Uzbekistan on a UK Licence 2026: 30 Days With a 1968 IDP

Uzbekistan rewards drivers with distance: Samarkand, Bukhara and Khiva are hundreds of kilometres apart, and a hire car turns a string of Silk Road cities into one trip. For a British visitor the paperwork has a time limit, and the side of the road needs planning around.

What the licence rules allow

UK government advice says you can drive in Uzbekistan on a valid UK licence for 30 days, and that you need both the 1968 version of the international driving permit and the licence with you in the car. The 1968 IDP can only be bought in the UK, so arrange it before you fly. The same advice suggests a Russian or Uzbek translation of the licence and IDP to make police checks easier, though this is not a legal requirement. Hire firms often set their own conditions, such as a year of driving experience or a minimum age.

The side switch is the main adjustment

The UK drives on the left; Uzbekistan drives on the right. Pulling onto a main road, taking a roundabout the other way or glancing the wrong direction are the classic slips. Take your first drive somewhere quiet rather than in Tashkent traffic, and be deliberate until it feels natural. Canada’s travel advice warns that at Uzbek roundabouts, vehicles entering often have priority over those already on them.

Speed limits by place

Chapter 11 of the Road Traffic Rules sets 60 km/h in Tashkent, Nukus, regional and district centres and other cities, and 70 km/h in smaller settlements. Near signed schools and kindergartens it drops to 30 km/h, and in residential courtyards to 20 km/h. Outside settlements, cars may do 100 km/h; there is no separate motorway limit, so higher speeds apply only where signs allow them. Canada’s advice notes that numerous roadside cameras enforce limits.

Roads, alcohol and emergencies

Roads in Tashkent are generally good, but rural and mountain roads, especially in the Tian Shan and Fan mountains, have large potholes, weak lighting and poor markings, and fuel stations thin out. Do not drink at all if you are driving. In an emergency dial 102 for police, 103 for an ambulance and 101 for fire.

Confirm what you need with the driving permit checker, and check limits before a long leg on the speed limit map.

Sources

• GOV.UK foreign travel advice, Uzbekistan (30 days on a UK licence; 1968 IDP; translation advice; hire-firm conditions; drive on the right): gov.uk
• Road Traffic Rules of Uzbekistan, Cabinet of Ministers resolution No. 172 of 12 April 2022, clauses 78-80: lex.uz
• Global Affairs Canada, Uzbekistan travel advice (road conditions, roundabouts, cameras, 102/103/101): travel.gc.ca