The Driver license in Turkey: Eligibility, Process, and Steps

Istanbul is a friendly city to walk in, especially its ancient historical streets and avenues.
Most foreign tourists prefer to walk in Sultan Ahmet or Taksim, anyway it's prohibited to drive a car there. Still, according to our former buyers, who spent more than three months in Istanbul, they would tell that Istanbul, with its well-organized transportation network, is a fun experience. But, it is also exhausting, due to the vast distance you have to walk daily, by doing the transactions between the different metro, tram, Metrobus lines.

Meanwhile, we are telling you how to issue a Turkish driving license as a foreigner, the official document you'll require, the procedure from A to Z. Is that possible to converse the original foreign driving license to a Turkish one? And how?


- But before going ahead, You need to know that foreigners are eligible to use the driver's license obtained from their counties, but after following several steps, which are: 

1) translating and attestation the foreigner license by the public notary in Turkey.
It will be vailed for six months from the date of entry to Turkey, according to the official
Website of the Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

2) After that, the foreigner must apply to replace the foreign driver's license with the Turkish one to drive legally.

Before going ahead, As a foreign driver in Turkey, you need to know that, If you had a car accident, you as a foreign would be accused of driving illegally because using the notarized driver's license doesn't allow the alien to obtain car insurance. Meanwhile, Turkish insurance companies won't compensate foreign drivers with an international driving license. Also, you should know that reputable car rental companies don't allow you to rent a car if you don't have a valid legal license.

1- So, to avoid any potential bummers, let us first tell you how to issue a Turkish driving license as a foreigner. What are the conditions and papers required to obtain a Turkish driving license:

You should know that one of the most important conditions that a foreigner must meet to obtain a driver's license in Turkey is that HE/SHE has a valid residence permit from the time of application until receiving the license.

Let's move to the documents required to obtain a Turkish driving license.

 2- the document records are:
1- A copy of the residence permit for the foreigner
2- A copy of the Academic qualification certificate translated and certified by the governmental notary.
3- A medical report for a driver's license issued by government hospitals exclusively for foreigners (sürücü olur sağlık raporu)
4- A criminal record extracted from the judiciary or via the Internet from government websites
(E-DEVELT) linked to (the competent ministry sabıka sorgulama)
5- 4 recent personal photos with a white biometric background.

3- The procedure from A to Z:
All the documents mentioned above are submitted to driving schools with approximately 1500 TL as (training course fees). At that time, the school will determine the course's start date; after the course is over, the person is subjected to a test related to what he learned in that course, which consists of (multiple-choice questions); the number of questions is 50 questions for 60 minutes. You must pass that test with a result of not less than 70% and above to be eligible to do the practical test.

 After the written exam is completed and the result appears, a date for the practical driving exam will be setten. If a person succeeds in the written test and fails the practical test, they can retake the practical test only and not retake the written test. The school will take the next move, will direct you to a bank to deposit the amount of 520 Turkish liras for driving license fees by attaching the payment receipt with the papers.

Your journey is almost over, the appointment will be set by the security center of your place of residence, and you must go to the appointment with the documents you obtained from the school, including the document of success in the training course


Congrats, the Turkish driving license will be a matter of time for you; it will be delivered home by the government post office (THE PTT) to your registered address within 7-14 working days, and from here on, you are ready to drive within Istanbul or any other Turkish city freely, without any boundaries or Barrier.

4- Is that possible to converse the original foreign driving license to a Turkish one? And how?
The international driver's license obtained from a foreign country can be transferred quickly in Turkey, But after providing that, it has a valid date not less than a year.

First,  you should consider that certain countries allow the transfer of the international driver's license to the Turkish one. These countries are a party in the (Traffic and Roads Agreement); unfortunately, most Arab countries aren't included in the treaty, except for (Bahrain - Tunisia - the United Arab Emirates - Morocco - Qatar - Kuwait). Therefore the holders of the mentioned passports can transfer their driving license into a Turkish one by following these steps:

Initially, prepare the following documents:
1- A translation of the driving license certified by the Turkish notary
2- Certificate of good conduct and behavior from the Turkish judiciary
3- A color copy of the original license

After that, you will submit these papers to the Traffic Department in the security directorate of
your region (Trafik Hizmetleri Başkanlığı).

Thus, you fill out a license transfer application. The competent authorities give you a serial number and enter it on the website to check the result of your application, whether it is accepted or rejected.

You need to know that the Turkish authorities will review the license with your country and investigate its credibility; this may take a relatively long time, so you should follow the development of the result through the official website, through the serial number you obtained previously, and after receiving approval to transfer the license, you must prepare the following papers and documents for one more time :
1- Notarized translation of the original driving license
2- 4 photographs with background
3- Blood type card (it can be issued from any Turkish hospital)
4- Driving medical report (it can be issued from any Turkish hospital)
5- A copy of the residence permit
6- You will have to pay about 60 lire to get the Turkish license.

Again, Congrats; the entire issue will take 7-14 working days to receive your new Turkish driving license.
The authorities will send it to your registered address on your residence permit card through the (THE PTT), but please make sure that the address should be vailed. And you should be present in person to hand in the Turkish driving license.
Still, in case you are planning to leave Turkey, under any circumstances, you should do a (Power of attorney)
at the Turkish notary for the present person who can receive the driving license on your behalf during your absence; otherwise, you will not receive the driving license, and it will return to the post office again.

We think we have almost covered all the wondering aspects you might have about the Turkish driving license' related issues, and in case you still have any questions and need to hear more, feel free to connect us, so we can make sure to give you what you deserve.