How do I convert an overseas driver’s licence in Australia?
If you are coming to live in Australia from overseas, you will need to convert your driver’s licenceIf you are coming from overseas to live in Australia, you will have to convert your overseas driver’s licence from your home country to an Australian driver’s licence in the state or territory where you live. Here are the key things you should know.
What do you need to do to get an Australian driver’s licence?
Australian car and motorcycle driver’s licences are issued by the state and territory governments of Australia, not the federal government. So you need to apply for a driver’s licence in the state or territory you are living in. For example, if your home address in Australia is in Victoria, you need to apply for a Victorian driver’s licence at VicRoads; if you are living in New South Wales, you need to apply for a NSW driver’s licence at Service NSW.
Each state and territory can have slightly different rules on getting a driver’s licence, and this article contains general information. The links at the bottom of this article will take you to exact information for each Australian state or territory.
If you have a full licence from your home country, you can legally drive in Australia for up to three months on that licence from when you first arrive to live in Australia (except in Victoria, where it’s up to six months). Once that three (or six) months have passed, you must only drive with an Australian driver’s licence.
General requirements
How easy it is to get an Australian licence depends on: the country where you got your licence and what type of licence it is (car and/or motorcycle, for example); your age (over 18, over 25, or under 75, for example); how long you have had a licence overseas and, lastly, if you have ever had a licence disqualification overseas.
You will need to prove your identity, proof of residency or visa status in Australia, and pay a fee before being issued an Australian driver’s licence. If your overseas licence is in a language other than English, you may need to have an approved translation to English. In some cases, you may need to pass an eyesight test, a medical test, and pass theory and practical driving tests before you can get an Australian driver’s licence.
Recognised Countries
Some overseas countries have similar driver licence standards to Australia. For those countries, called Recognised Countries (see country list below), most drivers who already have a full licence can just go to a transport authority and pay a fee to exchange their overseas driver’s licence to an Australian driver’s licence.
Experienced Driver Recognition countries
Countries with driver licence testing standards that meet some but not all Australian licence testing requirements will be considered for Experienced Driver Recognition status (see country list below). If you are 25 years of age or older with a driver’s licence from one of these countries, you may be able to exchange your overseas licence for an Australian one, without driver testing.
But if you are under 25 and have a driver’s licence from an Experienced Driver Recognition country, you will have to do theory and practical driving tests. If you pass these tests, your overseas licence will be converted, based on years of driving experience and age, to the same class of licence you would have been on if you started in Australia.
Other countries
If you come from a non-recognised country, you have to do a theory test and a practical driving test. If you pass both these tests, your overseas licence will be converted to an Australian one, based on your years of driving experience and age, to the class of licence you would have been on if you had started driving in Australia.
Recognised Countries and jurisdictions:
Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guernsey, Ireland, Isle of Man (for licences first issued on or after April 1, 1991), Italy, Japan, Jersey, Luxembourg, Malta (for licences first issued on or after January 2, 2004),Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK and USA.
Experienced Driver Recognition status countries:
Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hong Kong (Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China)*, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Republic of Cyprus, Republic of Korea (South Korea), Republic of Serbia, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa and Taiwan.
* To exchange a Hong Kong licence without driver testing, you must be 25 or older and have held a Hong Kong licence for at least one year.
Australian State/Territory Road Agency Websites:
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)
New South Wales (NSW)
Northern Territory (NT)
Queensland (QLD)
South Australia (SA)
Tasmania (TAS)
Victoria (VIC)
Western Australia (WA)
Related: How do I convert an overseas licence in NSW?
Related: How do I convert an overseas licence in Victoria?
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