International Driving Permit for Japan: What Is Accepted

No. There is one pre-check-in link per booking, and it can be submitted only once. The form has a section for each driver: upload the passport, driving licence (front and back) and IDP or official translation for all drivers before you submit. For the IDP we need the photo page and also the page showing the date of issue and validity (the photo page alone is not enough): the form has a separate upload field for each of the two pages.

Yes. You need your original US state licence, your passport, and an International Driving Permit (IDP) issued under the 1949 Geneva Convention by AAA or AATA. The IDP is valid for one year from its issue date, and in Japan it must be used within one year of your arrival.

Licence holders from Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium, Monaco and Taiwan can drive with their original licence plus an official Japanese translation (from the JAF or their embassy or consulate). The translation must match your current licence: if the licence has been renewed, get a new translation (JAF can issue it online). It can be used for up to one year after you enter Japan as a visitor; we check the entry date on your passport. IDPs issued in these six countries and regions are not valid in Japan, so the translation is required. Everyone else needs a 1949 Geneva Convention IDP together with the original licence, and only IDPs from countries that issue the Geneva format are valid (see the next questions).

Apply online on JAF’s Driver’s License Translation Application Site (translation.jaf.or.jp): upload photos of the front and back of your licence and pay JAF’s fee by card (currently ¥6,000, plus ¥20 per page to print it). When it is ready, JAF emails a print code and you print the translation at a 7-Eleven in Japan. The site only opens from a network in Japan, and the print code is valid for one week. JAF quotes an average of 2–3 business days and does not promise same-day issuance, but in our recent experience applications submitted on a weekday morning were often ready the same day, and afternoon applications by the next morning. We can apply on your behalf for free, which is handy because the site does not work from abroad: you only pay the costs (JAF’s fee plus the online card processing fee, about ¥6,300 per licence in total), send us clear photos or a scan of the front and back of your licence, and we print the translation and bring it with the car.

No. Japan only recognises IDPs issued in the 1949 Geneva Convention format by a country that is a party to that convention. A Vienna-format IDP, a digital IDP, or a mainland China licence cannot be used for self-drive rental in Japan. France, Belgium, Monaco, Switzerland, Russia and Vietnam issue Vienna-format IDPs only. Some countries, such as the UK, Thailand and the Philippines, issue both kinds: make sure the cover of yours says "Convention on Road Traffic of 19 September 1949".

No. Indonesia and Vietnam are not parties to the 1949 Geneva Convention (Vietnam issues Vienna-format IDPs), so IDPs issued there are not valid in Japan, and Japan does not accept a Japanese translation for these licences. Driving with them in Japan counts as driving without a licence. The same applies to licences from Brazil, Mongolia, Myanmar, Russia and mainland China. If you also hold a licence from another country that issues the 1949 Geneva Convention IDP, you can rent with that licence and its IDP.

Yes. The condition means corrective lenses of any kind, so contact lenses satisfy it. Please have your glasses or contacts with you whenever you drive.

Yes, additional drivers are free. Every driver must be registered and approved before pick-up: upload all drivers' documents in the one pre-check-in for your booking. If a driver is added later (for example their IDP is not ready yet), send their passport, licence (front and back) and IDP photos on WhatsApp by the day before pick-up at the latest, and we register them. Unregistered drivers are not covered by insurance and may not drive the car.

In Japan, a visitor can drive with a foreign licence and an IDP or official translation only within one year of entering Japan, and the documents must belong to the driver. We check each driver's passport to confirm their identity (the name and date of birth must match the licence and IDP) and their entry date. Please also bring the original passport at pick-up.

No. The official Japanese translation must match your current licence. If your licence has been renewed since the translation was issued, get a new translation before your trip; JAF can issue it online. This applies to licences from France, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, Monaco and Taiwan.

Yes. A valid Malaysian digital driving licence in the official MyJPJ app is accepted together with a valid 1949 Geneva Convention IDP and your passport. In the pre-check-in, upload screenshots of the front and back of the digital licence from the app, and at pick-up show the licence in the app.

Only if box D is stamped on your International Driving Permit. "Class D" on a Malaysian licence is an ordinary car licence and usually appears as Category B on the IDP, which covers vehicles with up to 8 seats in addition to the driver. A 10-seat van needs Category D on the IDP itself, so please send us a photo of your IDP category page before booking. With Category B only, an 8-seat minivan is the right choice.