Driving in Singapore on a foreign licence

The Singapore Police Force sets the rules, and they turn on two things: how long you have lived here, and where your licence comes from.

• Visitors and foreigners who have lived in Singapore for less than 12 months may drive on a valid foreign licence.
• Unless your licence was issued in an ASEAN country, carry an International Driving Permit (IDP) from your licence's country of origin, or an official English translation if an IDP is not available.
• After 12 months of living here, foreigners must convert to a Singapore licence.
• Singapore citizens and permanent residents cannot drive here on a foreign licence; they must convert it to a Singapore licence first.

If you are here on holiday, on a business trip or in your first year on a work pass, your own licence is valid as long as it is current and you carry the IDP or translation with it. Drivers from ASEAN member states do not need an IDP.

Get the IDP before you travel. It is issued by an authorised body in the country that issued your licence; the Automobile Association of Singapore issues IDPs only to holders of Singapore licences, so it cannot help with a foreign one. Bring the physical licence too, since an IDP is a translation, not a licence on its own.

Some websites say an English-language licence is enough on its own. The Police's own page makes the IDP, or an official English translation, the condition for non-ASEAN licences, so we ask for one at every handover.

Once you have lived in Singapore for more than 12 months, a foreign licence is no longer enough. To convert it, you pass the Basic Theory Test (BTT) and apply with your valid foreign licence; the test is taken at one of Singapore's three driving centres, in Bukit Batok, Ubi and Woodlands.

Book the BTT early in your first year rather than in the last month, since test dates fill up. If you hold a work pass and need to drive as part of your job, the Police ask you to get a Singapore licence within six months of the pass being issued. Work permit and S Pass holders who convert receive a Class 3C licence, for cars up to 3,000 kg unladen.

Visitors and new residents are welcome. You need to be at least 21, and there is no upper age limit. Residents can verify their identity with Singpass when they book; if you do not have Singpass, there is a manual path, and we check your documents at the door.

The main driver meets the car in person with these:

• Your physical driving licence.
• Your IDP or official English translation (unless your licence is from an ASEAN country).
• Your passport.
• The payment card in your own name, or the PayNow reference for your booking.

Anyone else who will drive must be named on the booking and meet the same licence rules. Each additional driver costs S$10 a day. Only named drivers may drive the car, including on trips into Malaysia.

Singapore drives on the left, and most rules will feel familiar. These are the ones newcomers most often miss.

• The speed limit is 50 km/h unless a sign says otherwise; expressways are signed up to 90 km/h, and School Zones and Silver Zones are slower.
• Bus lanes are marked in red or yellow with their hours on a sign; keep out of them during those hours.
• Children under 1.35 m tall must ride in a child seat, booster or approved restraint. We supply child seats and boosters on request.
• Holding and using a phone while driving is an offence; use a hands-free mount.
• The drink-drive limit is 35 micrograms of alcohol per 100 ml of breath. Our cars are also no-drinking, no-smoking and no-vaping inside.
• ERP gantries charge automatically through the car's OBU; you do not need to stop or tap anything.
• Park only in marked lots, and pay through the gantry, the Parking.sg app or coupons, as the carpark signs say.