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Road rules abroad

Germany → Italy

Driving in Italy when you know Germany

Differences first, worst-to-get-wrong first. Rules that match are folded away at the bottom.

Driving to Italy from Germany: what to check before you go

These are the key destination rules to check first. The comparison below shows every verified difference. Follow local signs and instructions on the road.

Which side of the road do you drive on in Italy?
In Italy you drive on the right.
What is the speed limit in Italy?
130 km/h on motorways, 110 km/h on dual carriageways, 90 km/h on country roads and 50 km/h in towns and cities. Those are the national default limits, which apply where no sign says otherwise.
What is the drink driving limit in Italy?
The legal limit in Italy is 0.5 g/l. Above 0.8 it becomes a criminal offence with licence suspension. Drivers who passed their test recently are held to 0 g/l.
What do you have to carry in your car in Italy?
You must carry a warning triangle and a high-visibility vest. The triangle goes at least 100 m behind the car on motorways. The vest must be worn when leaving a stopped vehicle outside towns in poor visibility — passengers included.

Read the full driving rules in Italy and the required car equipment in Italy .

Looking to rent a car? Rental agencies often have there own rules on driving ages and equipment, make sure you check with them before you travel.
We earn a commission if you book through this link, at no extra cost to you. How we make money.

What's different (9)

Speed limit on the motorway

Critical
Germany · homeNo general limitNo general limit for cars. 130 km/h is the official recommendation, and going faster can mean sharing liability after an accident. Signed limits apply on many stretches.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destination130 km/h110 in rain or snow. New drivers are capped lower for three years.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Speed limit on country roads

Critical
Germany · home100 km/hChecked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destination90 km/hSecondary roads outside towns.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

What you must carry in the car

Critical
Germany · home
  • Warning triangle
  • High-visibility vest
  • First aid kit
Triangle and vest under StVZO §53a. The first aid kit (DIN 13164) is required separately by StVZO §35h: www.gesetze-im-internet.de/stvzo_2012/__35h.htmlChecked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destination
  • Warning triangle
  • High-visibility vest
The triangle goes at least 100 m behind the car on motorways. The vest must be worn when leaving a stopped vehicle outside towns in poor visibility — passengers included.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Speed limit on a dual carriageway

Important
Germany · homeNo general limitRoads with structurally separated carriageways have no general car limit, like motorways. The 130 km/h recommendation applies. Signed limits are common.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destination110 km/hMain roads outside towns (strade extraurbane principali). 90 in rain.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Winter tyres

Important
Germany · homeRequired whenever the road is icy or snowyCondition-based, not date-based: winter tyres (3PMSF) are required whenever there is snow, slush or ice on the road, at any time of year.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationRequired where signs say soOn signed roads — most mountain and northern routes — from 15 November to 15 April: winter tyres (M+S), or approved snow chains carried on board and fitted when conditions demand.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Largest motorbike or scooter you may ride on a car licence

Important
Germany · home
  • Engine up to 50 cc
  • Power up to 4 kW
  • Top speed up to 45 km/h
A German category B licence includes class AM. The speed limit applies to every AM machine; the engine limit is for petrol engines and the power limit for diesel or electric. The rule itself is in FeV §6, which names only the EU class L1e-B; the figures are from the federal motor transport authority's licence-class table. With a short training course and no exam, drivers aged 25 or over who have held B for five years can add code B196 for 125 cc, 11 kW motorbikes. B196 is valid only inside Germany.Checked 2 Sep 2026
Italy · destination
  • Engine up to 125 cc
  • Power up to 11 kW
An Italian category B licence lets you ride motorcycles up to these limits with nothing added to it, but only inside Italy. The ministry page also caps the power-to-weight ratio at 0.1 kW/kg, which the value has no slot for. All three limits apply together. The page does not say whether a foreign B licence gets the allowance, and it does not mention the AM moped class at all.Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source

Hands-free phone calls

Good to know
Germany · homeAllowedVoice control and mounted devices with brief glances are allowed.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationAllowed, with restrictionsBuilt-in systems and a single earpiece are allowed if you can still hear with both ears. Headphones over both ears are banned.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Youngest age you may ride the smallest class of scooter

Good to know
Germany · home15 yearsUntil the 16th birthday the AM licence is valid only inside Germany.Checked 2 Sep 2026
Italy · destination14 yearsFrom 14, on Italian territory only and with no passenger. From 16 the AM licence is valid without those limits.Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source

