Driving in Japan on a Monégasque Licence

The Short Answer: No IDP Required, Official Translation Needed

If your driver's license was issued in Monaco, you cannot use an International Driving Permit (IDP) to drive in Japan. According to the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department, Monaco is a party to the 1949 Geneva Convention but does not issue Geneva-format permits, so a Monégasque IDP cannot be used in Japan.

Instead, under Article 107-2 of the Japanese Road Traffic Act, you can drive in Japan legally by carrying three documents at all times:

Required Document	Status / Details
Original Monégasque License	Must be valid and physical (not expired or digital).
Official Japanese Translation	Must be issued by an authorized body like the JAF or your country's Embassy in Japan.
Your Passport	Must show your original tourist entry stamp.

How to Obtain an Official JAF Translation Online

The JAF application can only be made from inside Japan — since April 2025 it is web-only, in Japanese, and reachable only from a Japanese network, with delivery to a Japanese address. Someone in Japan can apply for you before your trip, and that is what we do: you simply upload a photo of your license, we apply to JAF on your behalf, and you get the translation as a PDF to book your car before you fly. You then drive with JAF's paper original, which we deliver to your hotel or rental counter in Japan from the day after the translation is ready (+€10).

📦 Some rental companies cannot accept parcels, so please choose your hotel for delivery whenever possible.

Flexible Urgency & Pricing Table

Choose the processing speed that matches your travel departure date:

Plan / Urgency	Processing Time	Before You Fly
Standard Plan	3-4 weeks	PDF via Email
Express Plan	5-7 days	PDF via Email
Rush Plan	1-3 business days (estimated)	PDF via Email