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Motor vehicles and driving licences

Renewal of Italian driving licence

Please note that holders of a driving licence, resident in this consular district, may request the issue of a renewal certificate for their Italian driving licence (provided that it has not been expired for more than five years).

Please be reminded that in the event of theft or loss of the driving licence, a duplicate will not be issued.

Prior to the issuance of the driving licence renewal certificate by the Embassy, those concerned must undergo a medical examination with the medical officer of this Embassy, in order to obtain the relevant certificate.

Dr. Frederick Medrano (Hospital Nacional) 207 8342 / 6676 3744, who will verify the existence of the legal psycho-physical requirements. The cost of the certificate is borne by the interested party;

To this end, Italian citizens resident abroad and registered with AIRE in this consular district must present the following documentation:

  1. Driving licence renewal request form, to be completed in full;
  2. Original medical certificate issued by the medical officer during the examination with stamp and signature;
  3. payment in contacts of the amount 45.00 USD provided for in art. 66D and art. NAA corresponding to 18.00 USD
  4. one carnet size photo in colour white background
  5. original and copy of driving licence front/back.

Where to apply for the service

By booking an appointment for “Consular Services” through the portal Prenota@mi

Italian nationals are informed that incomplete or inaccurate completion of the application may result in the return of the documentation without the issue of the certificate requested.

We remind you of the obligation, within six months of regaining residence in Italy, to renew the driving licence itself according to the ordinary procedure provided for in paragraph 8 of Art. 126 of the Highway Code, even if the renewal made at the Italian diplomatic-consular authority is still valid.

It will always be necessary to keep the certificate together with the driving licence and, in particular, to produce it for the medical examination for confirmation of validity in Italy in order to prove to the examining physician that the renewal was made abroad and, therefore, to demonstrate the absence of periods of non-exercise in driving.

Conversion of an Italian licence to a Panamanian one

The competent body for the conversion of an Italian driving licence in Panamanian territory is Sertracen. For information on conversion requirements, please visit the Sertracen website.

Requirements for conversion include:

  • Certificate of validity of the driving licence being converted, containing the details of one’s driving licence. Please note that the competent authority for issuing the certificate of validity is not this Embassy but exclusively the Civil Motorisation Offices, as explained in Circular Prot. no. 4305 of 19/02/2015 – Certificates for driving licence data . The certificate may be requested at any Civil Motorization office on Italian territory and must be apostilled in order to be valid on Panamanian territory;
  • Certified copy of the driving licence for both sides (front and back), which must be made at the Consular Offices of this Embassy. For this purpose, an appointment must be made through the Prenot@mi portal, for “Consular Services”.

Driving in Italy with a Foreign Driving Licence

Holders of a driving licence issued by a State not belonging to the European Union may drive on Italian territory, provided that they have not been resident in Italy for more than a year and that, together with the same licence, they have an international permit, that being an official translation into Italian of the aforementioned licence.

The driving licence and international permit must be valid.