Permanent visa holders and New Zealand citizens

If you are an Australian permanent resident or hold a permanent visa under the Commonwealth Migration Act 1958 and you intend to stay in NSW, you are not considered to be a visitor. As such, you are allowed to drive in NSW on a current overseas licence for a maximum of three months after arriving in Australia. If you wish to continue driving, you must obtain a NSW driver licence.

If you are a licence holder from New Zealand (regardless if you are a permanent or temporary resident), you must obtain a NSW driver licence within three months of residing in NSW or you must stop driving.

How do I convert my overseas driver licence to a NSW driver licence?

To obtain a NSW driver licence you must be 17 years of age or older.

If your licence is written in English:

• Go to an RTA motor registry and present your overseas licence

If your licence is not written in English, provide:

• Your overseas licence and an official translation from the Community Relations Commission For a multicultural NSW or Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC).

Note: Requests for Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) fee-free translation of personal documents from eligible persons may be lodged at Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP) service provider outlets which will then despatch them to a translation service provider.

For further information on fee-free translations for eligible persons please go to the Department of Immigration and Citizenship website.

If you cannot produce your overseas licence, provide:

• A letter from the overseas licence issuing authority confirming your licence details and status, or
• A letter from a relevant consulate or diplomatic office (based on information received from the overseas licence issuing authority) confirming your licence details and status.

You must also:

• Prove your NSW address,
• Prove your identity,
• Pass an eyesight test,
• Pass a knowledge test for each class of licence required, unless exempt,
• Pass a driving test for each class of licence required, unless exempt,
• Pay the licensing fee, and
• Have your photo taken by the RTA for your driver licence card.

Exemptions from licence tests

You may not be required to pass a car knowledge test or practical driving test if:

• You have previously held an Australian driver licence that expired within the last five years and it can be verified by the issuing authority,
• You hold a current New Zealand driver licence (not a New Zealand learner licence or paper licence), or
• You are applying for a car licence and you hold a current overseas licence (not a learner licence), or one that expired within the last five years, from a country recognised as having comparable licensing standards to Australia. See Licences from recognised countries for more information.

What happens next?

If you have held your driver or rider licence for less than 12 months, you will be issued a NSW provisional P1 licence. If you have held your driver licence for more than 12 months but less than three years, a provisional P2 licence will be issued. If you have held your drivers licence for more than three years, you will be issued with a NSW unrestricted licence.

If you fail the driving test, your visiting driving privledges will be withdrawn. To continue to drive in NSW you must then get a learner licence that will allow you to drive and attempt another driving test.

You must provide documentary proof of the first issue date of your overseas licence if the period for which you have held the licence is to be recognised for the issue of a NSW licence. Before you first attend the motor registry, you may wish to obtain a letter from the licence issuing authority (on their letterhead) or from your relevant consulate or diplomatic office, confirming your licence details, including the first issue date. If the letter is not in English, an official translation as mentioned above, is also required.

It is a legal requirement under Australian licensing laws that only one licence can be used for driving in Australia.

Before a NSW licence is issued, you must present your overseas licence so the details can be verified and recorded.

Overseas learner licence holders

If you hold a car learner licence issued from an overseas licence issuing authority and you wish to transfer it to a NSW Class C learner licence, you must:

• Be 16 years of age or older,
• Provide proof of your NSW address,
• Prove your identity,
• Pass an eyesight test,
• Pass a knowledge test,
• Pay the licensing fee, and
• Have your photo taken by the RTA for your driver licence photo card.

Visitors

From 18 April 2008, new licensing arrangements apply to visiting overseas drivers who want to obtain a NSW licence for the first time. For more information see Temporary overseas visitors obtaining a NSW licence.