International Driving Permit in Viet Nam

🗓 Facts checked against Vietnam's road-traffic law and official sources. Research last updated: 28 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 Vietnam: key facts
• Do you need an International Driving Permit in Vietnam?
• What side of the road does Vietnam drive on?
• How long can you drive in Vietnam with a foreign licence?
• Is Vietnam a party to the 1949 or 1968 Road Traffic Convention?
• Why acceptance of your licence varies from place to place
• Can you drive in Vietnam with your country's licence?
• Where to get an International Driving Permit
• Moving to Vietnam? Rules for new residents
• Driving rules in Vietnam tourists get fined for
• Read more about driving in Vietnam
• Sources

Driving in Vietnam: key facts

Do you need an International Driving Permit in Vietnam?

For the ordinary convention route, Vietnam requires a 1968 Vienna Convention IDP issued by a competent state authority of a 1968 party, together with the corresponding current national licence (Law 36/2024/QH15, Art. 57(8)). Private association documents such as an IAA booklet are not recognized — the Traffic Police (Cục CSGT) have publicly warned that holders are fined as driving 'without a licence'. Although Vietnam appears in the 1949 Geneva Convention parties list, current domestic law names only the Vienna (1968) IDP: a 1949 IDP has no recognition route, so 1949-only origins (e.g. USA, Japan, Canada) have no ordinary tourist driving route — their only lawful option is the resident licence-exchange. A national licence can be used without an IDP only where a treaty gives it direct recognition — in practice the 1985 ASEAN agreement.

• 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.

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

What side of the road does Vietnam drive on?

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

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

No separate tourist-day cap was found. The 1968 IDP may be valid for no more than three years and never beyond the underlying national licence; the driver also must remain lawfully entitled to stay in Vietnam. The ASEAN-route recognition applies to temporary stays. (Law on Road Traffic Order and Safety 36/2024/QH15, Article 57(8))

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

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

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

• 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic: accession on 2 Nov 1953.
• 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic: accession on 20 Aug 2014.

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 Vietnam with your country's licence?

This table is for tourists and temporary visitors. Moving to Vietnam as a resident? Different rules apply — see the residents section below. Find your licence's country of issue below. Vietnam's visitor regime has one wide gate and one narrow gate. ASEAN-issued domestic licences are recognized for temporary stays under the 1985 ASEAN agreement (certified English translation if the licence is not in English). Everyone else needs a competent-authority 1968 Vienna IDP together with the matching current national licence — a 1949 permit is not a substitute, and neither is a booklet issued outside the Convention, so 1949-only origins such as the USA or Japan have no ordinary tourist driving route. There is no separate tourist-day clock; validity follows the IDP, the national licence and lawful stay. 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] Law 36/2024/QH15, Article 57 (treaty-recognition clause + clause 8); Agreement on the Recognition of Domestic Driving Licenses Issued by ASEAN Countries (Kuala Lumpur, 9 July 1985; in force 7 Jan 1988; Vietnam acceded 22 Jan 1997)

[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 Vietnam? Vietnam's official IDPs are issued by Traffic Police Department (C08), Ministry of Public Security — applications are accepted online. 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 Vietnam? Rules for new residents

A foreign national residing, working or studying in Vietnam with a current national licence and a diplomatic, official, temporary-residence, residence, stay or permanent-residence document valid for at least three months may apply to exchange it for the corresponding Vietnamese class. Official source.

Driving rules in Vietnam tourists get fined for

• Mandatory equipment: Seat belts must be used where fitted. Motorcycle and moped drivers and passengers must wear a standards-compliant helmet with the strap correctly fastened. Do not assume a foreign car or motorcycle category maps automatically to a Vietnamese category.
• Drink-driving: Zero tolerance: operating a road vehicle with any alcohol concentration in blood or breath is prohibited. Car-driver alcohol fines are tiered (Decree 168/2024 Art. 6): VND 6,000,000-8,000,000 at the lowest band, VND 18,000,000-20,000,000 at the middle band, and VND 30,000,000-40,000,000 at the highest band (over 80 mg/100 ml blood or 0.4 mg/L breath) or for refusing a test, with licence revocation of 22-24 months at the top band.
• Speed limits: Outside densely populated areas a passenger vehicle with up to 28 seats (excluding the driver; scheduled buses excepted), or a goods vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes, may do 90 km/h on a divided road or one-way road with at least two motor lanes, and 80 km/h on an undivided two-way road or one-way road with one motor lane. Inside densely populated areas the limit is 60 km/h and 50 km/h respectively for every motor vehicle except two classes: mopeds and specialised machinery, capped at 40 km/h, and four-wheeled motorised passenger or goods vehicles, at 30 km/h and 50 km/h. Expressways are signed and may permit up to 120 km/h, with a 60 km/h minimum except on an expressway whose design speed is 60 km/h, where the approved traffic plan governs (Circular 38/2024/TT-BGTVT, effective 1 Jan 2025).
• Carry both the physical 1968 IDP and the matching current national licence. The IDP alone is insufficient (VND 8-10M fine, Decree 168 Art. 18(8)), and the vehicle category must correspond on both documents.
• Do not rely on a document issued outside the Convention, whatever it is titled; Vietnamese Traffic Police state these are not the Convention IDP recognized in Vietnam and holders are penalized as driving without a licence.
• Drive on the right. Motorcycles dominate many urban roads; riders and passengers must wear compliant, correctly fastened helmets (Art. 33(2)), and all occupants must use fitted seat belts in cars (Art. 10).

Read more about driving in Vietnam

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

Watch what driving in Vietnam looks like

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

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Sources

1. National road-traffic law
2. Law on Road Traffic Order and Safety 36/2024/QH15, Article 57(8)
3. Resident licence conversion rule
4. Vietnam Traffic Police warning that IAA documents are not recognized IDPs (site intermittently unreachable from abroad; mirrored at vov.gov.vn and hochiminhcity.gov.vn)
5. 1985 ASEAN Agreement on the Recognition of Domestic Driving Licenses (ASEAN legal-instrument record; party dates incl. Vietnam accession 22 Jan 1997 per CIL NUS database)
6. Government summary of speed rules effective 1 January 2025 (Circular 38/2024/TT-BGTVT)
7. Government notice on the 112 civil-defence/disaster line (launched 23 Aug 2025, Decree 200/2025; transfers 113/114/115 matters)
8. Decree 168/2024/ND-CP consolidated text (Thư Viện Pháp Luật) — fine clause numbering cross-check
9. Government summary of licence-class age thresholds under Law 36/2024/QH15, Article 59
10. UN Treaty Collection depositary record for the 1949 Convention on Road Traffic (MTDSG XI-B-1) — "Viet Nam", accession 2 November 1953; 103 parties
11. Traffic Police Department (C08), Ministry of Public Security — authorized IDP issuer in Vietnam
12. UN Treaty Collection — 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic
13. UN Treaty Collection — 1968 Vienna Convention on Road Traffic