Spain on a Brazilian CNH 2026: Translation or a PID Needed
Brazil
Spain
Yes. Take the CNH plus either an official Spanish translation or the PID from your DETRAN; Spain gives a non-resident visitor 6 months. Same side of the road, but zero alcohol at home becomes 0.5 g/l here, and a 20, 30 or 50 km/h town street is the norm.
Brazilians ask two things about Spain more than anything else: do I need the international permit, and who pays if a fine turns up later. Short answers. You need the PID from your DETRAN or an official Spanish translation of the CNH, and as a non-resident you may drive on it for six months from the day you enter Spain. A fine belongs to whoever was driving, so it follows you home or reaches you through the rental company.
Traffic keeps to the right in both countries, and motorway driving is orderly. What changes is the paperwork, the town speeds and the alcohol rule.
A CNH in Portuguese needs a companion
The DGT, Spain’s traffic authority, accepts a licence from outside the EU when it is written in Spanish or carried with an official translation, and recommends the international driving permit as the simplest option. A CNH is printed in Portuguese, so bring one or the other.
The two countries sit in different conventions. Brazil ratified only the 1968 Vienna treaty, Spain only the 1949 Geneva one. Spanish law closes that gap itself: article 21.1(c) of the General Drivers Regulation accepts international permits on the Vienna model when the issuing country never joined Geneva, which is Brazil’s position. So the PID (Permissão Internacional para Dirigir) from your DETRAN is recognised. Get it before you fly, and carry the CNH, the PID and your passport together. The Driving Permit Checker covers neighbouring countries if the trip continues to Portugal or France.
The six months in article 21.2 count from your entry into Spain if you are a visitor. Residents have a different clock, six months from taking up normal residence.
Who pays the fine?
The driver does. A camera ticket is addressed to the registered keeper, which on a hire car is the rental company, and the company passes your details to the authority. Treat any notice with a payment deadline seriously, since late payment is where small fines grow. The site’s guide to who pays driving fines abroad explains the route a ticket takes.
Fixed penalties in Spain are heavier than the Brazilian ones in the same categories:
| Offence | Spain | Brazil |
|---|---|---|
| No seatbelt | EUR 200 + 4 points | BRL 195.23 + 5 points |
| Phone in hand | EUR 200 + 6 points | BRL 293 + 5 points |
| Red light | EUR 200 + 4 points | BRL 293 + 7 points |
Looser on alcohol, but do not rely on it
Brazil’s Lei Seca penalises driving after any amount of alcohol. Spain’s general limit is 0.5 g/l in blood, and 0.3 g/l for drivers in their first two years of licence. The margin exists on paper, but checks are routine. If you are used to ordering nothing and then driving, keep doing exactly that.
Town speeds are the surprise
Article 50 of Spain’s traffic regulation sets 30 km/h on urban streets with one lane in each direction, 20 km/h where road and pavement share one level, and 50 km/h only on streets with two or more lanes each way, unless signs say otherwise. A Brazilian used to 60 km/h on a city avenue will be speeding on many Spanish streets.
Outside towns, ordinary roads are 90 km/h (Brazil: 100 on single-carriageway highways) and motorways 120 km/h, a little above Brazil’s 110.
Speeding fines follow fixed bands. The lowest is EUR 100 without points, for example 51-70 km/h on a 50 road or 121-150 km/h on a 120 motorway. Higher up, the same bands read EUR 300, 400, 500 and 600 on a 120 road, with points of 2, 4 and 6 added. The Speeding Fine Calculator shows the steps for your speed.
Kit and emergency numbers
Spanish-registered cars, hire cars included, must carry a connected V-16 beacon, which replaced warning triangles for them on 1 January 2026. Check at collection that it is in the car. A reflective vest is also required. Brazil asks for a fire extinguisher; Spain only recommends one.
Dial 112 for everything. Spain also keeps 091 for the police, 061 for an ambulance and 080 for the fire service, none of which match Brazil’s 190, 192 and 193. Large cities run low-emission zones, and a hire car on Spanish plates carries its DGT label. The Spain driving guide has the rest.
Sources
- DGT, valid licences for driving in Spain and driving with a foreign licence (Spanish text or official translation; international permit): dgt.es
- Reglamento General de Circulación (RD 1428/2003), articles 20 (0.5 g/l; 0.3 g/l for two years) and 50 (urban 20/30/50 km/h): boe.es
- Real Decreto Legislativo 6/2015, Annex IV (speeding fines): boe.es
- Real Decreto 159/2021 (V-16 beacon): boe.es
- Brazil, Código de Trânsito Brasileiro (Lei 9.503/1997), article 165 (driving under the influence of alcohol): planalto.gov.br
- WHO Global status report on road safety 2023, Brazil profile (BAC 0; 110 km/h motorway maximum) and Spain profile (90 km/h rural, 120 km/h motorway): who.int
- Reglamento General de Conductores (RD 818/2009), article 21.1(b) official translation and 21.1(c) Vienna-model permits from non-Geneva countries: boe.es
- UN Treaty Collection, 1968 Convention on Road Traffic (Brazil a party; Spain signed but never ratified): treaties.un.org
- UN Treaty Collection, 1949 Convention on Road Traffic (Spain a party, Brazil not): treaties.un.org
Speed limits, fines, equipment & license requirements
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Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, as a visitor. The DGT accepts a foreign licence written in Spanish or carried with an official translation, and recommends the international driving permit. Brazil joined only the 1968 Vienna Convention and Spain only the 1949 Geneva one, but article 21.1(c) of the General Drivers Regulation expressly accepts Vienna-model permits from countries outside Geneva, so the PID from your DETRAN covers it.
You need either the permit (the PID, issued by DETRAN) or an official Spanish translation of the CNH, because the card is in Portuguese. The permit is the simpler of the two and the one the DGT recommends. Arrange it in Brazil before you fly.
No, it is looser. Brazil's Lei Seca allows no alcohol at all, while Spain's general limit is 0.5 g/l in blood, and 0.3 g/l for drivers in their first two years. Keep your Brazilian habit and drink nothing before driving.
The lowest band is EUR 100 with no points: for example 51-70 km/h on a 50 road, or up to 150 km/h on a 120 motorway. Fines rise in steps with points from the next band.