Temporary Driving Permit: Driving As A Visitor In Sri Lanka Made Simple
Can Tourists Drive in Sri Lanka?
Yes, tourists can drive in Sri Lanka, but they need the proper permits. When traveling in the country, whether by car or motorbike, it’s essential to follow the law and have a valid license.
While many countries accept an international driver’s license, Sri Lanka has different requirements. To drive in Sri Lanka as a tourist, you can’t rely solely on an international license.
So, what’s the solution? Instead of risking driving without proper documentation, tourists can apply for a temporary Sri Lankan driver’s license. This process is quick and usually takes about an hour, maybe a bit longer if there are lines. 
Required Documents!
When applying for a tourist driving permit in Sri Lanka, ensure you have all the necessary documents. Having these ready will expedite the process and save you time. Here’s a list of the documents we needed:
1. Passport
2. Passport copy
3. Copy of the Sri Lankan visa
4. Valid driving license from your country
5. Copy of the driving license
What other tourists are saying about us
Rainer and Beate
2020-03-09
Verified We had a great time / Feb 2020
There is nothing much to add to all the previous reviews. Mahesh is a very friendly and reliable person. A safe driver, an excellent guide and very knowledgeable if it comes to the history of Sri Lanka. He was our pick up service from and to the airport as well as our one day guide from Colombo to Kandy, with stopps at the Elephant resort and at the tea plantation.Many thank, Mahesh for your time. We will always get back to you if we would travel to Sri Lanka again :-)Best wishes, Rainer & Beate from Germany
Lucy N
2020-03-04
Verified Simply the Best
Mahesh was very reliable and trustworthy. For a solo female traveller I felt very safe, which was not the experience I had in some taxis before meeting Mahesh! He was so friendly and has excellent communication skills, you can ask him anything and he will try his best to make your wishes come true. Cautious and safe driver. Very knowledgeable. Would definitely recommend for any transportation needs e.g. to/from airports, or for tours anywhere in Sri Lanka.
AndreySal
2020-02-25
Verified جولات جميلة
جولات جميلة ، خيار كبير من قصيرة (بضع ساعات إلى يوم واحد) وطويلة (2-4 أيام) في سري لانكا لجميع الوجهات الشعبية.بأسعار معقولة ، والسائقين المهنية.
Matt G
2020-02-12
Verified 12 day tour in January 2020
We contacted Mahesh a few months before our planned trip to Sri Lanka. Mahesh was very quick to respond and kindly helped us put together a 2 week itinerary. Mahesh met us on the first day but as his wife was expecting a baby the next day we had Saneera as our driver for the two weeks. Saneera was an excellent driver and he had a very clean and comfortable car. Saneera was proud of the fact that he washes his car every day! Saneera was friendly, funny and his local knowledge of Sri Lanka was interesting and extremely useful when travelling across most of the Country. Saneera was a fantastic tour guide, he was always on time and we felt safe throughout our entire trip. If you are travelling solo, as a group, a couple or a family we would have no hesitation recommending Mahesh and Saneera of Mahesh Lanka Tours. We hope to see you again next time we visit Sri Lanka. Matt and Rach
roamsoul
2020-01-11
Verified Excellent trip to Srilank with Mahesh Lanka Tours
We had an excellent visit to Sri lanka with Mahesh Lanka Tours. We had seen the reviews on lonely planet and contacted Mahesh. He was very friendly and guided us on the itinerary and places to visit. His colleague Anushka came to pick us at the airport. He was a very nice and genuine guy and had excellent driving skills which made us very safe during our trip. Mahesh had given us a van for our trip and the vehicle condition was very good and well maintained. Anushka was very knowledgeable and gave us a very good guided tour. He suggested places which we otherwise wouldn't know about and took us to every place we requested. The vehicle package was all inclusive and we didn't have to pay anything extra.Would definitely recommend Mahesh tours for Sri Lanka trip to anyone travelling there.
Heike W
2020-01-10
Verified Mahesh Lanka Tours
Mahesh ist ein super Fahrer, er kann euch viel über Sri Lanka erzählen und hat tollen Humor. Auch guter Guide. Ich habe ihn gleich ins Herz geschlossen. Man kann auch Touren und Fahrten ganz individuell gestalten. Sehr vertrauensvoll und empfehlenswert! Im Vergleich zu organisierten Touren und Fahrten über Hotels auch günstiger.
Ivan
2020-01-09
Verified Wonderful Sri Lanka tour with Sharada
We found the Mahesh Lanka company by recommendation on the TripAdvisor forum. We sent an email with our planned itinerary and Mr. Lakshan quickly answered in great detail and fully informed us about the trip and involved costs.Our driver was Sharada and we cannot reccommend him enough. He is a safe driver, knowledgeable, polite, did everything according to our agreed plan and was always on time. He also recommended some great places along the way which we didn't plan to visit, and was never pushy if we declined.5/5. We are glad we hired a personal driver to get around Sti Lanka, and especially glad it was Sharada. A great experience in a beautiful country. Do not miss! N&I
Faye
2020-01-07
Verified Incredible tour with Mahesh!
Recently returned from an amazing honeymoon in Sri Lanka made all the better by our incredible driver Mahesh! I found Mahesh through reviews on trip advisor and contacted him. Mahesh got back to me the next day with details and pricing and even a suggested itinerary for our trip which covered all of the main sights and attractions together with some hidden gems. Mahesh met us at the airport and accompanied us on our two week trip as we travelled around Sri Lanka. He was a fount of knowledge about Sri Lanka's history and traditions and made visiting the main attractions so easy. Mahesh's car is extremely comfortable and clean and he is an incredibly safe driver which we appreciated given how busy some of the Sri Lankan roads can get! Without a doubt the highlight of our trip was enjoying a mangrove safari and traditional home cooked bbq which Mahesh put on for us on our last night in Sri Lanka. By the end of the trip we really felt we had made a friend and wouldn't hesitate to recommend Mahesh to anyone wanting a safe, reliable and friendly driver in Sri Lanka. Mahesh we will be back!
Tay
2019-12-25
Verified Really skilful and safe driver!
We had a 7-day itinerary with Jan (Janaka) and his driving was really good...his speed consistent even on winding roads, and very skilful even on steep slopes as some of our hotels were unfortunately situated high up...never overtaking the cars ahead of him unless absolutely necessary. He was always very calm when driving too, even at Horton Plains where it was so misty in the morning and visibility was poor. As Sri Lanka is not an easy place to drive in, even for expert drivers, we really appreciated having him on our trip. His networks with the local drivers also helped him stay aware of road conditions ahead of time, especially useful when we were caught in a highway jam to Ella due to some landslide warnings.In terms of tour arrangements, he was very punctual as well, always waiting for us right after every programme so there was no real need to look for him. And he was very kind to hike with us at Horton Plains and helped us along some muddy, slippery paths.It was cool that he had really good relationships with the locals and could help us reserve the best seats for our whale watching excursion, Kandyan traditional dance show, and even when booking the train ride to Nanu Oya—definitely an advantage that made the entire itinerary very smooth and efficient. When we changed our minds about visiting certain places, he was also very obliging and quick to accommodate us. Because of all these, we really enjoyed our time in Sri Lanka!! We highly recommend Mahesh tours if you are going to Sri Lanka and want a safe and reliable driver.