Driving in Malaysia on a Foreign Licence: IDP, JPJ Conversion and Johor Tips

中文 · Bahasa Melayu · Bahasa Indonesia

By Jason Lim, REN 84424 · IQI Realty · Checked on 10 November 2026

This guide is for people from Singapore, Indonesia, India, China and elsewhere who plan to drive in Johor Bahru, whether on a viewing trip or after moving here. The short answer: if you stay under 12 months you can usually drive on your own licence plus an International Driving Permit (IDP), or on your own licence alone if it was issued in an ASEAN country. Since 19 May 2025 the Road Transport Department (Jabatan Pengangkutan Jalan, JPJ) has stopped converting most foreign licences, so foreigners who live here longer generally need to earn a Malaysian licence the same way Malaysians do. MM2H participants and diplomats are the main exceptions.

Who can drive on a foreign licence, and for how long

When JPJ announced the end of most conversions in May 2025, it set out what foreigners in Malaysia for less than 12 months may do. The rule depends on where your licence comes from.

Your situation	What you can drive on	Notes
Staying under 12 months, licence from a 1949 Geneva or 1968 Vienna convention country	Your valid home licence plus an IDP issued in your home country	Carry both, with your passport. The IDP is a translation, not a licence on its own.
Staying under 12 months, licence from an ASEAN country (Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and others)	Your valid home licence	Covered by the 1985 ASEAN agreement on recognising domestic driving licences. No IDP needed.
Licence from a country that does not issue IDPs	Check with JPJ before driving	Mainland China, for example, has not joined the convention and cannot issue IDPs (Sixth Tone, January 2019); Hong Kong and Macau can.
Living in Malaysia 12 months or more	A Malaysian licence	Converted if you are in an exempt group, otherwise earned through the Malaysian course and tests.

Getting a real IDP, and avoiding fake ones

Apply for your IDP at home before you travel, from the authority your government names. JPJ’s own IDP for Malaysians, for comparison, is valid for one year under the 1949 Geneva Convention.

On 8 October 2026 Bernama reported that JPJ had found people selling foreigners unrecognised “International Driving Permits” for up to RM500 with a claimed five-year validity. JPJ said a document with that title does not by itself allow you to drive here: it must come from a proper issuing authority and meet Malaysian recognition rules. If someone in Malaysia offers to sell you an IDP, do not buy it.

What this means by nationality

• Singapore and Indonesia: on a viewing trip or short stay, your own licence is enough under the ASEAN agreement.
• India: bring your Indian licence and an IDP from your home transport authority. Get it before you fly; you cannot get one in Malaysia.
• Mainland China: because China does not issue IDPs, check with JPJ before you drive.
• Japan, Korea, Australia, the UK and others: home licence plus an IDP for short stays. The Australian High Commission also suggests checking with your motor insurer that driving on an IDP will not affect a claim.

Converting to a Malaysian licence after May 2025

Before 19 May 2025, many expatriates swapped their home licence for a Malaysian one at a JPJ counter. JPJ ended that for most foreigners, citing road safety compliance. Three groups were exempted:

Group	Can they convert?	What JPJ asks for
MM2H participants	Yes	Valid foreign licence, passport, a pass valid for at least 90 days, the MM2H approval or confirmation letter, and a licence record or confirmation letter from the issuing authority (some embassies do not issue this; ask the licensing body at home).
Diplomatic corps	Yes	Handled under the diplomatic category.
Malaysian citizens with a foreign licence	Yes, widened from 1 June 2026	A valid, unrestricted foreign licence and record checks, at any JPJ office (Malay Mail, 7 May 2026).
Employment pass, student pass and other long-stay foreigners	No	Full Malaysian licensing process.
Permanent residents and foreign spouses of Malaysians	No (not in the exempt groups)	Full Malaysian licensing process. The Australian High Commission notes conversion stopped for spouses of Malaysian citizens.

If you are applying for MM2H, the licence is one more reason to plan ahead. I coordinate with a MOTAC-licensed MM2H agent and handle the property side, including the home participants must buy after approval; approval is decided by the authorities. Start with my MM2H eligibility checker, the MM2H FAQ and the SEZ/SFZ MM2H guide for Johor.

Learning to drive in Malaysia from scratch

If you cannot convert, you follow the same steps as a Malaysian learner. The government’s MyGOV portal sets out the route for car licences (class D for manual, DA for automatic):

1. Enrol at a JPJ-registered driving institute and complete the theory course (KPP01).
2. Pass the road traffic law test (Part 1). You then receive a learner’s licence (Lesen Belajar Memandu, LDL), valid for 3 or 6 months at a time, up to 2 years in total.
3. Do the practical training: at least 6 hours on the circuit and 10 hours on public roads, following JPJ’s curriculum.
4. Pass the JPJ driving test, which has a circuit part and a road part.
5. Drive on a probationary licence (PDL) for 2 years. It is cancelled if you collect more than 20 KEJARA demerit points.
6. Change to a competent driving licence (CDL) within one year after the probation ends. MyGOV says non-citizens can renew a CDL for 1 to 5 years at a time.

