Russian Driver's License Translation
Russian driver's license translation to English for a state DMV, an auto insurer asking for your driving history, or an employer who needs proof you held a commercial category. We translate the plastic водительское удостоверение issued by the ГИБДД since 2011, the older pink cards and the Soviet booklet, and the international permit that goes with them.
- Up to 250 words per page
- $25 per page
- Standard turnaround
- From 24 hours
- Certificate of accuracy
- Signed & stamped
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Written for Russian driver's license records
Reading the back of a Russian водительское удостоверение
The front of the card is numbered 1 to 9 on the pattern of the 1968 Vienna Convention, so a DMV clerk can find the name and dates. The table on the back is where the questions start.
Name in two scripts, and the place of birth
Fields 1 and 2 print the surname, given name and patronymic in Cyrillic with a Latin transliteration under them, and the transliteration on a license can differ from the one in your passport because the ГИБДД used its own table before switching to the passport standard. The translation follows the card as printed and notes the passport spelling if you send it. Field 3 gives the date and place of birth, field 4c the issuing ГИБДД unit by region, and field 8 the region of residence, which US insurers read as the address.
Categories, dates and the стаж line
The back lists every category the card can hold, A, A1, B, B1, C, C1, D, D1, BE, CE, DE, C1E, D1E, Tm and Tb for trams and trolleybuses, and M for mopeds, with columns 10 and 11 giving the date each category was opened and when it expires. Column 14 under the table carries стаж, the year driving experience began, carried forward from earlier licenses. That line is what an insurer uses to rate a new US policy, and we translate it as a dated statement rather than a bare number.
Restriction codes and the old formats
Column 12 carries restriction codes such as AS for an automatic transmission only and GCL for glasses or contact lenses. We expand each code in the translation rather than leaving the letters for a DMV clerk to guess at. The 1999 to 2011 pink plastic card and the laminated paper license before it use a different field order, and Soviet licenses printed the categories as letters with hand-stamped dates. A DMV that asks for the issue date of your first license may need the old card translated as well.
Who is asking for your Russian driver's license translation?
The translation is the same. What changes is whether the recipient wants anything added to it.
State DMVs
Most DMV offices accept a certified translation of a foreign license. A few want it notarized as well, so check with your office before you order.
USCIS
USCIS asks for a complete English translation and a signed certification from the translator. No notarization is needed.
US passports and the Department of State
The Department of State wants the translation notarized. Add notarization at checkout and we handle the rest.
Before you upload
Three things that save a day of back and forth on a Russian driver's license.
Scan both sides
The categories, restrictions and the issue and expiry dates are usually on the back. Upload the front and the back in one order so the translation covers the whole card.
Match the name to your passport
Tell us the English spelling you use. The translation shows the name as the license prints it and notes your spelling so the office can match both.
Ask the office which format they accept
Some DMVs want a certified translation, others want it notarized as well. Check before you order and add notarization at checkout if they ask for it.
Details and pricing
What is included in a Russian driver's license translation
One price per page covers the translation and its certification. A page is up to 250 words, and the quote tells you the page count before you pay.
Everything on the driver's license is translated, including stamps, seals and handwritten notes. Tell us the English spelling you use for each name when you order.
Certified Translation
Word-for-word translation with a certificate of accuracy for official use.
$25
USD / page
up to 250 words per page
Included
- Signed & stamped certification of translation accuracy
- Certified by a professional translator
- Digital delivery via PDF
- Review and approve final translation
- 100% Guaranteed Acceptance
- Standard turnaround starting at 24 hours
Optional services
- Expedited turnaround
- Priority handling when your deadline is shorter than the standard turnaround.
- By deadline
- Notarization
- A notary public signs and stamps the certification statement.
- $20 per order
- Physical copy
- A wet-ink original of your translation, mailed by express courier.
- $35 per order
- Apostille
- Authenticates the notary’s signature and seal for use in Hague Convention countries.
- $180 per document
What the certificate of accuracy states
Your translation arrives with a Certification of Translation Accuracy issued by ImmiTranslate. It is the page the receiving organization checks first.
- The translation is complete and accurate.
- The document title and the language pair.
- The translator is competent in both languages.
- A signature and the ImmiTranslate certification stamp.
- Our American Translators Association corporate membership.
Our translation process
Our goal is to make the translation process as simple as possible for you. Our service is streamlined specifically for documents of this nature.
Russian Driver's License FAQ
Most questions about pricing and turnaround can be answered faster by requesting a quote.
- Will a US state exchange my Russian license for a state license?
- Most states have no reciprocity agreement with Russia, so you take the written and road tests, and the translation serves to prove your driving experience, shorten a learner's period or satisfy an insurer. A few states let a holder of a valid foreign license drive for a set period after arrival. Check the DMV page for your state; we translate what it asks for and certify it.
- Do I need the international driving permit translated too?
- The международное водительское удостоверение is a booklet printed in several languages, English among them, and it is itself a translation of your national license, so most offices do not need it translated. What they do need is the national card, because the permit is only valid together with it. If the permit has handwritten entries in Russian, categories or restrictions, send it and we translate those pages.
- Can an American drive in Russia on a US license?
- A US license is accepted in Russia for a visitor, but a traffic officer may require a notarized Russian translation or an international permit because the US license has no Cyrillic text. Anyone who takes up residence must exchange it for a Russian license within a set period, and the ГИБДД wants a notarized translation for that exchange. We translate the license into Russian and can notarize it; the ГИБДД may ask a Russian notary to certify the translator's signature instead.
- How much does a certified translation cost?
- Certified translation is $25 per page, with a page counted as up to 250 words. Notarization, a mailed physical copy and an apostille are optional and priced separately.
- How long does a certified translation take?
- Standard turnaround starts at 24 hours and depends on the length and language of your documents. If you have a deadline, include it in your quote request.
Other Russian documents we translate
Driver's license translation in other languages
Each of these pages is written for that language's driver's license records.
Sending it with an application? Read the Certified translations, Notarized translations before you order.