Jordan on an Indian Licence — The Right-Side Switch & an IDP for Arabic Signs

For an Indian visitor, the one adjustment that matters most in Jordan is the side of the road. India drives on the left; Jordan drives on the right. Everything your reflexes have built up — which way to look at a junction, which lane a roundabout feeds you into, which shoulder to drift towards under pressure — is reversed. The danger window is your first hour, pulling out of the rental yard or joining the Amman ring road. Take that first stint somewhere quiet and talk yourself through each turn until right stops feeling backwards.

An International Driving Permit earns its place here as a translator. Jordanian signs and police forms are in Arabic script, and an IDP renders your name, photo and licence class in a form an officer can read instantly. It is recommended rather than mandatory — your Indian licence is accepted for stays of up to three months — but carrying it with your licence and passport avoids friction at the desk. The Driving Permit Checker confirms what you need.

Equipment is taken seriously: the car must hold a warning triangle, a first-aid kit and a fire extinguisher, and checkpoints do verify them. Confirm all three before you leave the forecourt.

Jordan’s roads are faster than much of India in feel — a 110 km/h motorway limit on the Desert Highway, 80 rural, and a strict 40 km/h in towns. Main routes are well surfaced, but expect drifting sand, the occasional camel or stray livestock, and trucks that slow abruptly on the climbs. The alcohol limit is 0.08, numerically above India’s 0.03, but policing is firm — keep it at zero when driving.

Petrol is around $1.32/litre, the emergency number for all services is 112, and mobile signal fades between towns, so download offline maps before you set off. For the full rules, see our Jordan driving guide.