AATA International Driving Permit: Who They Are, Cost and How to Apply (2026)
AATA — the American Automobile Touring Alliance — is the second of only two organizations authorized by the US State Department to issue International Driving Permits, and it charges about $20. You apply online with your documents uploaded, and AATA mails the permit to you.
- Legitimate: yes, on the same legal footing as AAA.
- Based on: the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic.
- Best for: anyone without a convenient AAA branch.
- Not for: same-day needs — nothing is handed over a counter.
An IDP is a translation of the US license you already hold. It has no standing on its own and never replaces your license.
Who AATA Actually Is
AATA is the American Automobile Touring Alliance. If you have never heard of it, that is unsurprising — it does not run roadside assistance advertising or have branch offices on suburban main streets. What it does have is the one thing that matters here: standing authorization from the US State Department to issue International Driving Permits to holders of US driver licenses.
That authorization is not a broad commercial licence. Under the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic, each participating country nominates the bodies allowed to issue permits to its own drivers. The United States nominated two: AAA and AATA. There is no third. State DMVs cannot issue IDPs, embassies cannot issue them, and the dozens of websites selling international driver licenses are not issuing anything with legal standing at all.
Where AATA operates: its IDP service runs at aataidp.com. The whole service is remote — application in, permit out by post. There is no counter to visit, which is both its main strength and its main limitation.
Is AATA Legitimate? Yes, and Here Is How to Verify It
This is the most-asked question about AATA, and the reason is straightforward: name recognition. AAA is a household brand and AATA is not, so travellers reasonably wonder whether the less familiar option is a knock-off. It is not. Both derive their authority from the same designation, and neither is more official than the other.
The permit is identical
Same 1949 Geneva Convention booklet, same one-year validity, same translations, same recognition abroad. A border officer or rental agent has no reason to treat an AATA-issued permit differently from a AAA-issued one, and no basis on which to do so.
How to check for yourself
Look up international driving permits on travel.state.gov. The State Department names the authorized issuers directly. If an organization is not on that list, it cannot issue you a valid IDP no matter how official its website looks.
What is not legitimate
Sites selling an international driver license, an instant or digital IDP, or a permit valid for three, five or ten years. The real permit is a physical booklet, costs about $20, and lasts one year. Price and validity are the fastest tells.
The 1949 Geneva Convention: What Your Permit Is Actually Based On
The IDP is not an invention of AAA or AATA. It comes from the 1949 Geneva Convention on Road Traffic, a postwar treaty designed to let drivers cross borders without each country having to interpret a foreign licence from scratch. The convention specifies the permit format, the languages it appears in, the vehicle categories it covers, and crucially the rule that it is only valid alongside the underlying national licence.
The United States is party to the 1949 convention, which is why the permits AATA and AAA issue are 1949 permits. More than 150 countries recognise that version. A later treaty, the 1968 Vienna Convention, produced a slightly different permit that some countries prefer, but the US does not issue it — so if a destination asks whether you hold a 1949 or 1968 permit, the honest answer for any American is 1949.
| Feature | What the 1949 permit does |
|---|---|
| Legal nature | A translation of your existing licence, valid only when carried with it. |
| Validity | One year from issue, or until your US licence expires if that comes first. |
| Recognition | More than 150 countries. |
| Who can issue it to Americans | AAA and AATA only. |
| What it cannot do | Replace your licence, restore a suspended one, or extend an expired one. |
Our what is an IDP guide goes deeper on the document itself and what it does and does not authorise.
AATA IDP Cost in 2026
The permit fee is about $20 — the same as AAA, because the fee reflects the document rather than the issuer. Where AATA differs is that shipping is always part of the picture, since the permit is posted to you rather than handed over.
| Line item | Cost | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| AATA IDP fee | about $20 | Matches AAA. No membership of anything required. |
| Standard shipping | a few dollars upward | Always applies — AATA has no counter to collect from. |
| Expedited shipping | more, varies by service | Shortens delivery only. Check current options on aataidp.com. |
| Two passport-style photos | $0 to roughly $17 | Free if you already have a spare pair from a passport application. |
| Realistic total | about $25 to $50 | Driven almost entirely by shipping speed and whether you need photos. |
For the same breakdown across both authorized issuers, see our IDP cost page. The headline to hold onto: the permit is about $20, and any quote far above that is somebody selling you something else.
