To get an international driving permit (IDP) in the UK, go in person to a participating PayPoint store with your full UK driving licence and £5.50. GOV.UK announced that from 1 April 2024 IDPs would be available exclusively from participating PayPoint stores, and its guide today names no online or postal route. You must live in Great Britain or Northern Ireland, hold a full UK licence and be 18 or over. This guide takes you through the steps in order: checking that you need a permit and which type, applying, timing it, and the other papers GOV.UK lists for a trip. It summarises GOV.UK as read on 11 October 2026. Whether a country asks for a permit at all is covered in the international driving permit guide.
Step 1: check that you need one, and which type
GOV.UK says to check if you need an IDP first. Its table lists each country with one of three types, 1926, 1949 or 1968, and a note where the rules depend on your licence, your stay or car hire. Write down the type for every country on your route: if you travel through more than one country you might need more than one type, and GOV.UK's driving abroad guide says you might need one for each country you visit. If a country is not in the table, GOV.UK says to ask its embassy.
For many European trips the answer is no. GOV.UK says you do not need an IDP to drive in the EU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein with a photocard licence issued in the UK. A paper licence is different: GOV.UK says to update it to a photocard licence or get an IDP.
Step 2: make sure you can apply
GOV.UK sets three conditions:
- You live in Great Britain or Northern Ireland.
- You hold a full UK driving licence.
- You are 18 or over.
Your licence must also be in order. GOV.UK says to check it is still valid and renew it online if it has expired or is about to. If it has been lost, stolen, damaged or destroyed, you need a new one before you can drive abroad; an online application should bring it within 5 days, a postal one takes longer.
Do not apply if you are moving abroad. GOV.UK says you will then need to exchange your UK licence or apply for a new one in the country you move to.
Step 3: apply in person at a PayPoint store
GOV.UK's wording is "certain shops that have PayPoint", and its guide links those words to PayPoint's page for international driving permits, where participating stores can be found. Not every shop with a PayPoint terminal is one of them, so look a store up before you go. GOV.UK's news story of 4 March 2024 explains the change: from 1 April 2024 IDPs became available exclusively from participating PayPoint stores, and before that date they came from participating Post Office branches.
GOV.UK's guide mentions your full UK driving licence and the £5.50 fee, and lists no other documents. The PayPoint page it links to says what the store will ask for on the day, so read it before you set off. GOV.UK offers no online application, so if a website offers to sell you a permit, compare it with what GOV.UK names before you pay.
Step 4: time it against the validity
GOV.UK gives the validity:
| Type | Lasts |
|---|---|
| 1926 | 12 months |
| 1949 | 12 months |
| 1968 | 3 years, or until your UK driving licence expires if that comes first |
A 1968 permit ends with your licence, so check the expiry date on your photocard before you apply. If you already hold a permit from an earlier trip, GOV.UK says to make sure it is still valid in the country you are visiting. Keep the permit with your licence: GOV.UK says you must always have your driving licence with you as well as your IDP.
Step 5: the rest of the paperwork
The permit is one document among several. GOV.UK's driving abroad guide and its step by step list these:
- Your own vehicle. The log book (V5C) and your insurance certificate. For a vehicle you have hired or leased in the UK, a VE103 certificate.
- Insurance. Check that your cover works in the countries you drive through. GOV.UK's EU guidance says you do not need a green card in the EU, including Ireland.
- UK sticker. You must display the UK identifier abroad. If your plate shows the UK identifier with the Union flag you need no sticker, except in Spain, Cyprus and Malta, where GOV.UK says a UK sticker is required whatever your plate shows.
- Towing. To tow a trailer over 750 kg abroad, GOV.UK says your licence must show category BE; adding it uses form D1 and is free.
- Car hire. The company may ask for your licence information, which you can share with a check code obtained up to 21 days before the trip. With a Northern Ireland licence, show the rental company your paper counterpart instead.
GOV.UK also says emission stickers for some European cities may need buying weeks before you go. The Crit'Air sticker guide covers the French one, French tolls explained covers paying on French motorways, and the other guides are under driving abroad.
BlitzBuddy on the road abroad
BlitzBuddy does not issue or check permits. It is a free speed camera and traffic app for iPhone, with no ads and no subscription; the Android version is coming soon. Its speed camera warnings work only in the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France and Türkiye and switch on by themselves when you arrive there. In the UK, Ireland and everywhere else it gives none, while your speed, your trips and reports from other drivers still work. In Germany, § 23 (1c) StVO forbids drivers to use a speed camera warner while driving; the warnings can be switched off under Profile, Warnings, and the driver is responsible. In France, article R413-15 of the Code de la route, in paragraph V, has since 5 January 2012 also banned devices that warn of or inform about the location of the equipment used to record traffic offences; using these warnings is the driver's own responsibility. The rules elsewhere are in where speed camera warnings are allowed.
Sources
- Get an international driving permit (IDP), GOV.UK
- International driving permits available at PayPoint stores from 1 April 2024, GOV.UK (news story, 4 March 2024)
- Check if you need an international driving permit (IDP), GOV.UK
- Driving abroad, GOV.UK
- Drive abroad: step by step, GOV.UK
- Driving in the EU, GOV.UK
- International Driving Permits, PayPoint (the page GOV.UK links to)
- Straßenverkehrs-Ordnung, § 23, Federal Ministry of Justice (in German)
- Code de la route, article R413-15, Légifrance (in French, version in force since 5 January 2012)
Sources read on 11 October 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I get an international driving permit?
In person at a participating PayPoint store. GOV.UK announced that from 1 April 2024 IDPs would be available exclusively there, and its guide links to PayPoint's page to find one.
Can I get an international driving permit online?
No. GOV.UK says you get an IDP in person from certain shops that have PayPoint and names no online or postal route. Check that any other seller is the one GOV.UK names before you pay.
Can I still get an international driving permit at the Post Office?
No. GOV.UK announced that from 1 April 2024 IDPs are available only from participating PayPoint stores. Post Office branches issued them for trips before that date.
How long is an international driving permit valid?
GOV.UK says a 1926 or 1949 permit lasts 12 months, and a 1968 permit lasts 3 years or until your UK driving licence expires, whichever comes first.
