This page compares prices only. For the full process — who needs the document, how to apply and how long it takes — see the complete JAF translation guide. To check whether your country needs a translation or an IDP, use the requirements table by country.
Quick answer:
In 2026 the official translation costs from €99 at JDLTC, delivered as a PDF by email before you fly. Applying inside Japan is possible too, but only once you are there: the portal is reachable only from a Japanese network, the form is in Japanese, and delivery is to a Japanese address. If you are booking a rental car from home, that route is not open to you yet — and that, not the sticker price, is what you're paying for.
Why You Need This Translation — the 60-Second Version
If your driver's license was issued by Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium, Monaco, or Taiwan, an International Driving Permit will not work in Japan. Japan only recognizes IDPs issued under the 1949 Geneva Convention — and for licenses from those six places, Japanese law prescribes a different route entirely.
The legal workaround is written into Article 107-2 of Japan's Road Traffic Act: carry an official Japanese translation of your license together with the original license, and you can drive legally for up to 1 year from your date of entry. Rental car counters check for it before handing over the keys; police check for it at the roadside.
Drivers from the US, UK, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Austria, and other 1949 Geneva Convention countries don't need any of this — a 1949-format IDP from your local automobile association is enough. If that's you, close this tab and enjoy your trip. (Not sure which group you're in? Our country-by-country check settles it in a minute.)
For everyone else, the requirement is settled — the real question is where to order and what it costs. Let's talk numbers.
Two Routes to the Same Document
The document itself does not vary. What varies is whether the route to it is open to you:
- Applying inside Japan — the domestic route, run through the JAF. Straightforward if you are already living in Japan and read Japanese.
- Applying before you travel — a specialised online service (this website) that runs the process in English, German, French, Dutch or Chinese and delivers the translation before you leave home.
Both produce a document that rental companies and police accept. The difference is timing and reach:
| Criteria | Applying inside Japan | JDLTC |
|---|---|---|
| Where you can apply from | Inside Japan only — the portal is reachable only from a Japanese network | Anywhere in the world |
| When you get it | Only after you have landed | Before departure — Standard from €99, Express €139, Rush €179 (1–3 business days*) |
| Application language | Japanese | Fully online in EN / DE / FR / NL / 中文 |
| Delivery | To a Japanese address only | PDF by email before departure; mailed original optional (+€10, incl. to your hotel or rental counter) |
| Support | Japanese | Email support in EN / DE / FR / NL / 中文 |
| Best for | Residents of Japan who read Japanese and have a Japanese delivery address | Travelers who want everything done in their own language, sorted before the flight |
* Rush turnaround is a typical estimate, not a guaranteed SLA; peak seasons can add time.
Let's be blunt about what the table says: if you are already in Japan and read Japanese, applying yourself is the sensible thing to do, and we would rather tell you that than sell you something you don't need. So why does an online service exist at all? Because for most people reading this, that route is closed at the moment they need it — and because the sticker price is only half of what this document actually costs you.
Want it handled in your language, before you fly?
Photograph your license, apply online in English, receive your official translation as a PDF by email — from €99.
Start Your Application →The Hidden Costs Nobody Puts in a Price Table
If you're ordering from outside Japan without Japanese-language skills, budget for three costs that never show up on an invoice:
- The language barrier. The domestic application runs in Japanese. Working through the form with a translation app is doable, but error-prone — and one mistyped field means follow-up questions, which also arrive in Japanese. Each round trip costs days, and you won't always know why your application has stalled.
- The delivery puzzle. The domestic route ships within Japan only. As a tourist, that means asking your hotel in advance whether it accepts mail for guests, aligning processing, shipping and your check-in date — and hoping the envelope beats you to the front desk. The whole process is built around customers who are already in Japan and can operate in Japanese.
- The day-one risk. This is the expensive one. If the translation isn't in your hands when you show up at the rental counter, the car doesn't leave the lot — rental staff are strict about it because the law gives them no wiggle room. A lost first day of a campervan booking, a reshuffled hotel itinerary, or an emergency same-day translation scramble in a language you don't read can easily wipe out everything you saved on the cheaper option.
