Do you drive on the left in Australia?

Yes, on the left, in a right-hand-drive vehicle. If you have driven on the left in a left-hand-drive car, your lane position and your instinct for controls will both be wrong at first, and the first day is the day to be careful. At intersections with no signs or lines the general Australian rule is to give way to vehicles on your right, which is the opposite of what many visitors expect.

Is there one national speed limit in Australia?

No. That framing is wrong and it causes real errors at state borders. Limits are set per road class by each state and territory, with default limits in built-up areas and posted limits elsewhere, and the numbers differ between jurisdictions. Read the signs, and check the transport authority for each state you will drive in rather than assuming a figure carries across a border.

What are the school zone rules?

The reduced limit is commonly 40 km/h, but the hours it applies differ between states and territories, some apply only on school days, and the signs state the specific times. Check the rules for each jurisdiction before you travel. Treat every school sign as active regardless of the clock: being slow costs minutes, and school zone offences are among the more heavily enforced on Australian roads.

Do I have to indicate right at a roundabout?

It varies. You always give way to vehicles already circulating, but whether you must indicate right on approach when going more than halfway around differs between jurisdictions, as does the requirement to indicate left before exiting. Indicate consistently and early, and cancel the signal after you leave, because a signal left flashing is the most common cause of another driver pulling out in front of you.

How long can I drive on my overseas licence?

The period and the conditions are set by each state and territory rather than nationally, and if you become a resident, conversion requirements apply, sometimes within a fixed window. Check the transport authority for the state you will be in before you book a vehicle, and carry your licence with you, since several states require you to produce it when asked.

Driving Down Under: The Rules an Overseas Licence Does Not Teach You

Left, and everything that follows from it

Australia drives on the left, in a right-hand-drive vehicle, and the second half matters as much as the first. If you have driven on the left before in a left-hand-drive car, your instinct for lane position is on the wrong side of the vehicle, and so is your instinct for the gear lever. The correction takes a day, and that day is the one to be careful rather than confident.

Two habits transfer badly: the left turn, which is easy in a left-hand-drive country and puts you across oncoming traffic here if taken from memory; and the right turn across a divided road, where the correct position is not where instinct puts you. State authorities publish turning rules with diagrams, worth ten minutes before you drive rather than after.

Before the first kilometre, know this: at an intersection with no signs or lines, the general rule across Australia is to give way to vehicles on your right. That is the opposite of what many overseas drivers expect, and it is the rule most often broken by visitors in the first week.

Speed limits are set by road class, not by the size of the country

The idea that Australia has one national highway limit is wrong, and it produces the error that gets expensive: assuming a number from one state applies in the next. Limits are set per road class by each state and territory and change at the border. There is no general open-road limit either — where no limit is posted, a default applies.

Road context	How the limit is set	What to do
Built-up areas and suburban streets	A default limit applies unless signs say otherwise; the default is 50 km/h in most states and territories but not all	Assume the lower default until a sign tells you otherwise, and read the sign at the entry to every town
Rural and highway roads	A posted limit per road, commonly 100 or 110 km/h depending on the state, the road standard and the section	Read the sign rather than the road. A wide straight road can still be posted below what it looks like it deserves.
School zones	A reduced limit, commonly 40 km/h, applied at set times on school days	Learn the hours for the state you are in. They are not uniform and they are enforced.
Roadworks	Temporary limits set by signage, lower than the permanent limit	Obey the sign even when no work is visible. Fines apply whether or not anyone is there.

How speed limits are set, and why the number you learned in one state may not travel

Two operational details follow. Enforcement is pervasive and mostly automated, including average-speed sections, so a limit is not a suggestion. And hire vehicles are not exempt: the fine follows the vehicle to the operator, then to you, with an administration charge on top.

Roundabouts, and the indicating rule that varies

The give-way rule is consistent: give way to vehicles already circulating. Indicating varies. In most states you indicate right on approach if you intend to turn right or travel more than halfway around, and indicate left before you exit; some jurisdictions do not require the right indication. Check the authority for the state you are in.

