How can I get a 1968 international driving permit (French citizen, US permanent resident, with a US driving license converted from a French license)?

Question

How can I get a 1968 international driving permit?

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My situation:

• I am French citizen, US permanent resident, and holding a US driving license (converted from a French license),
• My French driving license is being kept in the French Consulate at Boston, Massachusetts, as I converted my French driving license to a US driving license.

I believe that the American Automobile Association (AAA) in the United States only distributes 1949 international driving licenses.

If this is an option, I would prefer to get a 1968 international driving permit in the US, ideally not too far from San Francisco.

Answer 1

Because the US has not signed the 1968 convention, much less ratified it, you cannot get a 1968 permit on the basis of a US license. That your license was obtained in exchange for a French license does not change this.

Therefore, you can only get a 1968 permit on the basis of your French license. In addition, such a permit is not valid unless accompanied by your French license. So as long as your French license is impounded in the French consulate, you will be unable to get a 1968 permit.

Whether and how the French authorities would be willing to issue a permit to you depends on some other circumstances, first if all whether you maintain "résidence normale" in France.