Smallest motorbike allowed on the motorway

Good to know
Germany · home
  • Top speed at least 60 km/h
Framed as a design speed, not a vehicle class or engine size: only vehicles whose design speed is more than 60 km/h may use motorways and motor roads, so exactly 60 km/h is not enough. A 45 km/h moped does not qualify.Checked 2 Sep 2026
Italy · destination
  • Engine at least 150 cc
  • Power at least 11 kW
Art. 175 bans motorcycles below these thresholds from motorways and main roads outside towns: the engine limit is for combustion engines, the power limit for electric ones. The boundary itself is allowed (150 cc or 11 kW may enter; anything under may not). Mopeds are banned as a class whatever their size. Exception (para 2-bis): motorcycles of at least 120 cc, or at least 6 kW if electric, may enter when ridden by an adult.Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source

Known on one side only (21)

Which side you overtake on

Germany · homeLeftPassing on the right is only for vehicles turning left, and for trams.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Speed limit in rain or snow

Germany · homeNot yet verified
Italy · destination
  • Motorway — 110 km/h
  • Dual carriageway — 90 km/h
Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Speed limit for drivers who passed their test recently

Germany · homeNot yet verified
Italy · destination
  • Motorway — 100 km/h
  • Dual carriageway — 90 km/h
For the first three years after passing the test.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Turning at a red light

Germany · homeOnly where a sign allows itOnly where a green arrow plate (Grünpfeil) is mounted beside the red light, only turning right, and only after a complete stop.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Priority to traffic coming from the right

Germany · homeYes — traffic from the right goes first at unmarked junctionsRight before left at any unsigned junction, including small residential ones.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Who must wear a seatbelt

Germany · homeEveryone, in every seatChecked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Age below which a child needs a child seat

Germany · home12 yearsA child needs a seat until age 12, unless already 150 cm tall.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Height below which a child needs a child seat

Germany · home150 cmA child shorter than 150 cm needs a seat until age 12.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

How you pay for motorways

Germany · home
  • None
Motorways are free for cars and motorcycles — the toll applies to trucks. A few tunnels and private roads charge individually.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

When you must switch your headlights on

Germany · homeNot requiredRequired for motorcycles only. Cars need lights at night and in poor visibility.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Who has priority at a roundabout

Germany · homeTraffic already on the roundabout goes firstWhere the roundabout sign is posted, traffic on the circle has priority and you must not indicate on entry — only on exit. An unsigned circle falls back to right-before-left.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Parking on the pavement

Germany · homeOnly where signs or markings allow itOnly where a sign or marking explicitly allows it.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Parking facing against the traffic

Germany · homeOnly on one-way streetsPark on the right edge in the direction of travel; one-way streets allow the left.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

How far you must park from a junction or crossing

Germany · home
  • A junction — 5 m
8 m where a marked cycle path crosses.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

When winter tyre rules apply

Germany · homeNot yet verified
Italy · destination15 November to 15 AprilOn the signed roads. Fitting is tolerated a month early and a month late.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Snow chains

Germany · homeNot yet verified
Italy · destinationRequired where signs say soCarried on board they satisfy the winter rule as an alternative to winter tyres.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Riding between lanes of slow traffic

Germany · homeNot allowedWeaving between queued vehicles counts as overtaking on the right, which is banned. Passing on the left is allowed in theory but needs a full safe side gap, which a traffic jam rarely leaves. Using the emergency corridor (Rettungsgasse) is banned.Checked 2 Sep 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Low-emission zones

Germany · homeIn many citiesAround 39 Umweltzonen, including Berlin, Munich, Cologne and Stuttgart. A green windscreen sticker is required, including on foreign cars — order it before travelling.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Congestion charges

Germany · homeNot yet verified
Italy · destinationIn some citiesItaly's version is the ZTL — limited-traffic zones covering most historic centres. They are access bans, not charges: cameras read every plate, and unauthorised entry means a fine of roughly 80 to 330 euros that reaches you by post months later, via the rental company with a handling fee added. Zone boundaries and hours are signed locally and not shown by most map apps. If your hotel is inside one, ask it to register your plate.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Whether police can fine you on the spot

Germany · homeYesMinor offences up to 55 euros can be settled on the spot as a warning fine. Larger fines are billed — but drivers without a German address can be required to pay a security deposit immediately.Checked 3 Aug 2026
Italy · destinationNot yet verified

Typical fines

Germany · homeNot yet verified
Italy · destination
  • Holding a phone — fine 250–1000 EUR, possible driving ban (Licence suspended 15 days to 2 months even on a first offence.)
Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source
Same in both (11)