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Driving in Morocco: license, tolls, roads and what you need to know
Your home country license is valid for one year in Morocco, and an international driving permit is still recommended. Carry dirhams for tolls, drive by day and stay away from flooded wadis. If you bring your own car, customs registers it in your name for six months a year at most.
For driving in Morocco, your home country license is valid for one year after you arrive, and an international driving permit is still recommended. Highways are good and charge tolls, national roads are riskier, and driving at night outside cities is best avoided. If you come with your own car, customs registers it in your name for six months at most per calendar year.
This guide is about the road itself: paperwork, ferries, tolls, rules, mountain passes, fuel and accidents. For rentals (deposit, deductible, choosing a company), read our article on renting a car in Morocco.
Your license for driving in Morocco
According to France Diplomatie, the French foreign ministry's website, a foreigner may drive on a valid license from their own country. This allowance lasts one year at most from arrival. The rule covers all foreign licenses, not just French ones.
An international driving permit also lets you drive for as long as it is valid, up to one year. In France, you apply for it on the ANTS website. Elsewhere, contact the authority that issues driver's licenses in your country. After one year, you must exchange your license for a Moroccan one or take the test again.
Visas, on the other hand, depend on your nationality. Check your own case on our Morocco entry requirements page.
Young drivers should know this too: decree no. 2-10-420 limits drivers on a probationary license to 90 km/h. The German automobile club ADAC applies this limit to anyone who has held a license for less than a year.
Coming to Morocco in your own car
Crossings from Europe
From Europe, you arrive by car on a ferry. During Operation Marhaba 2026, which ran from June 5 to September 15, the official routes linked Spain, France and Italy to Moroccan ports. Here are the main ones, with the crossing times given by the LesMRE website.
| Route | Approximate duration |
|---|---|
| Tarifa to Tanger Ville | About 1 hr |
| Algeciras to Tanger Med | About 1 hr 30 min |
| Motril to Tanger Med | 4 to 5 hrs |
| Almería to Nador | About 6 hrs |
| Sète to Tanger Med | 36 to 40 hrs |
| Marseille to Tanger Med | 42 to 46 hrs, in season |
| Genoa to Tanger Med | 48 to 52 hrs |
Sailings are less frequent out of season. Check schedules with the ferry companies before booking.
At customs: temporary admission
When you arrive, customs takes charge of the vehicle and registers it in your name. According to Bladi.net (July 2026), a foreign-registered car may stay six months at most per calendar year, in one or several stays. The rule applies to foreign tourists and to Moroccans living abroad alike.
Once the six months are used up, the car cannot come back under this regime the same year, even with someone else driving. It must leave before the deadline. Otherwise, it has to be cleared through customs and the duties paid.
Keep the document you receive at entry with you. You will be asked for it at checkpoints.
For a borrowed car, Bladi.net (June 2025) says customs requires a written, signed authorization from the owner, with a copy of their ID. The article is aimed at Moroccans living abroad, so have the rule confirmed for your own case. The ADAC also advises declaring any fuel you carry in jerry cans when you enter.
Watch out
Even if it is damaged or broken down, your car stays tied to your name with customs. If the situation is not settled, you can be prevented from leaving Morocco. Never leave it in a garage without customs' approval.
Insurance: your green card must cover Morocco
Morocco is part of the green card system, under the code MA. Check that your insurer has not crossed out the country. If it has, you can buy border insurance on arrival, according to the ADAC.
In France, insurers stopped issuing green cards on April 1, 2024. For Morocco, however, MAIF points out that the document is still required at the border: ask your insurer for the new “international motor insurance card.” In Belgium, Test-Achats notes that Morocco does not accept the electronic version. So print it out, whatever country you come from.
Papers to keep in the glove compartment:
- your license, plus the international driving permit if you have one;
- your passport;
- the original vehicle registration;
- the insurance certificate valid in Morocco;
- the temporary admission document issued by customs;
- the owner's authorization if the car is not yours.
