International Driving Permit in Syria

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

Driving in Syria: key facts

Do you need an International Driving Permit in Syria?

Syria acceded to the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic on 11 December 1953 and is not a party to the 1968 Vienna Convention, so the 1949 permit is the only IDP model with a treaty basis here. Syria's Traffic and Vehicles Law (Law No. 31 of 2004, as amended by Legislative Decree No. 11 of 2008) lets foreigners who are not Syrian drive a private vehicle in Syria only on a valid Syrian or international driving licence ('إلا بموجب إجازة سوق سورية أو دولية سارية المفعول'), with due regard to the international and bilateral agreements to which Syria is a party (art. 163(e)), and a Syrian licence is issued only to residents (art. 162). Citizens of Arab states may drive a private car on a valid Arab or international licence (art. 163(d)). Unless you are a citizen of an Arab state driving on an Arab licence, the IDP is therefore the document the law requires; the law does not name its model, and the 1949 permit is the one with a treaty basis in Syria, so whether a 1968 IDP is accepted is not established. The law does not list the agreements it defers to, and its licensing chapter does not apply to licences held under international agreements in force in Syria (art. 177(b)): check with the Syrian traffic authorities before you travel whether one of them covers your licence. The Ministry of Transport, which now runs driving licensing, publishes this text and works under it while a new traffic law is drafted. The UK government's IDP table lists Syria as '1949'.

• 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.

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

What side of the road does Syria drive on?

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

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

Syria's Traffic and Vehicles Law names no visitor period for foreigners driving on an Arab or international licence (art. 163(d) and (e)). It sets one only for Syrians who are not resident, six months on an Arab or international licence (art. 163(c)); a 1949 IDP is itself valid for one year from its date of issue. (Neither the FCDO Syria travel advice nor any reachable Syrian government source states a visitor driving-licence validity period.)

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

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

Syria 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 11 Dec 1953.

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 Syria with your country's licence?

This table is for tourists and temporary visitors. Moving to Syria as a resident? Different rules apply — see the residents section below. Find your licence's country of issue below. Syria has been a party to the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic since 11 December 1953 and is not a party to the 1968 Vienna Convention, so the 1949 permit is the only IDP model with a treaty basis; the UK government's IDP table lists Syria as "1949". Syria's Traffic and Vehicles Law lets citizens of Arab states drive a private car on a valid Arab licence (art. 163(d)) and lets other foreigners drive only on a valid Syrian or international licence (art. 163(e)). The rows below therefore clear a licence from an Arab state, require a 1949 IDP with a licence from any other 1949 Convention country, and do not accept on its own a licence from a country party to neither convention, which can issue no official IDP. The law does not name an IDP model, so for a licence from a country that can issue only the 1968 IDP the answer is not established; check with the Syrian traffic authorities before you travel. The FCDO advises against all travel to Syria and describes road travel as very dangerous. 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.
• 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 recognised — the record shows no route to drive here as a visitor on this licence; ask the local authorities about conversion or a temporary permit. The row for your country of issue, in the table below, says what stands in the way.
• 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] Traffic and Vehicles Law No. 31 of 2004, as amended by Legislative Decree No. 11 of 2008, art. 163(d) and (e)

[2] 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

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

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 Syria? Syria's official IDPs are issued by Syrian Automobile Club (SAC). 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 Syria? Rules for new residents

Residents should obtain a Syrian driving licence rather than rely indefinitely on an IDP. The last published conversion route for holders of an Arab or foreign licence — no driving test, on a reciprocity basis — dates from 2018 and was run by the Interior Ministry’s Traffic Directorate; licensing moved to the Ministry of Transport in 2025 and no current text confirms that route still operates. Official source.

Driving rules in Syria tourists get fined for

• Mandatory equipment: If travel is unavoidable, carry the original national licence, the 1949 IDP if the table below requires one for your licence, passport and visa, vehicle registration and insurance documents, plus emergency supplies. Confirm that any travel insurance is actually valid for Syria — most policies are void against FCDO advice.
• Drink-driving: No reliable current Syrian BAC threshold could be verified; assume zero alcohol. Police, criminal, licence and insurance consequences are possible; no current tariff could be verified.
• Speed limits: No verified national speed-limit schedule was retrievable. Obey posted limits and checkpoint instructions; conflict and road-security risk override normal journey planning.
• The FCDO advises against all travel to Syria, citing unpredictable security conditions and the threat of terrorist attacks. The advisory applies to the whole country, with no regional carve-out.
• "Road travel is very dangerous in many parts of the country due to lack of road maintenance, the fragile security situation and unexploded weapons".
• "Driving standards and traffic systems are poor, and the accident rate is high." "Driving at night is particularly dangerous".
• "If you are driving a car and are involved in an accident with a pedestrian, it is likely you'll be held legally responsible".
• "Road networks may be blocked without warning. There are security force checkpoints on major road routes".

Read more about driving in Syria

• 10 Interesting Facts About Syria

Watch what driving in Syria looks like

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

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Sources

1. Neither the FCDO Syria travel advice nor any reachable Syrian government source states a visitor driving-licence validity period.
2. Resident licence conversion rule
3. UN depositary status, 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic — "Syrian Arab Republic ... 11 Dec 1953 a" (103 parties)
4. UN depositary status, 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic — Syria does not appear (zero occurrences of "Syr" in the document; 91 parties)
5. UK government IDP table — row reads "Syria | 1949"
6. FCDO Syria travel advice — advises against all travel (updated 22 July 2026)
7. FCDO Syria — emergency services limited, no consular support inside Syria, +44 (0)20 7008 5000
8. Traffic and Vehicles Law No. 31 of 2004, as amended by Legislative Decree No. 11 of 2008 — consolidated text, Syrian Ministry of Transport (art. 163: foreign drivers; art. 177: international licences)
9. Syrian Automobile Club (SAC) — authorized IDP issuer in Syria
10. UN Treaty Collection — 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic
11. UN Treaty Collection — 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic