Germany → Netherlands

Driving in the Netherlands when you know Germany

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

Driving to the Netherlands 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 the Netherlands?: In the Netherlands you drive on the right.
What is the speed limit in the Netherlands?: 100 km/h on motorways, 100 km/h on dual carriageways, 80 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 the Netherlands?: The legal limit in the Netherlands is 0.5 g/l. Drivers who passed their test recently are held to 0.2 g/l.
What do you have to carry in your car in the Netherlands?: Nothing. The Netherlands requires no equipment by law.

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

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 (11)

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

Netherlands · destination100 km/hDuring the day, 06:00 to 19:00, on nearly all motorways. In the evening and at night most rise to 120 or 130, and a few routes are 130 all day. The overhead matrix signs always show the limit that applies — follow them, not the clock.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Speed limit on country roads

Critical

Germany · home100 km/hChecked 3 Aug 2026

Netherlands · destination80 km/hOrdinary roads outside built-up areas, below the autoweg class.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

Netherlands · destinationNothing — no equipment is legally requiredNothing is legally required. The government says so in as many words: you do not have to carry a warning triangle, and you do not have to carry a safety vest. You must still warn approaching traffic if your stopped car is an obstruction, but hazard lights satisfy that — which is why a triangle is useful here rather than compulsory.Checked 19 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

Netherlands · destination100 km/hThe autoweg — a main road signed with a white car on a blue rectangle, not the red-bordered motorway sign. It stays 100 all day, so in the daytime it runs at the same speed as the motorway.Checked 16 Aug 2026 · official source

Alcohol limit for drivers who passed their test recently

Important

Germany · home0 g/lZero alcohol for the two-year probationary period and for anyone under 21.Checked 3 Aug 2026

Netherlands · destination0.2 g/lFor the first five years of holding a licence.Checked 14 Sep 2026 · official source

Youngest age you may drive

Important

Germany · home18 years17 is possible only in the accompanied-driving scheme, within Germany.Checked 3 Aug 2026

Netherlands · destination17 yearsUnder 18 you may only drive with a registered coach beside you, and you must carry the coach pass. On your own, 18.Checked 16 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

Netherlands · destination

Engine up to 50 cc
Top speed up to 45 km/h

A Dutch car licence (B) gets category AM added automatically, with no extra exam — that rule is on the Rijksoverheid licence page. AM covers mopeds, scooters, light mopeds, speed pedelecs and microcars. The RDW defines the light two-wheeler class they belong to by both limits at once: an engine of at most 50 cc and a top speed of 45 km/h. Nothing larger is covered. The RDW page on foreign licences does not say whether a foreign B licence gets the same allowance.Checked 2 Sep 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

Netherlands · destination16 yearsTheory test from 15 and a half, practical test and licence from 16.Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source

Riding between lanes of slow traffic

Good to know

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

Netherlands · destinationAllowedRiding between the cars in a traffic jam is allowed. The law does not regulate it; a code of conduct does. Keep to the gap between the two left-hand lanes and ride no more than 10 km/h faster than the cars.Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source

Headlights on a motorbike in daytime

Good to know

Germany · homeRequired at all timesDipped headlight or daytime running lights must be on in daylight.Checked 2 Sep 2026

Netherlands · destinationOnly in poor visibilityArticle 32 of the RVV 1990: dipped headlights at night, and by day only when visibility is seriously reduced. The same rule as for cars. Riding with the headlight on all day is advised but not required.Checked 2 Sep 2026 · official source

Low-emission zones

Good to know

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

Netherlands · destinationIn some citiesZones in Amsterdam, Arnhem, The Hague and Utrecht apply to DIESEL cars only, by emission class — petrol and electric cars always enter. Check a diesel's plate on the government's milieuzones.nl before driving in.Checked 6 Aug 2026 · official source

Known on one side only (11)

Which side you overtake on

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