Driving in New Zealand as a Canadian
In New Zealand you drive on the left, the opposite of Canada, so the steering wheel is on the right and you go clockwise around roundabouts. Your Canadian licence is all you need to drive in New Zealand. You can't turn left on a red light, even after stopping.
Unless signposted otherwise, the limits are 50 km/h in towns, and 100 on country roads and highways. Watch for fixed, mobile, average speed and red light cameras.
New Zealand and Canada side by side
The rows in yellow are different from home.
| Rule | New Zealand | Canada |
|---|---|---|
| Drive on the | Left | Right |
| Speed units | km/h | km/h |
| Alcohol limit | 0.05 | 0.05 |
| Holding a phone | Banned | Banned |
| Turn on red | No | Yes, after stopping |
| Unmarked junctions | Traffic from the right | Traffic from the right |
| Roundabouts go | Clockwise | Counterclockwise |
The rules that catch Canadians out
The most important first.
Roundabouts go clockwise
Roundabouts go clockwise here. At home you go counterclockwise. Yield to traffic already on the roundabout, which comes from your right, so look right as you enter.
No turning left on red
You can't turn on a red light here, even after stopping. At home you can, so it's an easy habit to bring with you. Wait for green, or for a flashing arrow if one is shown.
One-lane bridges
Some bridges carry only one lane for traffic in both directions. Signs before each one show who goes first. A red circle with a small red arrow means you yield to oncoming traffic. A blue rectangle with a large white arrow means you go first, but only if the bridge is clear.
Turning right yields to turning left
If you turn right, you yield to oncoming traffic turning left, even when you both face the same sign or a green light. Any driver who is turning yields to traffic that is not turning. This rule has applied since 25 March 2012, so older advice may say the opposite.
Drive on the left
Traffic keeps left. Keep left at every intersection and every time you pull out onto a road, which is when habit is most likely to pull you to the right. At home you drive on the right.
School buses
When a school bus has stopped, you must drive at 20 km/h or less until you are well past it. This applies from both directions.
Tolls with no booths
New Zealand has three toll roads: the Northern Gateway Toll Road on SH1 north of Auckland, and the Tauranga Eastern Link and Takitimu Drive toll roads in Tauranga. There are no booths. Cameras read your licence plate, and you pay online before you travel or up to 10 days after. Pay on NZTA's Buy or pay a toll page using the vehicle's registration plate. Paying online has no fee. If a toll is unpaid 10 days after the trip, NZTA posts a toll payment notice to the registered owner, which for a rental car is the rental company. The notice adds an administration fee, which GO Rentals gave as NZ$4.90 in 2024.
12 more rules worth knowing
Mobile speed cameras without warning signs
NZTA's camera SUVs and camera trailers have no warning signs and can be set up anywhere, at any time. Fixed and average speed cameras are signposted.
Long, slow journeys
Distances look short on the map, but most roads have one lane each way, many are narrow and winding, and some are unsealed. Allow extra time, stop every two hours, and rest before a long drive after a long flight.
Passing lanes and pulling over
Most roads have one lane each way. Wait for a passing lane to pass, and never cross a yellow line on your side of the centre line. If a queue forms behind you, pull over somewhere safe and let it pass.
Flush medians
White diagonal lines painted down the middle of some urban roads are a flush median. You may drive on one briefly to turn into or out of a side road or driveway, or to wait for a gap. Passing or parking on one is an offence.
Gravel roads
Unsealed gravel roads are slippery. Keep left and slow down, and slow further for oncoming vehicles, because dust cuts visibility and loose stones chip windshields.
90 km/h for heavy vehicles and towing
Any vehicle over 3,500 kg, and any vehicle towing a trailer, must not go faster than 90 km/h, even where the limit is 100 or 110 km/h. Check the weight of a large motorhome before you set off.
Speed limits
Country roads are 100 km/h here, faster than the 80 km/h at home.
What the car must carry
The car must carry an approved child restraint for each child under 7. Rental cars should have them, but check before you drive away, because the driver gets the fine.
Transit lanes (T2 and T3)
A T2 lane is for vehicles carrying two or more people, and a T3 lane for three or more. Where: Signposted lanes on some city roads. If you are unsure whether you may use a bus or transit lane, stay out of it to avoid a fine.
Priority to the right
At a junction with no signs, signals or road markings, yield to traffic coming from your right, even from a small side street. It's the same rule as at home. If you are turning, yield to all traffic that is not turning.
Your Canadian licence is enough
With a Canadian licence, your own licence is enough. You don't need an International Driving Permit. A current licence printed in English is enough. Carry it whenever you drive.
Animals on the road
If you meet farm animals on the road, slow down and go carefully. Do not sound your horn, as it can startle them.
Open New Zealand in the app, set to a Canadian licence, and keep all of this with you offline.
Open it in the appSpeed limits compared with home
The black marks show your limits at home.
Who goes first
Priority to the right
Roundabouts go clockwise
Signs that look different from home
Yield (yield)
You must yield to all traffic, except vehicles that have stopped at a stop sign.
Speed limit
The maximum speed in km/h until another speed sign.
Variable school speed limit
A lower speed limit applies outside a school around start and finish times.
Speed camera area
A fixed safety camera is ahead.
No passing
Passing is too dangerous here.
Signs you won't know from home
You are at a one-lane bridge and oncoming traffic has priority. The small red arrow shows the direction that must yield, which is yours.
You may go onto the one-lane bridge first. The small red arrow shows that oncoming traffic must yield.
A one-lane bridge is ahead.
Cameras measure your average speed between two points on the road ahead.
A bend is ahead. The number is the recommended speed in good conditions.
Speed cameras
NZTA has run all of New Zealand's safety cameras since July 2025. Fixed cameras have warning signs. Mobile cameras in SUVs and trailers have no signs and can appear anywhere. Average speed cameras run on a growing number of roads, with signs before each section. Police officers still enforce speed limits and issue their own notices. The notice goes to the vehicle's registered owner, which is the rental company. The rental company names you to the authorities in a statutory declaration so the notice is reissued to you, and charges your card an administration fee, such as NZ$50 at one company.
Before you drive
- Your driving licenceThe physical card, not a photo or a digital licence.
- Your passportRental companies and police ask for ID.
- Approved child restraint for each child under 7A 7-year-old uses a child restraint if one is available, otherwise a seat belt. From 8, a seat belt is required.
- A way to pay the free-flow tollsNew Zealand has three toll roads: the Northern Gateway Toll Road on SH1 north of Auckland, and the Tauranga Eastern Link and Takitimu Drive toll roads in Tauranga. There are no booths. Cameras read your licence plate, and you pay online before you travel or up to 10 days after.
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Where Canadians drive next
New Zealand for drivers from elsewhere
Sources: the official New Zealand sources listed on the New Zealand guide, checked 15 October 2026.