Riding a motorbike with no licence at all is one of the most expensive administrative violations on Vietnamese roads. Article 18 of Decree 168/2024/NĐ-CP sets the fine at 2,000,000–4,000,000 VND for a rider without a licence on a bike up to and including 125 cc, and 6,000,000–8,000,000 VND on anything bigger. The same band applies to riding with a licence that has been fully point-deducted, forged, or issued by no competent authority.

What counts as “no licence”

The article treats several situations the same. Having no licence at all is the obvious one. But riding on a licence whose points have all been deducted, riding with a licence class that does not cover the machine, and riding on a forged or foreign-invalid document are all punished as not meeting the conditions to drive. For visitors, the common version is subtler: a national licence from a non-1968-convention country, carried without any recognised permit, does not become a licence by being photographed and laminated. It is treated the same as no licence.

Beyond the fine

The monetary penalty is the beginning. The rider’s case feeds into the licence-points system where applicable, the bike can be held, and the owner who supplied the machine faces their own Article 32 penalty of 8,000,000–10,000,000 VND for lending to an unqualified rider. If the unlicensed rider causes an accident, the 10,000,000–14,000,000 VND accident band and potential criminal liability take over, and insurance positions unravel quickly.

Why the bands are split at 125 cc

The 125 cc line mirrors the A1 licence class: up to and including 125 cc, an A1 licence is enough; anything above belongs to class A. The law prices the violation by the power of the machine being ridden illegally, which is why a licence-less rider on a big bike faces a fine in the same range as running a red light or riding counterflow.

For renters

Shops ask for licence evidence because they know these numbers. A tourist who rents without a licence is not making a paperwork error — they are riding inside one of the heavier fine bands, with the shop’s own deposit and Article 32 exposure attached. Check what your home licence and IDP actually cover before riding, not after a checkpoint.

Information, not legal advice. Verified against Decree 168/2024/NĐ-CP and Law 36/2024/QH15 on 2026-09-22.