Singapore on a French Licence 2026: Carry an IDP, Keep Left
France
Singapore
Carry a 1949 IDP with your French licence: Canada says visitors must, and UK advice needs it for car hire. Compared with France, Singapore keeps left, tops out at 90 km/h instead of 130, and allows 0.08% alcohol against 0.05%.
Driving in Singapore after France is less about learning new rules than unlearning old reflexes. Three things flip: the side of the road, the speed ceiling and the way alcohol is treated. A fourth, the paperwork, has to be in your bag before you leave France: an International Driving Permit in the 1949 format, carried with your French licence. English is on every sign, the network is compact, and the rules are strictly enforced.
France and Singapore side by side
Most visitors coming from continental Europe ask the same question: how different is it, really? The short answer is that the numbers are lower and the margin for error is thinner.
| France | Singapore | |
|---|---|---|
| Side of the road | Right | Left |
| Towns | 50 km/h | 50 km/h |
| Other roads | 80 km/h (90 where signposted) | 70 km/h |
| Fastest roads | 130 km/h autoroute | 90 km/h expressway |
| Alcohol limit | 0.05% | 0.08% |
| Police | 17 (or 112) | 999 |
| Ambulance / fire | 15 / 18 | 995 for both |
| Minimum age for a car | 18 | 18 |
Town speeds match. Everything above that is slower in Singapore, and the gap on the fastest roads is 40 km/h. A French driver who settles into autoroute rhythm on an expressway will be well over the limit without feeling fast.
The permit France issues is the one Singapore lists
Global Affairs Canada says visitors to Singapore must carry an international driving permit, and the UK government’s permit table names the 1949 IDP, needed for car hire and for stays longer than 30 days. France and Singapore are both parties to the 1949 Geneva Convention, so the permit issued in France matches what the island expects. Keep the IDP, the French card and your passport together; a rental desk will want all three.
The arrangement is for visitors. Someone who takes up residence has to switch to a Singapore licence after 12 months. A holiday, a business trip or a semester abroad sits well inside that.
Keeping left: the first hours are the risky ones
France keeps right; Singapore keeps left. The first turn out of a rental car park is where most visitors go wrong, swinging into the far lane by habit. Junctions are the second trap: your eyes go left first, and the traffic is coming from the right. Overtaking happens on the right-hand side, the opposite of what feels natural.
A sensible first day looks like this. Collect the car outside rush hour. Drive a short, quiet loop before joining an expressway. Say the side out loud at every junction for the first few. Leave night driving and unfamiliar districts for the second day, when the reversed layout no longer needs conscious thought. If an expressway is unavoidable on day one, join it at a quiet hour and stay in the left-hand lane, which is the slow lane here, until passing on the right stops feeling odd.
A higher alcohol limit that is not a loosening
On paper Singapore’s 0.08% is more generous than France’s 0.05%. In practice the reverse applies. Canada notes that drink-driving can bring up to 10 years in prison, and the UK’s advice warns of imprisonment. The French habit of one glass with lunch and then driving belongs at home. The cleaner rule here is none at all.
Kit and emergencies
French law makes you carry a reflective vest and a warning triangle in your own car; those are French requirements, not Singapore ones, so check what the hire car contains rather than packing your own. For emergencies, save 999 for the police and 995 for ambulance and fire before you set off. Neither is the number your thumb will reach for after years of 17, 15 and 18.
For the rest of the rules, the Singapore driving guide has the detail, and the Driving Permit Checker covers other destinations on the same trip.
Sources
- Global Affairs Canada, Singapore travel advice (carry an IDP; traffic on the left; strict enforcement; up to 10 years for drink-driving; 999/995): travel.gc.ca
- GOV.UK, international driving permit table (Singapore: 1949 IDP for car hire and stays over 30 days): gov.uk
- GOV.UK foreign travel advice, Singapore, safety and security (imprisonment for drink-driving; local licence for longer-term residents): gov.uk
- WHO Global status report on road safety 2023, Singapore profile (50/70/90 km/h; 0.08 g/dl): who.int
- WHO Global status report on road safety 2023, France profile (0.05 g/dl; 130 km/h motorway): who.int
- UN Treaty Collection, 1949 Convention on Road Traffic (France and Singapore parties): treaties.un.org
Speed limits, fines, equipment & license requirements
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, carry one. Global Affairs Canada says visitors must carry an international driving permit, and the UK government's permit table lists the 1949 IDP, needed for car hire and for stays longer than 30 days. France and Singapore are both parties to the 1949 Geneva Convention, so the permit issued in France is the right one.
On the left. Coming from France, junctions, lane choice and overtaking all reverse, so ease in on quiet roads before tackling the expressways.
0.08%, which looks looser on paper than France's 0.05%. Do not read it that way: Canada notes that drink-driving sentences can reach 10 years in prison, and UK advice warns of imprisonment. Do not drink if you are driving.
Singapore keeps left where France keeps right, and its speeds are lower at every level: 50 km/h in town like France, but 70 km/h on other roads against France's 80, and 90 km/h on expressways against 130 on the autoroute. The alcohol limit is higher on paper (0.08% against 0.05%), yet the penalties are far heavier. Police are on 999 rather than 17, and ambulance and fire share 995.