Drivers Licences

In Queensland, foreigners are permitted to drive only if they hold a valid drivers licence issued under the law of their foreign country. Your foreign drivers licence must be present with you at all times when driving in Queensland. If you become an Australian citizen you are not permitted to drive on a foreign license after 3 months of obtaining Australian citizenship.

Driver’s Licence Fee’s

1 year licence - $23.75 AUD
2 year licence - $33.00 AUD
3 year licence - $42.25 AUD
4 year licence - $51.50 AUD
5 year licence - $60.75 AUD

Speed Limits Queensland

Areas	Speed Limits
School Zones	40 km/hour
Built up Residential Areas	50 km/hour unless stated otherwise
Open Roads/ Signed residential areas	60 km/hour
Open Roads/ Signed motorways	Designated sign speeds/Varying speed limits
Highways/Freeways	100-110km/hour
Note: Km= kilometers

Road Rules

Every passenger seated in a vehicle must wear a seatbelt at all times. It is also illegal to drive whilst under the influence of alcohol. Drivers who are on their open licence are permitted to have an alcohol blood level of 0.05%. If however drivers are only on their provisional licence they must have a 0% blood alcohol level at all times of operating a motorised vehicle.

Car Hire on the Gold Coast
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There are privately owned individual dealers availableon the Gold Coast as well as the larger recognised companies such as Thrifty, Eurocar, Avis and Hertz in the Gold Coast/Brisbane region. Generally, car hire is inexpensive from as little as $30.00 per day.


Purchasing a Vehicle

It is always beneficial to purchase a brand new vehicle. Buying from a dealer is the safer option rather than private transactions as car dealers are legally required to include a warranty on the car for a time period after the purchase. Private dealers can be unreliable and dishonest with the state of the vehicle.

Used cars can range in price anywhere from $1000.00 - $30 000 depending on what type of motor vehicle you were seeking.

New cars can range anywhere between $10, 000 and $100,000 depending also on what type of motor vehicle you were looking to purchase.

Car Insurance and Registration

There are many insurance companies looking to obtain your business, however one of the more reliable and trustworthy companies to insure your car with is RACQ, a Queensland Insurance company for Motor vehicle, house and contents etc.

RACQ also offers services whereby they have 24 hour assistance. If your car breaks down in the middle of the night, or in the middle of nowhere they willingly come to you and fix your vehicle. If there is a situation whereby your vehicle will need time to be fixed, they will offer a complimentary vehicle and accommodation.

Registration however is separate and is payable to Queensland Department of Transport with the choice of paying 6 monthly or 12 monthly. Often it is beneficial financially to register your vehicle on a 12 monthly basis.

Roadworthy Certificate

It is customary for car dealerships to roadworthy their vehicles before selling them to consumers. Basically roadworthiness is referring to the motor vehicle and is issued by certified mechanics on inspection of the vehicle. This is to ensure that your vehicle is safe to drive on the roads with other cars. Often mechanics will vary in costs to conduct a Road worthy on your vehicle. Your car will not be eligible for registration without a Roadworthy certificate. If the mechanic finds a problem with your vehicle they will not issue a Roadworthy until the problem has been rectified.

Petrol Costs

Generally the cost of fuel fluctuates anywhere between 60 cents and 99 cents. There is no set price of petrol and it is subject to change without notice. It is difficult to pin point the price of petrol with the constant fluctuations of world petrol prices.

Public Transportation

There are various forms of transport available in the South East Queensland region. The Gold Coast have many local bus routes that covers a wide area of the Gold Coast region.

There are also four train stations on the Gold Coast Coomera, Helensvale, Nerang and Robina, and stations situated in most suburbs of Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast.

There are also taxis and limousines and ferries available to most regions on the Gold Coast. Ferries are restricted to areas of Southport and Sanctuary Cove and are mostly only available with prior booking.