ISF Internal Security Forces : International Driver’s License Lebanon

Name of the Organization : Internal Security Forces
Type of Facility : International Driver’s License
Country : Lebanon

Website : http://www.isf.gov.lb/en/ways

International Driver’s License :

The international driving permit (IDP) is a UN recognized document. Only institutions authorized by their governments are entitled to issue such permits. In most cases, these institutions are the local national motor vehicle clubs.

Related : ISF Vehicles’ Driving License Lebanon : www.statusin.org/5751.html

This permit shall not replace, in any case whatsoever, the official driver’s license. It serves as a translation of the international driver’s license and it certifies that its bearer holds a valid driver’s license of a certain category.

The international driver’s license does not replace the national driver’s license, yet it compliments it. Its validity shall not be considered as legal, unless supported by a valid national driver’s license.

The international driver’s license is a vital document when driving a vehicle in a foreign country. The maximum validity of the international driver’s license is one year. The international driver’s license shall not be renewed under any circumstances, and shall be considered as invalid on the expiry date. It is not necessary to return the expired driver’s license to the issuing authority.

Terms of Issuing an International Driver’s License:
The applicant shall:
** Fully complete the special application form;
** Submit the original form of the national driver’s license along with a copy of it specifying the applicant full name, the expiry date and the category;
** Attach the copy to the application form.
** Provide two new 4 x 6 cm passport-sized photos; one of them shall be attached to the international driver’s license, while the second shall be kept with the application form.

The driver’s license is granted to every citizen on the Lebanese territory to be eligible to drive a vehicle abroad.

Where to apply for an International Driver’s License:
** Accredited vehicle driving schools;
** Bureau of the Traffic, Trucks and Vehicles Management Authority (Nafaa) and its branches all over Lebanon

Required Documents :

** Driving License (private or public)
** Two passport-sized photos
** Payment for the applicable fee

Vehicle Trip Ticket (Le carnet de Passage en Douanes (CPD)):
The vehicle trip ticket is an official document established by the United Nations to facilitate the temporary import of vehicles into a foreign country. It can be more precisely described as a motor vehicle passport.

International motor vehicle clubs associations supervise and control the selling of these tickets as per UN instruments. Hence, it appears that the trip ticket is a very valuable document. It exempts the vehicle or car owner from paying huge amounts of money to Customs authorities in countries he may visit. Consequently, the ticket is a document guaranteeing that the motor vehicle club that issued it will settle all custom duties required by the competent authorities in any country that it may had been used and when there is no proof that the ticket-guaranteed vehicle left that country as per regulations in effect.

Therefore, employees issuing trip tickets shall strictly comply with the following:
Value of the vehicle – It is essential to comply with the text relating to the real market value of the vehicle upon receipt of the trip ticket.

Guaranty – In all cases whatsoever of submitting a trip ticket application, the vehicle owner submitting the applicant shall sign a personal commitment supported by a third-party guaranty, whereas the said guaranty may be as follows:
** A personal guarantee
** A bank guarantee
** A cash bond

The following two important factors shall be observed when accepting the personal guarantee. First factor: the guarantor shall be liable to settle the due amount in full. Second factor: the full address of the guarantor shall be indicated on the application form used.

The guarantee release – In any case whatsoever, any guarantee shall only be released against receipt of the trip ticket, or after twelve (12) months at least of its expiry date. The personal guarantee is not bond to its expiry date. While, the bank guarantee is valid for a whole year as of the issue date.
Customs duties: According to the articles of the UN agreement regulating the issuance of trip tickets, Customs authorities in any country are entitled to claim for fixed duties during a whole year as of the expiry date of the trip ticket.

Customs authorities are not entitled to claim for any ticket on which it is noted that is invalid on its territory, or if it their seal is not affixed on it at the point of entry and the importation voucher is not cut off and kept with the relevant Customs officials.

It is worth mentioning that countries usually grant its visitors a period ranging from 3 to 6 months to drive their vehicles on its territory. Sometimes, this period may be dramatically reduced to a period that may not exceed one week when the vehicle is granted a Customs number plate or a temporary entry license.

In the event where the trip ticket is stolen, lost or destroyed while still being valid, and it was used to enter a vehicle into a certain country, a duplicate may be issued to allow the vehicle’s owner to re-export it.

Returning the trip ticket – It is clearly obvious that it is mandatory to return the expired trip ticket to the Club that issued it upon or before its expiry date when it is not useful anymore, whereas it will be easy to settle any duties when referring to the trip ticket.

Extending the validity of the trip ticket – The trip ticket is usually valid for a whole year as of the date of its issuance. Moreover, the trip ticket may be issued for a shorter period of time, but it shall not be issued at first for a period extending a whole year.

Documents Required for the Retrieval of a Sequestrated Driver’s License:
** Buying a stamp of an amount equal to the violation and affixing it to the traffic ticket;
** Heading towards the circulation Brigade concerned and submitting the traffic ticket to it.
** Submitting a receipt or a copy of the traffic ticket and handing in the driver’s license.

These measures shall be carried out within twenty-four hours of the date of sequestration of the license.