Driving in Andorra with a Saipan Driving Licence: IDP Requirements and Rules
A Saipan/CNMI licence holder can use the clearly verified Andorran route by carrying the original valid licence with a U.S.-issued 1949 Geneva Convention International Driving Permit (IDP). Andorra also accepts qualifying convention-format national permits, but current CNMI card conformity with that model was not verified. U.S. State Department guidance says to obtain an IDP before arrival. No fixed visitor-day driving limit was verified.
Quick answer
For practical compliance, carry both the original CNMI licence and the 1949 Geneva IDP. The IDP is recognised by Andorran law only when accompanied by the national licence, and driving is limited to the authorised categories shown by those documents.
Legal treatment of the Saipan licence in Andorra
Saipan is within the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, a U.S. territory. The CNMI Department of Public Safety Bureau of Motor Vehicles handles driving-licence services in Saipan. Andorran regulations recognise national permits from other countries if they conform to Annex 9 of the 1949 Geneva Convention or Annex 6 of the 1968 Vienna Convention. They also recognise a 1949 Geneva international permit when it is carried with the national permit.
The checked sources did not establish that the current CNMI licence card by itself conforms to the Annex 9 national-permit model. That prevents a confident licence-alone conclusion. The separate 1949 IDP route is expressly recognised, so it is the documented route used for this pair.
IDP requirement, recommendation, and applicable model
Under Andorran law, an IDP is not universally required for every foreign licence because a national permit that itself meets an accepted convention model can be valid. For a Saipan/CNMI card, however, that conformity was not verified. Current U.S. State Department guidance for Andorra says travellers who plan to drive must obtain an IDP before arrival, so a Saipan licence holder should not rely on the national card alone.
The verified model is the 1949 Geneva Convention IDP. The U.S. Department of State identifies AAA and the American Automobile Touring Alliance as the authorised U.S. IDP issuers meeting 1949 Convention standards. AAA documentation states that a valid U.S.A. or Territorial Driver License qualifies for an application and that the territorial licence must be carried with the permit.
Visitor and resident rules
No fixed maximum number of visitor driving days was verified in the checked Andorran driving-licence rules, so this page does not state a numeric visitor limit. Residence creates a separate clock. A qualifying foreign permit remains valid for no more than six months after the holder obtains habitual or temporary residence in Andorra, provided the other validity, age, and category conditions are met.
For habitual residents, the regulation also requires the foreign permit to be changed for an Andorran equivalent before one year from obtaining residence in the applicable cases. For permits covered by the non-EU convention routes, practical testing can be required, and reciprocity can alter the treatment.
Rental-car requirements
Europcar Andorra requires the normal driving licence and says an international licence is mandatory when the domestic licence is in a language different from the renting country and/or uses characters that cannot be read there. Its published terms also require an identification document and a valid credit card. This is a named-company policy, not a statement about every rental company.
Police or authority documents and insurance
The Andorran Road Traffic Code requires a driver to carry a valid driving permit, the vehicle registration certificate, proof that vehicle insurance is in force, and the technical inspection certificate where applicable, and to show those documents to traffic agents on request. For the IDP route, carry the original CNMI licence as well because Andorran law makes the IDP valid only when accompanied by the national permit.
Foreign vehicles circulating in Andorra must have insurance that at least covers the liabilities required for Andorran-registered vehicles. The checked sources do not establish that a CNMI or U.S. personal motor policy automatically provides that coverage, so confirm territorial cover before driving.
Relevant exceptions
The IDP does not create vehicle-category rights beyond those authorised by the underlying licence. The six-month limit applies after obtaining Andorran habitual or temporary residence and should not be presented as a tourist-arrival limit. Resident homologation can also require authenticity and category-equivalence certificates with sworn translations into Catalan, French, or Spanish.
Official sources used
- Government of Andorra, Portal Jurídic, Regulation of 2 July 2025 on driving permits, Articles 14 and 15 and Annex II, https://portaljuridicandorra.ad/R20250702B, checked 2026-10-03.
- Government of Andorra, Portal Jurídic, Llei 12/2021 Road Traffic Code, Articles 87 and 89 and vehicle-insurance provisions, https://portaljuridicandorra.ad/L2021012, checked 2026-10-03.
- U.S. Department of State, Andorra travel guidance covering the IDP, liability insurance, and driving documents, https://travel.state.gov/en/international-travel/travel-advisories/destination.and.html, checked 2026-10-03.
- U.S. Department of State, authorised International Driving Permit issuer guidance, https://travel.state.gov/en/international-travel/travel-advisories/scams.html, checked 2026-10-03.
- AAA, International Driving Permit application for U.S.A. or territorial licence holders, https://www.aaa.com/vacation/docs/IDP_Application2a.pdf, checked 2026-10-03.
- U.S. Department of the Interior, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands status information, https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/cnmi, checked 2026-10-03.
- CNMI Department of Public Safety Bureau of Motor Vehicles, https://dev.dps.gov.mp/bmv, checked 2026-10-03.
- Europcar, Andorra rental document requirements, https://www.europcar.com/en-us/places/car-rental-andorra, checked 2026-10-03.
Practical recommendation
Obtain the 1949 Geneva IDP from an authorised U.S. issuer before travel and carry it with the original valid CNMI licence. This follows current U.S. guidance and uses a permit model expressly accepted by Andorra. Check the chosen rental company separately, carry the vehicle registration and current insurance proof, and begin resident homologation early if you move to Andorra.
Last verified date
This information was checked against the listed government, issuer, and rental-company sources on 2026-10-03. The date records when the sources were checked, not when every underlying rule last changed.