Highways and tolls
The Autoroutes du Maroc (ADM) network has about 1,800 km of toll roads, according to TollGuru (September 2026). It links Tangier, Rabat, Casablanca, Fez, Oujda, Marrakech, Safi and Agadir, among others.
You can pay in cash, in dirhams, at every toll plaza. Bank cards work only in some lanes, mostly at the large plazas. The Jawaz tag is for electronic toll lanes. Tourists don't need one. With a rental car, ask the company whether a tag is fitted and how its balance is billed.
| Trip (car) | Approximate toll |
|---|---|
| Casablanca to Rabat | 25 DH |
| Casablanca to Marrakech | 83 to 89 DH depending on the entrance |
| Kenitra to Tanger Med | 87 to 89 DH |
Sources: TollGuru (September 2026) and OneClickDrive (July 2026). Rates may change.
Our advice
Keep a supply of 20 and 50 dirham bills and some coins in the door pocket. Cash is the only payment accepted everywhere.
France Diplomatie describes traffic as smooth on six sections, including Rabat to Tangier and Casablanca to Marrakech. It urges caution on Rabat to Casablanca, the busiest route. It also reports stones thrown from some bridges. The mountain highway between Marrakech and Agadir is known to be very dangerous, especially on the descent toward Agadir.
The rules for driving in Morocco
Speed limits come from decree no. 2-10-420: 60 km/h in built-up areas, 100 km/h outside them and 120 km/h on highways. Some major urban roads go up to 80 km/h. The ADAC also reports 40 km/h urban zones, so follow the signs.
Drunk driving is penalized from 0.20 grams of alcohol per liter of blood. The ADAC even describes it as zero tolerance. Don't drink at all before you drive.
Seat belts are mandatory. Phones are allowed only with a hands-free kit.
| Offense | Class | Fine | Paid within 24 hrs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Running a red light or stop sign | 1st | 700 DH | 400 DH |
| Crossing a solid line | 1st | 700 DH | 400 DH |
| Speeding by 30 to 50 km/h | 1st | 700 DH | 400 DH |
| Holding a phone | 2nd | 500 DH | 300 DH |
| Failing to yield | 2nd | 500 DH | 300 DH |
| Speeding by less than 20 km/h | 3rd | 300 DH | 150 DH |
Sources: law 52-05 and the DreamJob.ma schedule (October 2026).
Speeding by 50 km/h or more is a criminal offense. It costs 4,000 to 8,000 dirhams and a license suspension of one to three months.
Watch out
If you cannot show an address in Morocco, the law allows the car to be impounded until the fine is paid. Pay on the spot and ask for a receipt.
Right of way and roundabouts
The default rule is to yield to traffic from the right, unless a sign says otherwise. At roundabouts marked with a yield sign at each entrance, you give way to vehicles already on the ring. At an older roundabout with no sign, traffic from the right still has priority. So look at the signs at every entrance.
Police checks and speed cameras
The police handle checks in town, the Royal Gendarmerie on the open road. The ADAC advises approaching slowly and stopping or pulling away only when officers signal you to.
Morocco uses fixed and mobile speed cameras. Since June 16, 2025, fixed cameras have been monitoring both directions of traffic at once, according to Hespress.
Driving in Morocco off the highway: national roads, passes and tracks
Off the highways, the road network varies a lot from one region to another. The French foreign ministry describes national roads as well maintained but sometimes narrow, with heavy traffic. It names Casablanca to Marrakech and Casablanca to El Jadida as the most dangerous. It advises against driving at night and advises inexperienced drivers not to drive at all. Check your own government's travel advice as well.
The greatest caution and strict compliance with the rules are therefore absolute requirements.
A quarter of the people killed on the roads are pedestrians, according to the national road safety agency (NARSA), cited by France Diplomatie. In town and in the countryside alike, expect pedestrians, carts, animals and two-wheelers to appear out of nowhere.