How to Apply Through AATA, Step by Step
AATA's process is the closest thing to an online IDP application that legitimately exists in the United States. You submit everything digitally; only the finished permit travels by post.
- Confirm you are eligible. You need to be 18 or older and hold a valid US driver licence that will not expire during your trip. The permit expires with the licence, so a licence running out mid-trip has to be renewed first.
- Get two passport-style photos. Two inches square, colour, plain light background, recent, and identical to each other. Photo problems are the most common reason any IDP application stalls.
- Complete the AATA application form at aataidp.com. It asks for your name, address, date of birth and US licence details. Sign it.
- Upload your supporting documents. A clear copy of your valid US licence, both sides, plus your photos. Clear, flat, well-lit images — a blurry licence scan means a follow-up email and lost days.
- Pay the fee and choose your shipping. The permit fee is about $20; shipping is separate and is the lever you have over speed.
- Wait for the permit to arrive by post, then check it immediately: name spelling, licence number, photo attached, signature and stamp present. Report any error before you fly, not after.
Applying early is free. A permit can normally be issued with a future start date some months ahead, so applying well before a trip costs nothing extra and removes every timing risk. The mistake is booking the trip first and treating the permit as a last-minute errand. Our full application guide covers the form and photo specs in detail.
How Long AATA Takes
Two components: processing your application, then posting the permit. Expect the total to land in the region of one to two weeks under normal conditions, faster if you pay for expedited delivery, slower during the peak summer travel season. Confirm current timing on aataidp.com rather than relying on any third-party figure, including this one.
What AATA structurally cannot do is same day. There is no counter, so there is no scenario in which you hold the permit on the day you apply. That is not a criticism — it is simply the trade for being able to apply from your kitchen table.
Need it today? Then AATA is not your route. An in-person visit to a AAA branch that issues while you wait is the only legitimate same-day option in the United States, and even that varies by branch. Read the same-day IDP guide →
Route-by-route timings for both issuers are on our IDP processing time page.
AATA vs AAA, Side by Side
The permit is the same. Everything in this table is about how you get it and how quickly.
| Factor | AATA | AAA |
|---|---|---|
| State Department authorized | Yes | Yes |
| Permit fee | about $20 | about $20 |
| Apply online | Yes, with document upload | No — in person or by mail |
| Walk-in counters | None | Yes, at branches offering the service |
| Same-day possible | No | Sometimes, branch depending |
| How the permit reaches you | Always by post | Counter or post, depending on branch |
| Membership required | No | No |
| Convention basis | 1949 Geneva | 1949 Geneva |
For a longer treatment of the trade-offs, read the full AAA vs AATA comparison, or go straight to the AAA IDP guide if a branch is convenient for you.
When to Choose AATA Over AAA
There is no better issuer, only a better fit. Here is the honest split.
Choose AATA if
- There is no AAA branch within a sensible drive, or the ones near you do not handle International Driving Permits.
- You would rather submit everything online than take time off to stand at a counter.
- You are applying comfortably ahead of your trip, so posting time is irrelevant.
- You want to avoid assembling a physical mailing envelope with photocopies and a cheque.
- You have already been turned away by a AAA branch for a reason specific to that office.
Choose AAA instead if
- You are travelling soon and need the permit in days rather than weeks.
- A branch near you issues while you wait — the only same-day route that exists.
- You would rather have someone check your paperwork in front of you than discover a problem by email.
Choose neither if
You are being asked for far more than about $20, offered a permit valid for several years, or promised an instant digital document. Those are not IDPs. Only AAA and AATA can issue one to a US licence holder, and both issue the same one-year paper booklet.
AATA IDP: Frequently Asked Questions
Apply Through an Authorized Issuer
About $20, valid for one year, recognised in more than 150 countries. Two authorized issuers in the United States, and only two.
AATA posts the permit to you. AAA can sometimes issue at a branch the same day.