As in the UK, North Cyprus drives on the left-hand side on the road. Anyone with a driving licence can drive in the TRNC. You can use your foreign driving licence to drive in the TRNC for up to three months. Then you will have to get a TRNC driving licence. If you do not obtain one and have an accident then the car insurance will no longer be valid, it will become null and void. Landmark Estates lists information below.
The below information was given by Ralph Kratzer
Initial TRNC Driving Licence Documentation.
The following documentation is required by the licencing office when applying for an initial TRNC driving licence:
- Original Passport plus a photocopy of the photo page.
- Residency requirements:
o If aged under 60, a photocopy of the temporary residency stamp page in passport.
o If aged over 60 and the passport does not have a temporary residency stamp,
a Muhtars residency letter is required
- a nominal fee of TL10.00 is usually charged for this service.
- 2 passport size colour photos
- Original plus a photocopy of the national driving licence
- Completed application form – in Turkish or English – the English version may be downloaded from our Forms list in the "Members" section.
- The appropriate fee depending on validity of licence chosen as detailed below. Prices are correct as at January 2021.
2 years 428.80 tl
A receipt will be issued upon payment and this should be kept in the car and shown to the police in lieu of the licence until it is issued. The licence will be available for collection from the same counter approximately 1 month after the application is made.
Licence Renewal
Applications for renewals for periods of up to 10 years can be made at local tax offices, where MOT fees and car tax are payable, instead of the Lefkosa licencing office.
The documentation required is the same as for the initial application above, with the additional requirement of the current or previous TRNC licence being required instead of the national driving licence.
Again as for the initial licence, a receipt will be issued upon payment and this should be kept in the car and shown to the police in lieu of the licence until it is issued. The licence will be available for collection from the same counter approximately 1 month after the application is made.
MOT Testing
A system of MOT inspections, similar to that in the UK, applies to all vehicles in North Cyprus. The inspections are carried out at police stations and the requirements are much less stringent than that of EU countries. Cars from new are required to be inspected every 3 years. Motor cycles and quad bikes are to be inspected annually.
MOT testing dates are published annually and detail a programme of dates by registration numbers when vehicles are required to be inspected.
Please Note:
Each registration letter may be allocated as little as a one week window for vehicles to be inspected. Failure to arrange the MOT within the specified period will result in monetary fines.
Revised MOT dates for 2020 as of 13th JUNE, are shown below.
Note:- Information on private motor cars
Registration MOT Due Date
A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, J, 27/07/2020 – 06/08/2020
AF, AG, AH, AJ, AK, AL, AN, AP, AR, as above
BF, BG, BH, BJ, BY, BZ, CR, CS, CT, 07/08/2020 – 14/08/2020
DG, DH, DJ, DK, DL, EC, ED, as above
EE, EF, EG, EH, EJ, EK, EL, EM, 17/08/2020 – 27/08/2020
FB, FC, FD, FE, FF, GM, GN, GP, GR, as above
GS, GT, GU, GV, GY, GZ, HA, HB, HC, 28/08/2020 – 09/09/2020
HD, HE, HF, HG, HH, HJ, HK, HL, HM, as above
HN, HP, HR, KD, KE, KF, KG, KH, KJ, 10/09/2020 – 22/09/2020
KK, KL, KM, KN, LL, LM, LN, LP, LR, 23/09/2020 – 06/10/2020
LS, LT, LU, LV, MS, MT, MU, MV, MY, 07/10/2020 – 20/10/2020
MZ, NA, NB, NC, PD, PE, PF, PG, PH 21/10/2020 – 05/11/2020
PJ, PK, PL, PM, PN, PP, PR, PS, PT, 06/11/2020 – 19/11/2020
An emission test is required to be carried out within a 7 day period before the police MOT inspection. These tests are carried out by approved garages and cost TL 30.00 . No appointment is usually necessary.
The procedure is as follows
- Arrange emissions test and obtain certificate
- Visit local tax office and take vehicle log book, driving licence, insurance documents, road tax certificate, emissions test certificate plus old MOT & old emissions test certificate.
- Pay fee: TL 265 (Jan 20) and obtain a receipt. ( If one day late, a fine will be added to the cost )
- Arrange for engine to be cleaned if dirty. Part of the inspection is to compare the engine number with the number in log book to ensure they are the same. Please make sure the engine block number is visible.
- Take vehicle to the Police MOT testing centre during the allocated time period and have ready all vehicle documents detailed above and the tax office receipt.
- If the vehicle passes, an MOT certificate valid for appropriate number of years will be issued.
Vehicle Road Tax
Road tax for vehicles in the TRNC is due annually on the anniversary of your registering the vehicle. Tax due varies according to which weight category the vehicle comes within and whether the fuel used is petrol or diesel.
To renew, you require the old tax disc and current MOT certificate plus the relevant fee.
Can now be done online:
Selling/Buying a Second Hand Vehicle
When buying a used car from a private source, the procedure for the logbook update has changed as of JULY 2020. The TR2 Form which was used before is no longer needed. As indeed there is no requirement for a Muhktar’s letter. The new procedure is, the buyer and the seller, together with the relevant car documents and passports plus copies, must attend the tax office and make the vehicle title change together. If the seller is not in the country, the buyer will need to get a Notary’s letter informing the Tax Office that this person is not in the country. This is the only way you can re-register a vehicle from now on.
Landmark Estates disclaimer
While the information within this website site is periodically updated, no guarantee is given that any information provided in this website will be correct, complete, and/or up-to-date.
All materials are provided for general information purpose only and do not constitute any legal or other professional advice on any subject matter. Landmark does not accept any responsibility for any losses which may arise from reliance on any information contained on this site.