Local Driving License Guide
While you can drive in Argentina with a valid driver’s license from your country of origin (or an international license), many expats choose to get an Argentine driver’s license for insurance purposes, or as a local form of identification. You can obtain an Argentine driver’s license (‘licencia de conducir’) at the following address:
Dirección de Habilitación de Conductores de Vehículos
Sección Licencias
Av. Coronel Roca 5252
Villa Lugano, Buenos Aires
Phone: 4605-6900
Hours: M-F 7:30-19:00
To make an appointment, visit this web page of the Buenos Aires City Government (all in Spanish): and in the new window that opens, select “Otorgamiento Licencia de Conducir” (obtaining a driver’s license) and fill in the fields with your personal details.
You will be required to have valid passport, your local or international driver’s license, Argentine DNI (Documento Nacional de Identidad), and certificate of residence in Capital Federal, or some other proof of residency. If you have your DNI (the national ID card which is issued with a valid residency visa), it is fairly easy, and should only take an afternoon of your time. You’ll be given a temporary license at the office, and then your permanent license will arrive in the mail. There are no additional driving tests needed, as long as your previous driver’s license is still current.
You can drive with your driver’s license in Argentina as long as it is still valid. If it expires during your stay in Buenos Aires, you will either have to return home to have it renewed, or apply for a local one. Keep this in mind as the expiration date approaches as it is much easier to exchange your license than to go through the process of getting a new one. Additionally, and somewhat surprisingly, there is no legal requirement to carry a Spanish translation of the license with you. That said, it may be wise to keep one with you if you decide to drive with your home license indefinitely.
