I have operated motor vehicles in 41 countries — 15 of them where driving on the left side of the road is compulsory — on six continents at the time this article was written; and yet the only time I have ever needed an International Driving Permit was in…this country?!?
The Only Time I Needed An International Driving Permit Was In…This Country?!?
The International Driving Permit is often incorrectly called an International Driver’s License. An International Driving Permit is not a license to drive in other countries. Rather, it is merely a small paper booklet which is a recognized valid form of identification in 183 countries and territories around the world. In addition to the International Driving Permit, you still need your driver’s license to operate a private motor vehicle legally in another country…
…but the main purpose of an International Driving Permit is to translate the information of your valid driver’s license into ten different languages — so in the event that you are stopped by law enforcement in another country and are asked to present your information, the officer will be able to quickly understand that information at the scene, which will help speed up the process of resolving whatever was the issue. In addition to the aforementioned information, an International Driving Permit also includes your name and photograph.
After having driven in Serbia, I arrived at the border that that country shares with Romania. I have been to Romania twice before; but I have never driven in that country. Romanian is a Romance language that is similar to French, Spanish, Italian, and Portuguese and uses — for the most part — the same characters as the English language. It is easier to understand than the Cyrillic language of Serbian. Earlier during the same trip, I had crossed the borders that both Serbia and Croatia share with Bosnia and Herzegovina; and I was not asked for my International Driving Permit…
…so you can imagine my surprise when I was asked for my International Driving Permit by officials of Romania. They had my passport, driver’s license, and International Driving Permit for at least 20 minutes — to the point where I thought something was wrong. They even inspected the trunk of my rental car.
My communication with one Romanian official quickly turned conversational. “How difficult was getting your International Driving Permit?” he asked me.
I thought that was an odd question. “I went to a local office of the American Automobile Association, completed a form, gave them $20.00 and a passport photograph, and I was done in maybe 20 minutes”, I responded before I curiously asked, “Why do you ask?”
“We had to turn away four other American drivers earlier today because they did not have an International Driving Permit”, he said. “So I thought it was difficult to get.”
“No — it is quite easy to get”, I responded — and now puzzled. He seemed to feel bad about turning them away — especially as some of them pleaded to be allowed to drive on into Romania — but “that is the law”, he said.
Final Boarding Call
I would have expected that experience in many other countries where I have driven — such as Serbia, Austria, Albania, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, or the Netherlands as only a few of many examples…
…and as Romanian is a Romance language, I have never been asked for an International Driving Permit at the borders of countries where Romance languages are spoken — such as France, Spain, Andorra, Belgium, and Switzerland.
The lesson to be learned of my experience is to have an International Driving Permit whenever you drive in another country — especially one in which the official language is different than the official language of the country of which you are a citizen — because you never know when you might be asked for it.
All photographs ©2022 and ©2024 by Brian Cohen.
