requirement, night driving, checkpoints, convoy advice
5. UK FCDO Ghana travel advice — Bawku / Upper East and North East road risks, curfews
6. UK FCDO Ghana — emergency numbers (999/112; lists 192 as police, see caution)
7. Road Traffic Regulations, 2012 (L.I. 2180) — reg. 69 fire extinguisher and first aid kit; reg. 37(1)(d) minimum age 18; contains no provision on foreign licences or IDPs
8. 1949 Geneva Convention party list and Art. 24 (a Contracting State may require an IDP) — Ghana acceded 6 January 1959 per UN depositary notification CN.7.1959
9. Driver and Vehicle Licensing Authority (DVLA) — authorized IDP issuer in Ghana
10. UN Treaty Collection — 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic
11. UN Treaty Collection — 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic