Newcomer guide
Driving and a car
Whether your foreign license counts, how to get an Argentine one, buying and registering a car, parking and insurance. Each step links to the official City or national page, and the guide says plainly where the rule is unclear or does not exist, like a pico y placa.
Your foreign license
A foreign driver's license is accepted for driving in Argentina for a period after you arrive, but the exact term depends on your residency status and is set locally, not on one national page. Rather than trust a fixed day count, confirm the current rule on the City's license hub before you rely on a foreign license for long. Once you are a resident with a DNI showing a City address, you swap it through the City's change of jurisdiction procedure. Licenses from Spain, Italy, Peru, Bolivia, Colombia and Chile need a certificate of legality from the issuing country, and some motorcycle categories cannot be swapped at all, they have to be taken from scratch.
- Confirm the current foreign-license validity on the City license hub
- Carry your passport and your foreign license together while driving
- Get the certificate of legality from your consulate if your country is on the list
- Plan to swap for an Argentine license once you are a resident
No single national page states a universal day count for foreign-license validity. Confirm it on the City license hub or with a professional before you rely on it.
What the 2025 national decree changed, and what it did not
Decree 196/2025 made the digital license the main valid document nationwide, dropped the mandatory renewal course, and said you no longer redo the whole license when you move. Headlines turned that into licenses no longer expire and renewal is fully online. That is not the situation in the City of Buenos Aires: the City runs its own licensing rules, city licenses still carry an expiry date and renewal still includes an in person psychophysical exam. What you do online through miBA is the appointment and the forms.
- Check your expiry date, a City license still has one
- Book the turno online through miBA, then show up for the psychophysical exam
- Keep the digital license on Mi Argentina or miBA as well as the card
Adoption of the national decree differs by province and the City has not taken all of it. Trust the City page over any news headline about licenses that never expire.
Getting an Argentine license
First-time Argentine licenses in the City are issued through the City's procedure, which lists the documents you need and requires a miBA account. You book an appointment, bring your papers, take the theory and practical checks, and the license is issued on the spot when you pass. Read the official page for the current document list, since it changes and depends on your age and the category you want.
- Book an appointment through the City procedure page
- Bring the documents the page lists for your age and category
- Take the theory and practical checks on the day
Buying and registering a car
Registering a car in Argentina is handled by the Registros de la Propiedad Automotor, run by the DNRPA under the Ministry of Justice. A new 0km is registered through the RUNA system; a used car is transferred at a registry. Importing a used vehicle from abroad is a separate ARCA customs matter. Read the official step by step page for the papers, since they depend on whether the car is new, used or imported.
- Use the DNRPA hub to find your nearest registry
- For a 0km, the dealer handles RUNA; for a used car you go to the registry
- Importing a used car is a separate ARCA nationalization process
Parking in the City
Buenos Aires runs metered paid parking in much of the City through the Blinkay app, with a resident benefit that gives you free or cheaper parking near your home. The City also publishes the general parking rules, like which sides of the street and which hours apply. There is no pico y placa, a plate-number driving ban, in the City, so do not expect one.
- Get the Blinkay app for metered parking
- Register as a resident for the near-home benefit if you live in the zone
- Read the general parking rules for sides and hours
Insurance
Car insurance is mandatory and is regulated by the Superintendencia de Seguros de la Nación. There is a mandatory digital insurance certificate, the seguro digital del automotor, that proves your cover. Compare insurers and read the SSN automotor FAQ for how claims, towing and workshops work before you pick a policy.
- Buy at least the mandatory cover before you drive
- Carry the seguro digital certificate on your phone
- Read the SSN automotor FAQ before you pick a policy
Next steps
Most of getting around the City is buses, subte and bike.