International Driving Permit in Slovenia

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

Driving in Slovenia: key facts

Do you need an International Driving Permit in Slovenia?

An IDP is not required across the board. Under ZVoz-1 Art. 60(3) a driver must carry a valid IDP alongside the national licence only where the foreign licence does not conform to the Convention on Road Traffic (the 1968 Vienna Convention, Ur. l. RS – MP 9-55/92). A licence that conforms to that Convention is used on its own; EU/EEA, Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland licences are exempt outright under Art. 60(5). Note the statutory remedy for a non-conforming licence is an IDP — Slovenian roadside law does not offer a certified-translation substitute. Art. 60(3) does not name a convention for the IDP itself and Slovenia is party to both (1968 by succession 6 Jul 1992; 1949 by succession 13 Jul 2017), so either booklet is accepted; the 1968 booklet is the safer default.

• 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, plus an IDP if the licence does not conform to the 1968 Vienna Convention, together with passport or ID, vehicle registration, compulsory insurance proof, motorway vignette evidence and the rental agreement.
• EU / EEA licence holders: no IDP needed — A licence from another EU state, Liechtenstein, Norway or Iceland may be used in Slovenia for the vehicles it covers, whatever the rest of the article says.

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

What side of the road does Slovenia drive on?

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

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

ZVoz-1 sets no express clock for a visitor who does not register residence: the one-year and two-year periods in Art. 60(1)-(2) both run from registration of residence, so they do not start for a tourist. A visitor therefore drives on the valid foreign licence for the duration of the lawful stay, adding an IDP if the licence does not conform to the 1968 Vienna Convention. (Zakon o voznikih (ZVoz-1), Art. 60(1)-(3), read against the absence of any visitor-specific period)

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

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

Slovenia 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 Slovenia accepts from visitors is shown in the table above.

• 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic: succession on 13 Jul 2017.
• 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic: succession on 6 Jul 1992.

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 Slovenia with your country's licence?

This table is for tourists and temporary visitors. Moving to Slovenia as a resident? Different rules apply — see the residents section below. Find your licence's country of issue below. Slovenia recognises the foreign national licence itself, so an IDP is not a universal requirement. EU, EEA, Liechtenstein, Norwegian and Icelandic licences are valid outright. Any other licence works on its own if it conforms to the 1968 Vienna Convention; if it does not, the licence is still recognised but a valid IDP must be carried alongside it, and driving without one is fined from EUR 80. The Slovenian minimum age binds regardless of what the foreign licence permits. The frequently quoted one-year limit is a residence clock that starts when residence is registered — it never starts for a tourist, and returning Slovenian citizens get two years instead. 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.
• Treaty recognises licence — IDP advised — the 1949 Geneva Convention obliges this destination to recognise your national licence, and separately allows a destination to require a 1949-type IDP; this row states the treaty position and does not settle which of the two this destination chose, so carrying an IDP is advised. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, gives the basis.
• Treaty recognises licence + IDP — advised — the 1968 Vienna Convention obliges this destination to recognise a national licence conforming to Annex 6 of that Convention, and separately an IDP presented together with the national licence it belongs to; this row does not record whether your own licence conforms to Annex 6, and the licence-and-IDP pair is recognised either way, so carrying both is advised. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, gives the basis.
• 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 Slovenia? Slovenia's official IDPs are issued by Automobile and Motorcycle Association of Slovenia (AMZS). 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 Slovenia? Rules for new residents

Two distinct residence clocks, both running from registration of residence, not from arrival. A foreign national with registered residence on a residence permit may drive on the foreign licence for one year from the date of residence registration, and only subject to reciprocity — 'in ob vzajemnosti' (ZVoz-1 Art. 60(1)). A Slovenian citizen who has been living abroad and comes to Slovenia gets two years from registration of residence (Art. 60(2)). Breach of either is fined at least EUR 500 (Art. 60(7)). Official source.

Driving rules in Slovenia tourists get fined for

• Mandatory equipment: Daytime running lights and seat belts are compulsory. Carry a warning triangle, reflective vest, first-aid kit and the required winter equipment in season. A motorway vignette is required for the motorway and expressway network.
• Drink-driving: The general limit is expressed in Slovenian law as 0.50 g of alcohol per kg of blood (0.24 mg/l of exhaled air), equivalent to the 0.05 g/dl figure used elsewhere. Zero applies to novice drivers, drivers under 21 and specified professional drivers. Penalties escalate with concentration and can include fines, penalty points, licence suspension and detention. Exact bands were not re-verified against the consolidated ZPrCP on 29 July 2026; treat zero alcohol as the safe rule.
• Speed limits: Usually 50 km/h urban, 90 km/h rural, 110 km/h expressway and 130 km/h motorway. Posted limits govern.
• Carry the original national licence, plus an IDP if the licence does not conform to the 1968 Vienna Convention, together with passport or ID, vehicle registration, compulsory insurance proof, motorway vignette evidence and the rental agreement.
• Traffic keeps right. Usual limits are 50 km/h urban, 90 km/h outside built-up areas, 110 km/h expressway and 130 km/h motorway; posted signs govern.
• Daytime running lights are compulsory year-round. Winter equipment is generally required from 15 November to 15 March and whenever winter driving conditions occur.

Read more about driving in Slovenia

• 10 Interesting Facts About Slovenia
• Best places to visit in Slovenia
• What is Slovenia famous for?

Watch what driving in Slovenia looks like

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

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

Sources

1. National road-traffic law
2. Resident licence conversion rule
3. ZVoz-1 Art. 60 — driving on a foreign licence (paragraphs 1-7, incl. IDP rule and EUR 80 / EUR 500 fines)
4. ZVoz-1 Art. 61 — exchange of a foreign licence (all 10 paragraphs)
5. ZVoz-1 Art. 63 — IDPs issued in Slovenia; Art. 63(3) confirms a Slovenian-issued IDP cannot be used to drive in Slovenia (outbound only)
6. UNTC — Slovenia party to the 1968 Vienna Convention by succession, 6 Jul 1992
7. UNTC — Slovenia party to the 1949 Geneva Convention by succession, 13 Jul 2017
8. eUprava IDP FAQ (URL corrected to /si/ form) — outbound only: how a Slovenian licence holder obtains an IDP from AMZS. Does not address visitors driving in Slovenia.
9. eUprava driving-licence page (URL corrected to /si/ form) — obtaining a Slovenian licence and category/age table. Contains nothing on foreign licences.
10. Automobile and Motorcycle Association of Slovenia (AMZS) — authorized IDP issuer in Slovenia
11. UN Treaty Collection — 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic