Before you start

A valid carte de séjour, or the récépissé plus a residence certificate less than three months old
Your original foreign licence, still valid
A translation into Arabic or French if the licence is in another language
Identity photographs and the fee

Step-by-step

1
Check whether your country has a reciprocity agreement
Exchange is only available where Morocco and the issuing state recognise each other's licences. Most of western Europe does. If yours does not, there is no exchange and no appeal — plan for lessons and tests instead.
OnlineWho: YouBefore month 12
2
Assemble the file and apply through NARSA
The application goes through NARSA's services portal and its regional office. You surrender the original foreign licence, which is sent for verification with the issuing authority abroad. Fees are a few hundred dirhams including stamps.
OnlineWho: You≈MAD 700 including timbres
3
Drive on the provisional permit while they verify
NARSA issues a provisional licence valid around sixty days while it authenticates your original with the foreign authorities. That verification is the slow step and is entirely out of your hands — if your embassy is slow to answer, so is your licence.
In personWho: You≈60 days
4
If there is no agreement, start the Moroccan test route
Enrol at an auto-école, take the code (theory) and then the conduite (practical). Instruction is generally in Darija or French. This is a matter of weeks to months and costs several thousand dirhams — meaningfully more than an exchange.
In personWho: You
5
Think hard before buying a car in Casablanca
Parking in Gauthier, Racine and Maârif is genuinely difficult and informal gardiens expect a few dirhams every time. Traffic on the ring road and the coastal approaches is heavy for long stretches of the day. The tram plus petits taxis covers most professional life in the central districts at a fraction of the cost and stress.
In personWho: You
6
Understand petit taxi conventions before you rely on them
Red petits taxis are metered and shared — a driver picking up a second passenger going your way is normal, not an attempt to overcharge. Insist on the meter (compteur) rather than negotiating; grands taxis, the older white Mercedes, run fixed inter-city routes and are a different service entirely.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Original foreign driving licence
Translation into Arabic or French, where required
Carte de séjour or récépissé with a residence certificate under three months old
Passport and legalised copy
Identity photographs

Things most newcomers don’t know

The twelve-month clock runs from taking up residence, not from arrival as a tourist.

The exchange window is tied to establishing residence in Morocco, which for most people means the date on the carte de séjour or its récépissé. That is helpful — a few months spent house-hunting on a visa-free stay does not eat the window — but it also means the clock starts on a date you may not have noticed. Note it, and start the exchange around month eight rather than month eleven.

Source: NARSA

You hand over the original licence and get it back only through NARSA's verification chain.

NARSA sends your licence to the issuing authority abroad to confirm it is genuine. During that period you hold a sixty-day provisional Moroccan permit. If the verification runs long — and it does for some countries — you can find yourself between documents. If you need to drive in a third country during that period, plan around it, and consider getting an international permit before you surrender anything.

Source: NARSA

Reciprocity, not competence, decides whether you get to skip the test.

It has nothing to do with how long you have driven or how good your record is. If your issuing country has no agreement with Morocco, an experienced driver of thirty years takes the same code and conduite as a teenager. Check the list before you plan; several English-speaking countries are not on it, and people assume a European-style mutual recognition that does not exist.

Source: NARSA

Casablanca's tramway is the reason not to own a car, and it now has four lines.

The network was extended to four tram lines plus two busway corridors in September 2024, roughly 73 km and over a hundred stations, and it connects the centre, Sidi Maârouf, Ain Diab and the eastern districts. Combined with metered petits taxis it covers most of a professional life here. Newcomers buy a car in month one out of habit and spend the next year looking for parking in Maârif.

Source: Casa Transport

Common mistakes to avoid

Letting the twelve-month exchange window lapse and losing the right to convert.
Assuming your country has a reciprocity agreement without checking NARSA's list.
Surrendering your original licence without allowing for a trip abroad during verification.
Negotiating a petit taxi fare instead of insisting on the meter.
Buying a car before living in the city long enough to know whether you need one.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.