If you’re planning to take a road trip abroad, hiring a car has become a lot easier as more countries are accepting the UAE driver’s licence.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MoFAIC), the list of countries have included more – bringing the number of countries to over 50.
This means that the UAE driver’s licence is now accepted in:
Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Algeria, Jordan, Morocco, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Mauritania, Djibouti, Comoros, Tunisia, Iraq, Palestine, Spain, France, USA, UK, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Switzerland, Netherlands, Slovakia, Ireland , Austria, Greece, Sweden, China, Poland, Canada, Turkey, Norway, Latvia, New Zealand, Serbia, South Africa, Finland, Hungary, Luxembourg, Lithuania, Singapore.
The previous countries that already recognised a UAE driving license included Austria, Slovakia, Luxembourg, China, Finland, Romania, Denmark and Serbia.
However, the ministry urged motorists to apply for an international driving licence to meet the requirements of some countries.
Swap your licence in UAE
Some residents living in the UAE will not be required to undergo rigorous driving tests as they can easily change their driving licence issued by their home country to that of the UAE’s.
The list of countries are: UK, US, France, Japan, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, Greece, Spain, Sweden, Austria, Ireland, Norway , Turkey, Canada, Poland, South Korea, Finland, South Africa, and Australia.
The required documents to carry out the process include a letter from the employer to the residents, a legal translation of the foreign licence in Arabic, and a headshot.
