International Driving Permit for South African licence holders
How to get an International Driving Permit if your driving licence was issued in South Africa.
South African licences are printed in English, which helps across much of Africa and Europe. Cross-border road trips into Namibia, Botswana and Zimbabwe have their own documentation requirements on top of the permit question.
The official route from South Africa
Under the UN Road Traffic Conventions, an officially issued International Driving Permit can only be obtained in the country that issued your national licence, from a body that country's government has authorised. In South Africa that is the Automobile Association of South Africa (AASA).
Use that route if you have been told specifically that you need a government-recognised IDP, or if you are dealing with a licensing authority. It is the document with formal standing under the Conventions.
What we provide instead
Our service is a certified translation of your existing South African licence into 12 languages, laid out in the format described by the Conventions and carried alongside the original. It is not a licence, it is not government-issued, and it does not replace your South African licence.
What it does solve is the everyday problem: a rental agent or traffic officer who cannot read your licence can read the translation. It arrives digitally within minutes and you can order it from anywhere, including after you have already travelled.
What you need
- Your valid South African driving licence — expired licences cannot be translated.
- A recent passport-style photograph on a plain background.
- To be 18 or older. No driving test is required.
- Your travel dates, so you can choose a sensible validity period.