How to get your International Driving License

An international driving license is issued by the road transport authority of India so that the holder can drive a vehicle in foreign countries. Essentially, an international driving license is a translation of your existing driving license. The RTO necessarily translates your driving license in languages understandable to authorities abroad. Carrying an international driving license has a lot of advantages for you. The most important advantage is that it lets you drive across the roads of countries you are visiting without getting in any trouble with the local authorities. An international driving license can also be used as a valid identity proof which means you do not need to carry your precious passport everywhere.

Documents to keep handy before applying for International Driving License:

• Copy of existing driving license.
• Copy of passport and visa of country you are travelling to for data record.
• Copy of to and fro flight tickets.
• Copy of age proof and address proof.
• Certified proof of Indian Citizenship and passport size photographs.
• Valid medical fitness certificate duly signed and issued by a doctor.

How to apply for an International Driving License:

One can apply for an international driving license both at the RTO office or on their official website. The following forms need to be filled and submitted along with the above-mentioned documents:

• Form CMV 1 and 1A stating the medical health of the applicant. The applicant must make sure that they fill this form accurately and try not to conceal any health issues.
• Form CMV 4- your actual International Driving License application form. This form can either be found on the RTO's official website or at any of the RTOs.

For offline application of the International Driving License, you must go into your regional RTO, collect, fill up and submit the form along with photocopies of the documents mentioned in the list above. This process lets you make the payment in cash, if that is something you prefer.

The procedure for online application process is pretty much similar to offline. Visit the official website of International Control Traffic Association and download the necessary forms. Fill up the forms and upload them duly signed and stamped along with the documents mentioned in the list above by either taking pictures of the same in your smartphone or going the old school way and using a document scanner instead. Please ensure that these documents you are submitting are not incomplete in any way since you cannot make any changes in them once uploaded. Now, paying the required fees is the only procedure left which can be done both online or offline.

Countries readily accepting Indian driving license:

Though we have discussed in detail about the application procedure for an International Driving License, there are a host of countries which accept an Indian driving license. Some of the countries accepting this license are as follows:

• United States of America: Indian license is valid for one year from the date of entry. It is also advisable to carry attested copy of I-94 form which clearly states the date of your entry in the USA.
• Australia: Indian license is valid for three months in the northern part of the country while the southern part lets you drive for over a year.
• New Zealand: Indian license is acceptable here as well. The only things to take care would be that the license has to be in English language and the driver must be over 21 years of age.
• Many countries on the European subcontinent also accept the Indian driving license. While some countries like France, Sweden and Germany demand for the license to be translated into their national languages, others like United Kingdom and Switzerland accept the license in English itself.