The Tizi n'Tichka pass and snow
National road 9 links Marrakech to Ouarzazate over the Tizi n'Tichka pass, at around 2,200 meters. From November to March, snow often falls there. The pass was closed on December 16, 2025, then on January 3 and 20, 2026, because of snow and rockfalls.
In winter, check road conditions the day before. During the storms of January 2026, the Ministry of Equipment asked drivers to call the hotline of the General Directorate of Roads at 05 37 71 17 17.
Wadis and flash floods
After heavy rain, wadis (seasonal riverbeds) can cut the road. On February 7, 2026, a flash flood swept away a car near Tétouan: four people died and one went missing.
Watch out
Never cross a submerged ford or low-water crossing, even if it looks shallow. The Ministry of Equipment asks drivers to avoid “any risk-taking” at these crossings during floods. Wait for the water to go down or turn back.
Dirt tracks
The tracks that link the main roads are poorly maintained, and France Diplomatie advises against off-road driving. In the Guelmim region, some areas are still mined: on a motorcycle or in a 4x4, tell the Gendarmerie or local authorities your route. In Western Sahara, any trip off the paved coastal road requires prior approval from the Royal Gendarmerie or the Royal Armed Forces. The coastal route to Mauritania should not be driven at night.
Fuel: prices and gas stations
Pump prices change often. After the drop on October 16, 2026, diesel averaged around 15.61 dirhams a liter nationwide and unleaded gasoline around 15.33 dirhams, according to Hespress. In Casablanca, diesel was posted at 15.90 to 15.98 dirhams.
According to France Diplomatie, fuel is easy to find in towns and harder in the countryside. In the south and in the mountains, fill up as soon as the tank is half empty.
Parking, attendants and medinas
Medinas are pedestrian areas. Park in a lot outside and walk the rest of the way. Your riad can tell you where the nearest one is.
On the street, attendants in vests watch cars for a few dirhams. In Casablanca, the rate set by the municipal councils is 5 dirhams, according to Bladi.net (July 2025). Drivers there nonetheless report being asked for 10 to 20 dirhams. Ask the price before you walk away from the car.
France Diplomatie advises against parking in isolated places, by the roadside or on beaches. The ADAC also notes that parking is prohibited within 5 meters of an intersection in town and 10 meters outside built-up areas. A curb painted red and white means no parking.
If you have an accident
Call the police at 19 in town, or the Royal Gendarmerie at 177 outside built-up areas. The fire department answers at 15. These numbers are provided by France Diplomatie.
For minor damage with no injuries, a joint accident report (constat amiable) is enough. According to the ADAC, the form is sold at tobacco shops. If anyone is injured, always call the police.
Our advice
Don't sign an accident report written in a language you can't read. Leave with the police report, or at least its number: without it, leaving the country can get complicated.
With a foreign-registered car, notify your insurer and the Moroccan Central Bureau of Insurance Companies. After a serious accident, also contact customs to settle what happens to the vehicle. With a rental car, call the company at the number on the contract.
Embassy addresses and other useful numbers are on our Morocco page. Before you set your dates, also check our calendar of festivals in Morocco: it will help you spot the peak travel periods.
Frequently asked questions
Can I drive in Morocco with a French, Belgian or Swiss license?
Yes. Any valid foreign license lets you drive in Morocco for one year after you arrive. France Diplomatie still recommends an international driving permit for all drivers.
How long can a foreign car stay in Morocco?
Six months at most per calendar year, in one or several stays. After that, it must leave or be cleared through customs. It cannot come back under this regime the same year.
Can I pay tolls by card?
Only sometimes. Cards work in some lanes at the large toll plazas, but not everywhere. Cash in dirhams is accepted at every plaza.
Is driving in Morocco at night a good idea?
France Diplomatie advises against it. Outside towns, pedestrians, carts and two-wheelers are often out with no lights. Plan your stages so you arrive before dark.
Where can I find more information before I leave?
Check your entry requirements on our entry requirements by country page. For rental cars, read our dedicated guide.