Bring your passport and valid pass when you enrol, and ask which languages the theory test is offered in and how long test queues are in Johor. Course fees vary by institute, so compare a few registered ones; I don’t recommend one over another.

Since February 2023 Malaysian licences can be shown digitally in the MyJPJ app. Since 23 January 2026 anyone can ask for a printed card without proof of overseas travel; the printing fee is RM20 for Malaysians and RM100 for non-citizens (Malay Mail, 22 January 2026). MyJPJ moved to MyDigital ID log-in from 1 February 2026, and the Australian High Commission says the app is for Malaysian citizens, so most foreigners will deal with JPJ counters and carry a physical card. Check the current position at your JPJ branch.

Insurance, road tax and your licence

Every car on Malaysian roads must have valid motor insurance and road tax (Lesen Kenderaan Motor, LKM). Driving without insurance or road tax is a non-compoundable offence, which means it goes to court rather than being settled with a compound.

• Your licence status matters to the insurer. Motor policies generally expect the driver to be properly licensed. Tell your insurer you drive on a foreign licence or IDP and get its answer in writing.
• Rental cars: firms set their own age and licence rules. Read what the included cover excludes.
• Lending your car: in October 2026 JPJ reminded owners and rental operators not to let unauthorised people drive their vehicles. If a friend drives on an invalid licence, you may also have a problem with the insurer.
• Buying a car: owning a car and being allowed to drive it are separate questions. My guide to buying a car in Malaysia as a foreigner covers JPJ registration, loans and road tax.

Enforcement is real: in a Kuala Lumpur operation on foreign drivers reported by Bernama on 8 October 2026, JPJ seized 47 of 121 vehicles checked and recorded 120 licence offences.

Road rules, cameras and summonses

Malaysia drives on the left and seat belts are compulsory for everyone in the car. Carry your licence, IDP (if needed) and passport whenever you drive.

Speed and red-light cameras (AwAS)

JPJ’s Automated Awareness Safety System (AwAS) uses fixed speed and red-light cameras. In September 2025 JPJ said there were 49 AwAS cameras nationwide and that Johor was among the states with the most outstanding camera summonses. The standard AwAS compound is RM300. From July 2025 JPJ began automatically blacklisting foreign drivers with unpaid AwAS summonses 60 days after notice, using Vehicle Entry Permit (VEP) data, which also catches Singapore-registered cars.

How summonses are paid since 2026

When you pay (from the date of the summons)	What you pay
Days 1 to 15	Half the compound amount
Days 16 to 30	About two-thirds of the compound amount
Days 31 to 60	The full compound amount
From day 61	Court action or blacklisting

Malaysians check and pay police summonses through MyBayar PDRM and JPJ summonses through the MyJPJ app or the MySIKAP portal. Both log in with MyDigital ID; if you cannot use them, ask at a JPJ office or police station how to check and pay. Outstanding summonses must be settled before JPJ will process a car ownership transfer, so clear them before you sell a car.

Singapore licence holders living in JB

Many people who live in JB and work in Singapore hold a Singapore licence. Keep these points straight:

• Living in JB long term: a Singapore licence is accepted for short stays under the ASEAN agreement, but JPJ framed its foreign-licence rules around stays under 12 months. If JB becomes your home and you are not on MM2H, ask JPJ and your insurer whether your Singapore licence still covers you, rather than assuming it does.
• Not a Singapore citizen? If you hold a Singapore licence but another nationality, for example an Indian national on an employment pass, ask JPJ whether the ASEAN arrangement applies to you or whether to carry an IDP from your home country as well.
• Singapore-registered cars: every Singapore car entering Malaysia needs a registered and activated JPJ VEP RFID tag, fully enforced since 1 July 2025 (Bernama), plus the per-entry Road Charge.
• The other direction: driving a Malaysian car into Singapore has its own rules for work-pass holders and residents. See my guide to driving a Malaysian car into Singapore.

Johor tips: the Causeway, the Second Link and the RTS

• Two crossings. The Causeway joins the JB city centre to Woodlands; the Second Link joins Gelang Patah to Tuas and suits drivers on the west side.
• Peak times. Weekday mornings, Friday evenings and long weekends bring the longest queues; most daily commuters leave very early. My guide to living in JB and working in Singapore has crossing times and tolls.
• The RTS Link may change your plans. Malaysia’s Transport Ministry and Singapore’s LTA said on 2 October 2026 that the Bukit Chagar to Woodlands North train is expected to start in February 2027, subject to safety approvals. If you will work near the Thomson-East Coast line, you may not need to drive across at all. See my RTS Link update.
• Inside JB, a car still helps. Suburbs such as Mount Austin, Tebrau and Iskandar Puteri are spread out. If you will not drive, my guide to getting around JB without a car covers e-hailing, buses and trains.
• Parking at home. Check the bays that come with a condo and EV charging. See condo parking rules and EV charging at JB homes.

