Driving in Antigua and Barbuda with a Curacao Driving Licence: IDP Requirements and Rules
A Curacao driving licence is not, by itself, sufficient authority to drive in Antigua and Barbuda. A bona fide visitor must obtain a temporary local driver licence, normally using a valid home-country licence. The visitor licence may be issued for up to three months. The checked official sources do not require an International Driving Permit (IDP), and no separate translation requirement is stated.
Quick answer
You can drive as a visitor only after obtaining the temporary Antigua and Barbuda driver licence. Your valid Curacao licence is relevant because the official tourism guidance says a valid home-country licence is presented to obtain the local permit. An IDP is not the document that creates the driving entitlement for this trip.
Legal treatment of a Curacao licence in Antigua and Barbuda
Antigua and Barbuda law states that a person may not drive on a road unless that person holds a driver licence. Section 40 of the Vehicles and Road Traffic Act allows the Commissioner of Inland Revenue to grant a bona fide visitor a temporary driver licence, other than a chauffeur licence, for a period not exceeding three months. The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority currently instructs visitors to bring a valid home-country driver licence and purchase the temporary local permit. For a Curacao licence holder, this means the Curacao document is supporting evidence for the visitor permit, not stand-alone authority to drive.
IDP requirement, recommendation and applicable model
The checked destination law and official visitor guidance do not require an IDP. Curacao government guidance explains that its IDP is a translation used together with the national licence and that the Curacao-issued IDP is valid for one year, but it does not identify Antigua and Barbuda as a destination where an IDP is required.
Curacao is covered by the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic through the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The official treaty party list does not list Antigua and Barbuda as a party to that convention. As a result, no treaty-based 1949 IDP entitlement establishes the right to drive for this pair. The verified route is the Antigua and Barbuda temporary visitor licence, so there is no destination-specific IDP model that must be obtained for this trip.
Visitor and resident rules
A visitor temporary driver licence may be granted for a period not exceeding three months. Because the source expresses this as months rather than a fixed number of days, no fixed day count is stored for the visitor period. The statutory visitor route is limited to a bona fide visitor. Resident conversion, exchange rights and any resident deadline specific to a Curacao licence are unverified – confirm with official authority.
Rental-car requirements
The Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority says a renter should bring a valid driver licence from the home country and obtain the temporary local driver licence, currently stated as costing EC$50. The Act permits an authorised owner of a self-drive hire vehicle to hand over a visitor temporary driver licence on behalf of the licensing officer. No named rental company policy specifically requiring or rejecting an IDP for a Curacao licence holder was verified, so check the chosen company before pickup.
Police or authority documents and insurance
Police may require a driver to produce the driver licence for examination. Section 41 provides that a driver who does not produce it immediately can avoid being charged for that failure by producing it in person within forty-eight hours at the police station specified at the time of the request.
Separate insurance legislation requires a compliant third-party insurance policy or qualifying security to be in force for use of a motor vehicle on a public road, subject to statutory exceptions. Police may require production of the relevant certificate of insurance or security. For a rental, the exact contractual cover, excess and optional waivers depend on the rental agreement and were not treated as destination law.
Relevant exceptions
The temporary visitor driver licence cannot be a chauffeur licence and may be issued subject to conditions stated on the licence. Exact Curacao-to-local vehicle-category mapping is unverified – confirm with official authority. The checked sources also do not state a separate translation requirement, but the issuing authority must still be able to assess the valid home-country licence presented for the visitor permit.
Official sources used
- Government of Antigua and Barbuda, Vehicles and Road Traffic Act, Cap. 460 verifies the requirement to hold a driver licence, the visitor temporary licence for up to three months, the exclusion of chauffeur licences, authorised issue through self-drive hire owners and police production of the driver licence. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, Getting Around verifies the current visitor instruction to bring a valid home-country driver licence and buy the temporary local driver licence for EC$50. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Government of Antigua and Barbuda, Motor Vehicles Insurance (Third-Party Risks) Act, Cap. 288 verifies the third-party insurance or security requirement and police production of the insurance or security certificate. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Government of Curacao, Internationaal Rijbewijs verifies that Curacao issues an IDP, that it accompanies rather than replaces the national licence and that the Curacao-issued IDP is valid for one year subject to the national licence remaining valid. Checked 2026-10-05.
- Treaty Database of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, 1949 Convention on Road Traffic verifies that the convention applies to Curacao and provides the party record used to check that Antigua and Barbuda is not listed as a party. Checked 2026-10-05.
Practical recommendation
Take the valid original Curacao licence and obtain the temporary Antigua and Barbuda visitor driver licence before driving. Do not use an IDP as a substitute for the local permit. If you are renting, confirm the company-specific pickup documents in advance. Keep the local driver licence available while driving and make sure the vehicle has the legally required third-party insurance or security.
Last verified date
This information was checked against the listed official sources on 2026-10-05.