Fahrerlaubnis: Internationalen Führerschein beantragen

In certain countries, you need an international driving license in addition to your national driving license in order to prove your driving license.

For temporary stays in certain countries outside the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA), you need an international driving license to prove your existing driving license. The international driving license is only a translation of the national driving license and is therefore only valid in conjunction with it.

• Identity card or passport, if necessary with registration certificate
• valid driver's license
• a current biometric photo (45 x 35 mm, portrait format, front view)

• You have your main place of residence in Germany or in a country that is not a party to the "Vienna Convention".
• You are in possession of an EU driving license.
• You must be at least 18 years old.

Please check that your documents are complete before you go to the driving license authority. If personal documents have expired, have been forgotten or if illegible documents or incomplete documents are presented, the authority staff will not be able to deal with your request. As a rule, an international driving license is issued immediately if all the documents are complete. Responsibility lies with the district, the independent city or the large city belonging to the district in which you have your place of residence or habitual abode. A personal appearance at the local driving license authority is required, as signatures must be provided. It is not possible to apply through a representative. If you do not yet have an EU driving license, you must apply for one in advance if you are resident in the European Union. Only then can an international driving license be issued to you.

Processing may be delayed as a result of applying for an EU driving license (produced by the Bundesdruckerei). If an EU driving license has to be issued by the Bundesdruckerei beforehand, it can be collected from the driving license authority after approx. 2 weeks or sent by direct mail from the Bundesdruckerei. In urgent cases, the procedure for obtaining the EU driving license can be accelerated to a few working days for an additional fee.

There is no deadline. Please apply for your international driving license in good time before your stay abroad.

The driving license must be proven by a valid official certificate (driving license). The driver's license must be carried when driving motor vehicles and handed over to the responsible persons for inspection upon request. When abroad, it may be necessary to carry the international driving license or the national driving license and a translation associated with it and to hand it over to the responsible persons for inspection upon request. Especially when traveling outside of Europe, you must exchange your "old" driving license in "paper format" for a driving license in "credit card format". Difficulties, e.g. during police checks due to an outdated photo or illegible information or when renting a vehicle, can be ruled out from the outset by exchanging for the EU card driving license. The exchange procedure can be carried out without a great deal of bureaucracy via the relevant driving license authority. The exchange for an EU card driving license is also recommended when travelling to other EU or EEA countries. As before, additional regular medical examinations or other tests are not associated with the administrative exchange. They continue to exist only for certain occupational groups with special responsibilities (e.g. professional drivers, bus drivers or driving licenses for passenger transport). The international driving license in accordance with the Convention on Road Traffic of 8 November 1968 is valid for three years from the date of issue. International driving licenses issued in accordance with the International Convention on Motor Traffic of 24 April 1926 are valid for one year. The period of validity of both driving licenses may be shorter if the national driving license category for trucks or buses (category C1, C1E, C, CE, D1, D1E, D or DE) is shortened accordingly.

• International driving license issue
• for proof of driving license for temporary stays abroad in certain countries (outside the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA))
• The international driving license is only valid in conjunction with the national driving license
• International driving licenses are available in 2 copies:
  • International driving license in accordance with Article 7 and Annex E of the International Convention on Motor Traffic of 24 April 1926 "Paris Convention" (Annex 8c to Section 25b (2) of the Driving Licence Ordinance), the period of validity is 1 year
  • International driving license in accordance with Article 41 and Annex 7 of the Convention on Road Traffic of 8 November 1968 "Vienna Convention" (Annex 8d to Section 25b (3) of the Driving Licence Ordinance), the period of validity is 3 years
• the period of validity of the international driving license may not exceed the period of validity of the national driving license
• Responsible: competent driving license authority

In Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the driving license authorities are the district councils, mayors and mayors of the independent towns and the large towns belonging to the district. The competent local authority is the authority of the place where the person concerned has his/her residence, or main residence if he/she has more than one residence, or, in the absence of such, the authority of the place of residence.