What a German document needs

Three things a careful German translation gets right

Compound terms, one English equivalent each

German officialdom builds its nouns: Geburtsurkunde, Führerschein, Meldebescheinigung. Each has a settled English rendering, and a careful translation uses the same one every time the term appears, so a reader in Australia meets one name for one document.

ß, umlauts and your passport spelling

The sharp s and the umlauts change how a name is written in a machine-readable passport: Müller may appear as Mueller, Straße as Strasse. We follow the spelling in your passport, so the translation, the passport and the hire booking agree letter for letter.

Dates and the EU licence card

German dates run day-month-year, and the translation says so where an Australian reader might assume otherwise. Germany issues EU-format licences with category pictograms; the translation spells out each category and any coded condition rather than leaving a symbol to be guessed at.

Driving here

Driving in Australia on a German licence

A German licence is not in English, so the road authorities name a second document to carry with it.

Either a translation or a permit

“If your licence is not in English, you’ll also need to carry either: an English translation of your licence, or an international driving permit in English.” The same choice appears in most states.

Source: VicRoads, driving with your overseas licence (checked 18 September 2026)

The licence still comes along

“You should always have your overseas licence with you when you drive.” The translation sits beside the original, never in place of it — and that is what the hire desk will look at too.

Source: VicRoads, driving with your overseas licence (checked 18 September 2026)

State by state, with the rental companies’ own wording: renting a car in Australia with an overseas licence. For the overview, driver licence translation with a NAATI-certified translator option.

What a careful job includes

Every field, every stamp, every side

Licences, both sides in full

Name, date of birth, licence number, categories, conditions and restrictions, issue and expiry dates, issuing authority, and every stamp or code — nothing summarised.

Civil documents

Birth, marriage, divorce and death certificates, police certificates, passports and ID pages, academic records. The wording on stamps, seals and marginal notes is translated in full, in the order it appears on the document. A signature or a seal with no words is marked in square brackets, for example [signed] or [seal].

The NAATI option

Prepared by a NAATI-certified translator and carrying their certification statement, NAATI stamp and credential number — the credential several authorities and rental companies name. Choose it at checkout for driving or hiring a car, and when the receiving authority asks for it. There is more on NAATI translation in Australia.

Pricing

The full price on screen before you order

Translation is $39.99 per page into English, delivered digitally. Add NAATI certification for $59.99 per page, prepared by a NAATI-certified translator and carrying their certification statement, NAATI stamp and credential number. Where the translator uses NAATI’s digital stamp, it carries a QR code you can scan to check the credential. A licence is two pages, the front and the back; most certificates are one or two.

Other languages: French, Spanish, Chinese, Hindi, Dutch — or see every document type we handle.

Driving on a licence in German? Check your overseas licence in 1 second.

German to English translation