Where to buy if this matters to you

Whether you drive shapes where you should live:

• JB Sentral and Bukit Chagar: walk to the Causeway checkpoint and the future RTS station; the easiest area to live without a car. See also homes near the RTS Link station.
• Iskandar Puteri and Bukit Indah and Gelang Patah: suit drivers using the Second Link to Tuas. See completed homes near the Second Link.
• Mount Austin and Tebrau, Setia Indah and Molek: family suburbs with schools and malls, easiest with a car.
• Permas Jaya and Senibong: east-side homes with road access to the city and the Causeway.
• Kulai and Senai: near the airport and data-centre jobs; you will want a car here.

Compare them on my JB property map, or read completed homes near the Causeway if you want to move in soon.

More Johor living guides: Motorcycle commute to Singapore · Getting around JB without a car · Buying a car as a foreigner · Moving from KL to Johor Bahru · Renting in JB as a foreigner · Cost of living in JB

Frequently asked questions

Can I drive in Malaysia with a foreign driving licence?

Yes, if you stay under 12 months: with your home licence plus an International Driving Permit from a 1949 Geneva or 1968 Vienna convention country, or with your own licence alone if it was issued in an ASEAN country such as Singapore or Indonesia.

Can I still convert my foreign licence to a Malaysian licence?

Only if you are an MM2H participant, a member of the diplomatic corps or a Malaysian citizen. JPJ stopped converting other foreign licences on 19 May 2025, so other long-stay foreigners must take the Malaysian course and tests.

Can I buy an International Driving Permit in Malaysia?

No. A valid IDP is issued by the licensing authority in the country that issued your licence. In October 2026 JPJ warned about unrecognised IDPs sold to foreigners for up to RM500, saying such documents do not let you drive legally.

How does a foreigner get a Malaysian driving licence?

Enrol at a JPJ-registered driving institute, complete the KPP01 theory course, pass the law test to get a learner’s licence, do at least 6 hours of circuit and 10 hours of road training, pass the JPJ test, then hold a probationary licence for 2 years before changing to a full licence.

Can MM2H participants convert their licence?

Yes. MM2H participants were exempted from the May 2025 change. JPJ asks for the valid foreign licence, passport, a pass valid for at least 90 days, the MM2H letter and a licence record from the issuing authority.

Can Singaporeans living in JB drive on a Singapore licence?

For short stays, yes, under the ASEAN agreement. JPJ framed its foreign-licence rules around stays under 12 months, so if JB becomes your long-term home, confirm with JPJ and your insurer that your Singapore licence still covers you.

What happens if I don’t pay a traffic summons in Malaysia?

Since 1 January 2026, paying within 15 days costs half the compound and within 30 days about two-thirds; after 60 days the case can go to court or you can be blacklisted. JPJ blacklists foreign drivers with unpaid AwAS camera summonses using VEP data.

Moving to JB and deciding whether to drive?

Tell me where you will work or study, whether you will cross to Singapore, and whether you plan to drive. I will suggest areas and homes that fit, from walkable units near the RTS station to landed homes with space for two cars. You can also book an appointment for viewings, or a Zoom consultation if you are still abroad.

Sources: Malay Mail, “JPJ: Foreign driving licence conversions to cease on May 19”, 16 May 2025; SAYS, on JPJ’s statement that foreigners must train like Malaysians, 16 May 2025; Lowyat.NET, “JPJ halts conversion of foreign driving licence”, 19 May 2025; JPJ, licence conversion checklist, effective 19 May 2025; Australian High Commission, Kuala Lumpur, driving in Malaysia, accessed November 2026; Malay Mail, on foreign licence conversion for Malaysians from 1 June 2026, 7 May 2026; Bernama, “JPJ detects parties offering unrecognised IDPs to foreigners”, 8 October 2026; Sixth Tone, on China and the road traffic convention, 16 January 2019; MyGOV, Lesen Memandu (driving licence steps and validity), accessed November 2026; Malay Mail, JPJ scraps travel-proof rule for physical licences, 22 January 2026; carz.com.my, MyJPJ to require MyDigital ID log-in from February 2026, November 2025; Malay Mail, on tiered summons payments from 2026, 22 October 2025; RinggitPlus, “New ‘Pay Early, Pay Less’ system for traffic summonses starts January 2026”, 23 October 2025; The Star, on outstanding summonses and AwAS cameras, 30 September 2025; carz.com.my, JPJ blacklisting foreign AwAS offenders, July 2025; paultan.org, how to check and pay summonses online (2026); Bernama, on full VEP enforcement for Singapore-registered vehicles, 1 July 2025; LTA and Ministry of Transport Malaysia, joint release on the RTS Link service timeline, 2 October 2026

Jason Lim, REN 84424, IQI Realty Sdn. Bhd. E (1) 1584/6. General information checked on 10 November 2026, not legal advice. Licence rules, fees and enforcement change; confirm with JPJ, your home licensing authority and your insurer before you drive.