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I am visiting New Zealand for an extended period of time as a tourist, and stumbled upon the question of how easy is it to convert a foreign licence (e.g. US/UK/Germany) to an NZ licence. I had a look at a couple of sources:

It seems to me from reading through those that all that's needed is to turn up with a valid test-exempt foreign licence, foreign passport, some photocopies and a completed application form. Is there really no residency requirement such that a tourist could turn up and exchange their foreign licence, aside from needing an address for the application?

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  • Travel might be a good place for this Q
    – Jen
    Commented Jun 26 at 4:07
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    I feel this is more expats, not travel, but would like to see what others think.
    – Willeke ♦
    Commented Jun 26 at 8:13
  • @Willeke I'm inclined to agree; while the question concerns "tourists" it also concerns "visit for an extended period of time" and we have historically given more weight to the duration of the visit than its purpose when distinguishing the two sites.
    – phoog
    Commented Jun 26 at 11:19
  • Note that in some countries, 'exchange' means exactly that. You'll have to turn over your foreign driver's license. Because you'll still have residence (I assume) in your citizenship country, maybe it won't be much trouble to replace your 'lost' one or just get a new one.
    – mkennedy
    Commented Jun 26 at 14:14

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Is there really no residency requirement such that a tourist could turn up and exchange their foreign licence, aside from needing an address for the application?

There is no residency requirement. Residency (i.e. immigration status) and fitness/qualification to drive are separate concerns, and New Zealand does not conflate them. NZ driver's licence proves your identity, qualification to drive and, if you want so, your NZ address. It does not reflect or imply anything about your immigration status.

There are more requirements though than an NZ address. Your existing licence must be:

  1. From an exempt country
  2. Current or expired within the last 12 months
  3. Not suspended, disqualified or revoked
  4. Issued more than 2 years ago (otherwise you'll need to pass a practical driving test)

You'll also need to pass eyesight check.

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  • While it is true that residence and fitness to drive are separate concerns, it is also true that issuing driver's licenses is typically held to be a function of the driver's place of residence. Also, residence is a separate concern from immigration status for most purposes.
    – phoog
    Commented Jun 26 at 6:53
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    @phoog In NZ, "residence" (or "residency") is used to refer to an immigration status. It is equivalent of LPR in the US and ILR in the UK, and I am using this term as such. It is also what the OP seems to mean.
    – Greendrake
    Commented Jun 26 at 7:01
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    @phoog I am not saying that the term is not used in that, more mundane meaning too. The use of it as an immigration status does not preclude using it to mean something else.
    – Greendrake
    Commented Jun 26 at 7:37
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    @phoog Maybe NZ is not like most other countries then? It's also a fact that in the Cook Islands, an NZ dependency, any tourist can march into the cop shop at Rarotonga and leave 10 minutes later with a shiny new Cook Islands driving license.
    – lambshaanxy
    Commented Jun 26 at 10:35
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    @phoog How "many jurisdictions" are relevant to this question? It's specifically about NZ if you didn't notice.
    – Greendrake
    Commented Jun 26 at 11:27

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