Driving in Papua New Guinea: licence, roads and tolls
Part of the Papua New Guinea arrival guide.
This information may change. Always check the official source.Last verified: August 2026 by Ondřej Kadlec
Driving in Papua New Guinea: the three basics
Drives on the
left
The driver sits on the right and overtakes on the right. Roundabouts turn clockwise.
Your licence
Licence plus an IDP
Your own licence works with an International Driving Permit beside it. Get the permit at home before you fly - no country issues one for another country's licence.
Motorways
Free
There is no motorway charge for a car.
Self-driving is unusual in Papua New Guinea and the security advice, not the road rules, is what shapes the trip.
Not a self-drive country. Vehicles come with drivers, and the reasons are security rather than paperwork.
Official travel advice warns against driving alone, particularly at night and in Port Moresby, Lae and the Highlands. Carjacking is the specific risk named.
Hire almost always comes with a driver through a hotel or tour operator, and that is the normal arrangement for residents too.
There is no road link between Port Moresby and Lae or most of the country: internal flights are the transport network.
Traffic drives on the left and the roads outside towns are unsealed and rough.
The Highlands Highway is the one long route and it is driven in convoy and in daylight.
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