Fairness cuts both ways, so here are the hidden costs on our side: JDLTC's Standard plan is slower (3–4 weeks) than either Japanese provider, and if you're late deciding, you'll pay more for Express (€139) or Rush (€179). The premium buys you a process with no Japanese-language steps and no Japan-side logistics: the PDF is in your inbox before you board, you print it in color on A4 paper, and it's in your carry-on when you land. If you also want the printed original, the +€10 mailing option can send it to your hotel or the rental car counter itself.
An Honest Decision Guide: When the Japanese Providers Are the Better Choice
We sell translations, which is exactly why we'd rather be straight with you here. There are travelers for whom JDLTC is the wrong choice — and a recommendation is only worth something if it can go against our own revenue.
Apply inside Japan yourself if all of these apply to you:
- You are already in Japan, or will be well before you need the car — the portal cannot be reached from abroad
- You (or a travel companion) read and write Japanese — or you have family or friends in Japan who can handle the application for you
- You have a reliable delivery address in Japan (relatives, or a hotel that has confirmed it accepts guest mail)
If all three are true, the domestic route is official, sufficient, and there is no reason to pay anyone to stand between you and it. Residents of Japan are usually in exactly this position.
JDLTC is the right choice if:
- You don't read Japanese and don't want to gamble your road trip on a translation-app interpretation of an official form
- You want the document confirmed before departure — as a PDF in your inbox, not an envelope you're hoping arrives at a hotel you haven't checked into yet
- You want support in your own language (English, German, French, Dutch, or Chinese) if anything about your license raises a question
- You're on a deadline and want a clear paid-speed option: Express (5–7 days, €139) or Rush (typically 1–3 business days*, €179)
One more word on trust, because skepticism about online document services is healthy: JDLTC is operated by Camjyo Inc., a registered company in Fukuoka, Japan, which has also run the campervan rental brand VAN TRIP JAPAN since 2023. We sit on both sides of the rental counter — we've seen what happens when a traveler shows up without this document, and this service exists because of it.
The Bottom Line: A Simple Way to Decide
Start with the question that actually decides it: where will you be when you need the document?
If the answer is "already in Japan, with time to spare and enough Japanese to fill in an official form", the domestic route is the sensible one and this article has done its job. If the answer is "still at home, booking a rental car for a trip I have already paid for", the domestic route is not available to you at that moment — not because it is slow, but because the door is not open from outside Japan.
Whichever applies, one piece of advice holds: sort it at least a month before departure. With that lead time the Standard plan (€99) is all you need — nobody has to pay a rush surcharge.
Our sober conclusion: living in Japan and reading Japanese → apply domestically. Booking a car from home → get it before you fly.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How much does an official license translation for Japan cost in 2026?
A: Through JDLTC, from €99 (CHF 99 / NT$3,290) for Standard, €139 for Express (5–7 days) and €179 for Rush (typically 1–3 business days*). Applying inside Japan costs less, but that route only opens once you have arrived.
Q: What's the cheapest way to get the translation?
A: Applying yourself inside Japan, if you are there and read Japanese. If you are not — or you want the document in hand before your flight — that is the gap an online service fills.
Q: Why does JDLTC cost more than applying inside Japan?
A: You're paying for everything around the document: a fully online application in English, German, French, Dutch, or Chinese; support that answers in your language; and PDF delivery by email before departure, with no Japan-side logistics. If you read Japanese and have time, the domestic providers are the better deal — we say that openly.
Q: Can I receive the translation before I arrive in Japan?
A: With JAF, no — it ships within Japan only, so from abroad you'd need to arrange delivery to a hotel or a contact in Japan. JDLTC delivers the PDF by email before you fly, wherever you are; a mailed original is a +€10 option, including delivery to your hotel or rental car counter.
Q: How long is the translation valid?
A: Up to 1 year from your date of entry into Japan, as long as your original license remains valid. It only works as a pair with your original license — carry both every time you drive.
Q: Do I even need this, or is an IDP enough?
A: It depends on the country that issued your license, not your nationality. Drivers from 1949 Geneva Convention countries (US, UK, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Austria, and others) just need a 1949-format IDP. License holders from Switzerland, Germany, France, Belgium, Monaco, and Taiwan need the official translation under Article 107-2 of the Road Traffic Act, carried together with the original license.
Made your decision?
If the convenient route is the right one for you: apply online in English, receive your official translation as a PDF before departure — Standard from €99, Express and Rush available.
Apply Now — from €99 →