Multi-lane roundabouts are where visitors get caught, because the lane you enter in determines where you can exit, and the markings are sometimes worn. Follow the lane through rather than changing lane inside the circle; if you end up in the wrong lane, take the exit you are committed to and turn around later.

School zones, and why the clock matters

School zones are the clearest example of a rule that looks uniform and is not. The reduced limit is commonly 40 km/h, but the hours differ between states, some apply only on school days, and some have separate rules for different times of day. The signs state the hours in small text, read at the moment you are watching for children rather than for text.

Phones, seatbelts and the things that are stricter than you expect

Using a handheld phone while driving is illegal across Australia. What surprises visitors is the enforcement: several states use camera detection that photographs the driver rather than the phone, so an offence can be recorded without any officer seeing it. Mounted phone use for navigation is permitted in most jurisdictions but restricted, including whether a learner or provisional driver may use one at all.

Seatbelts are compulsory for all occupants, and the driver is generally responsible for passengers. Children must use an approved restraint, with state-specific rules on ages and seating positions. Read the restraint rules for each state before you travel: they are not identical, and they are enforced on the vehicle rather than the child.

Set the phone up before you move, mounted and plugged in, and do not touch it while moving.
Put the seatbelt on before you start the engine, and check passengers every time rather than once.
Know the blood alcohol limit for the state you are in and for your licence class, because it is not the same for provisional drivers.
Check whether your overseas licence is valid for the length of your stay, and for which vehicle classes, with the authority for the state you are in.
Carry your licence with you. In several states you must be able to produce it when asked.

The licence question is where a hire goes wrong at the counter. An overseas licence is generally accepted for a period, and that period and its conditions are set by each state rather than nationally. If you stay long enough to become a resident, conversion requirements apply, sometimes within a fixed window. Check before you book the vehicle rather than at the desk.

Road trains, and the rules that only exist out there

A road train is a truck pulling more than one trailer, and in parts of the Northern Territory, Western Australia and Queensland they are normal traffic. They cannot stop quickly, cannot swerve, and take a long distance to overtake. Give them room, and do not pass unless you can see enough clear road to complete it and get fully back in lane with a margin that feels excessive.

There is a road-rule dimension too. Some jurisdictions require you to move over or slow down when passing a stationary emergency vehicle with lights flashing, and the specifics differ. On a long outback road the same courtesy applies to anyone stopped on the shoulder.

The other outback rule worth knowing concerns unsealed roads. Many hire agreements exclude them entirely, and the exclusion applies regardless of whether the road is legally open. That is a contract question, decided before you leave the depot.

The one rule that exists in a single city

Melbourne has hook turns: at some central city intersections you must position to the left before turning right, to keep out of the tram lanes. They are signposted, not intuitive, and exist in one city rather than across a state. Read the rule before driving into the centre. It is the one Australian rule a competent overseas driver gets wrong by doing the correct thing.

Trams bring the rest of it. In Melbourne you generally give way to trams, and passing a stationary tram at a stop has its own rule about doors and speed. Read the state authority's tram rules before driving into the centre, and treat the hook turn as a rule to learn rather than a manoeuvre to improvise.

How to actually check, state by state

No single national page states the rules as they will apply to you, because they are legislated per jurisdiction even where identical in effect. Every state and territory authority publishes its own road rules, speed limits, school zone hours and licence conditions, free and written for drivers rather than lawyers.

The efficient method is to list the jurisdictions you will enter, in order, and check each for four things: speed limits by road type, school zone hours, phone and licence conditions, and anything unusual about the roads you plan to use. Twenty minutes per state, and the difference between driving to the rules and driving to a memory of another country's.

The last thing to check is not a rule at all. Hire conditions are set by the operator and can be stricter than the law: excluded roads, permitted areas, age limits and licence requirements are contract terms rather than road rules. Check the current rental agreement and ask the provider about your planned route and licence. The campervan hire locations across Australia page can help you choose a pickup city; also check the road rules in each state you visit.