Prepare your application

How to prepare the right documents

Before you visit a service centre, make sure you have everything you need to apply for a NSW licence. You need:

• a completed Licence Application form (PDF 222.41KB)
• proof of identity
• your current overseas licence
• your translated documents if they're not written in English
• the licence fee you'll need to pay.

If you are an Australian permanent resident, you will also need to provide proof of your Australian permanent residency.

If you are not a permanent resident or you can’t provide proof of permanent residency, we'll issue you with a Temporary Overseas Visitor licence.

Overseas licence document requirements

Date you first got your overseas licence

We use the first issue date of your overseas licence to work out the equivalent NSW licence. If your overseas licence does not show an issue date and you are under 25 years of age, you will need a letter confirming your licence details from either:

• the licence issuing authority (on their letterhead), or
• a relevant consulate or diplomatic office (based on information received from the overseas licence issuing authority).

Proof of permanent residency

You need to provide one document proving your permanent residency status. We accept the following documents as proof of Australian permanent residency:

• Australian full Birth Certificate showing parental details. Commemorative certificates are not acceptable (except for 1987 and 1988 NSW Historic Birth Certificates). See the Births, Deaths and Marriages website for information.
• Australian passport
• Certificate of Australian Citizenship
• Australian naturalisation document
• Certificate of Aboriginality
• Permanent Resident Evidence (PRE) ImmiCard – issued before 1 July 2017
• Evidence of Immigration Status (EIS) ImmiCard (permanent residency status only)
• current ID document from Australian Passport Office
• current Australian Defence Force photo ID
• overseas passport or travel document which includes a valid Australian permanent residency visa.

We may verify your permanent residency status online with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. We may also use the Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) Service to verify permanent residency.

Documents written in a language other than English

If your overseas licence or confirmation letter is not written in English, you must provide an official translation.

We accept document translations from:

• DHA Free Translation service Free Translating Service
• Multicultural NSW (previously Community Relations Commission of NSW).

We also accept translations of driver licences (but not other documents) from:

• the Consulate-General of the Republic of Korea
• the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office (TECO), Sydney.

Translations obtained through any other means are not acceptable.